7 Ways to Engage Your Alumni Using Social Media

While getting a desired job in the current economy isn’t easy, associating with alumni engagement programs is no less than a savior for job seekers today. This is why universities across the globe have started using social media channels for engaging their alumni to harness its power for their students.

Below are 7 significant ways how Universities these days are using social media to connect with their former students and graduates.

  1. Networking with the Students

Associating and connecting with the students is one of the major reasons why universities are using social media channels. It is a great medium to connect the present and former students with each other.

 

Stanford University Law School sets the best example to it. By creating its own social media portal, somewhat similar to Facebook, alumni and students can collaborate through legal wikis for specific purposes. Not only engaging alumni on social media helps in connecting students with alumni, but it also builds long-term strong relationships between them. With this, students can learn more and improve their skill sets, which further help them in building their career.

  1. Help Alumni Get Jobs

Enhancing your network is the best way to find jobs and associating with the alumni engagement programs on social media like LinkedIn offers the best platform for increasing the network.

LinkedIn is said to be an effective way to offer alumni with widespread career options. Universities are using this professional social media platform to create groups and share various job opportunities with alumni by posting information regarding the same. 

  1. Raising Funds

Fundraising through alumni programs is a common practice by the universities. And using social media for this is quite an easy and efficient way. Announcing a fundraising event on a social media like Facebook, Twitter can be a very effective way for the universities to collect huge funds or gifts for various purposes. Instead of sending broadcasting emails, sending one-to-one messages in the form of comments or tweets is quite effective and interesting.   

  1. Engagement through Self-Generated Content

The University of Texas at Austin launched its new online program in form of photo sharing website where it allows alumni to share their “hook em horns hand gestured” photos along a brief introduction. This is, indeed, a new way to encourage alumni and student engagement through social media. With an idea to allow alumni to get re-associated with the school and their fellow classmates, universities are allowing alumni to produce their own content in form of wiki information, photos, videos, etc., and sharing them over social media.   

  1. Promoting the Alumni

With an increase in the popularity of social media, people have started using it as a promotional tool and universities are no behind. Universities are using various social media platforms to promote and expand their network across the globe. Several universities have multiple alumni groups on the same social media channels in order to get better exposure and visibility.

  1. Training Alumni about Social Media

There is no doubt in saying that social media is still brand new for many alumni. As such, in order to help alumni learn about using social media and various tools, MSU’s Alumni Career Services office provides tutorials and presentations on using social media for myriads of purposes.

  1. Mobile Gathering

Using social media for all the aforementioned purposes offers another advantage. You can save your environment – no need of wasting papers and printing costs. The best example of this is the Princeton University that developed its mobile application for its alumni reunion. This mobile website contains all the information about the alumni association offered in the printed version. Not only it is an environmental-friendly way of association and spreading information, but also offers important information and updates to the alumni and students in real-time.

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