When I was a Senior Lecturer in the Lincoln School of Media, I had a bright idea. At the time I was teaching on an employability module, and it struck me that the people who know best about what happens to graduates were probably – graduates, and that their experiences would be of great value to current students (and staff!) Not an original thought, but one which, with the help of David Sleight and other colleagues, led to the LSM Alumni Network, which operates mainly through its blog. At the heart of the blog are alumni stories, contributed voluntarily by graduates, and published largely verbatim. http://lsm.alumni.lincoln.ac.uk/
The success of the LSM network is now reflected in remarkable levels of blog readership across 67 countries, the number of graduates who have contributed their post-graduation stories (case studies, if you will,) and the quality of those stories. The University has now recognised that a school / faculty alumni blog is potentially a valuable enhancement to employability education and outcomes, a powerful marketing tool and an instrument for curriculum change. This recognition has led to my availability to other schools as an independent consultant, with a brief to help them develop their own alumni networks.
If you are interested either in presenting your existing alumni-related web content in a more engaging and productive way, or in starting an alumni network from scratch, I hope this blog may encourage you and enable you to learn from the experience of others. I would also be pleased to discuss your needs in the near future. Contact me.
What others have said about the LSM alumni blog:
“…….thanks so much for letting me see this which I think is great. I can see it may well offer a model for other parts of the university and indeed to link into our more general careers work.” Professor Mary Stuart, Vice Chancellor, University of Lincoln, 2009
“This is an outstanding initiative. It mustn’t be allowed to die.” Professor Brian Winston, Lincoln Chair,General Media Humanities and Performance, Faculty of Media Humanities and Performanc,2009