once a student – always an alumnus: remaining virtually connected diana slevin director of alumni...
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Once a student – always an alumnus:Remaining virtually connected
Diana Slevin
Director of Alumni Relations and Fundraising The Open University, UK
The Workshop Issues
How can IT be used to keep students as part of a wider community after courses are over?
What challenges do alumni organisations face in harnessing the internet to maintain contact with former students?
Initial Questions
Who are the alumni? Why stay in touch? What are the mechanisms? What are the challenges? What is the key? How measure the outcomes? Challenges for the workshop.
Who are the alumni?
Former students Not just graduates Not all interested Not just yours!
What is your alumni profile?
Non homogenous group However similar at first study As diverse as the public BUT – your study in common
What are the alumni categories?
Resistors 24%
Rallyers 19%
Reconnectors 33%
Reminiscers 24%
Colleen Phelan (2000) “Advance Work: What’s Your Type?”, Currents, July/August 2000, CASE
Why stay in touch?
Bearers of your brand Advocates of the product Recruiters of students Student supporters Potential repeat studiers Volunteer workers Financial donors
What are the IT mechanisms?
Websites
Online Directories
E-newsletters
Target emails
E-research
Computer conferencing
Online events
Spin off – face to face
To: Open University Alumni Circulation 57,000Subject: OU Alumni News March 2004
Dear Alumni Colleague, Welcome to the alumni e-newsletter for March 2004
++ OPEN EYE BULLETIN TUESDAY 2 March* Interview with 18-year-old British HIV victim. And OU
scientists at forefront of space exploration. For these stories and more see the latest issue of Open Eye Bulletin, in The Independent newspaper
* If you are unable to obtain a copy of OE please note the stories are posted mid-month on our website under ‘OPEN EYE ON-LINE’ http://www.openlink.org/newsevents.htm
E-news contents ctd
TV Informationwww.open2.net
Course newswww.open.ac.uk/courses
Whats Onwww.openlink.org
Volunteer Newswww.openlink.org/engage
OU Newswww.open.ac.uk/news
Freedom of Informationwww.open.ac.uk/developmentoffice
Student Newswww.open.ac.uk/ousa
Services
E-news closing
With Best Wishes Diana SlevinDirector, Alumni Relations and Fundraising, The Open
University,Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK+44(0)1908 653815; Fax 638145; E-mail [email protected] * To register a change in email address, please email
[email protected] title ‘email address change’* To discontinue receiving the regular news update email
[email protected] title 'de-register'* To discontinue receiving the services section email
[email protected] title: 'No services”
Student CMC
E-Research
What are the challenges?
To define your alumni
To know your alumni
Accurate data
Customer Relations Management (CRM)
Meet your targets
Fulfil expectations
What is the key?
Identity Interactivity Efficiency Think alumni!
How measure the outcomes?
Traditional = € financial donations Percentage information Percentage involvement Percentage retention as alumni Re-recruitment rates Benchmarking
Summary
Historic perspective on alumni IT = new facilities for interaction The alumni link facilitates LLL Students -Alumni transitions enabled
Challenges for the workshop
Student mobility – Whose alumni are they anyway?
Which institution?
Once a student always an alumnus or – always a student? Who looks after them in the institution?
Is it worth cultivating the alumni as such?
Can your old alumni manage the new technologies?Does it matter?Can you facilitate them?
You are not alone!
Fellow alumni officers
Contact direct or Network through organisations such as CASE : Council for Advancement and Support of Education www.case.org
Website providerse.g. Internet Association Corporation www.iaccorp.com
Contact me
Diana Slevin BSc, MA (Open)
Director of Alumni Relations and Fundraising The Open UniversityWalton HallMilton KeynesMK7 6AA, UKTel +44(0)1908 655683 Fax 65Email: [email protected]: www.openlink.org OU Website: www.open.ac.uk