Workshop Theme 6: Strengthening Alumni Relations and Enhancing Student Experience
TARGET AUDIENCE:
International education sector staff tasked with management of alumni relations and graduate services for recent alumni from both ASEAN and Australia.
RATIONALE:
International or global alumni relations is the outreach to and engagement of internationally affiliated alumni-mostly understood as former students and their families around the world. The purpose of this engagement-along with that directed at current and former staff and faculty, as well as community members and key industry/governmental partners with ties to the
Institution, is to leverage support and advancement of institutional priorities at home and abroad. Each stakeholder shares an ability to influence each other’s engagement and/or the actions of the institution locally and internationally (Dobson, 2016).
Management of alumni relations is a challenging sector within international education, one of which begins with the primary objective of establishing good data and mutually valuable relationships. The distinction between “home” and “overseas” students has become much more blurred as a consequence of Transnational Education, the proliferation of academic exchange programs and an increasing number of postgraduate students seeking higher qualifications outside their home country.
Stakeholder relationships are central to strengthening alumni relations within ASEAN and Australia. Alumni are integral to promoting Work Integrated Learning (WIL) opportunities for students (and fellow alumni) grounded in the practical application of academic theories and a successful transfer of the global educational experience to a regional/local context. Finally, the “soft power” of alumni is a key metric to harness, steward and chart as more institutions, governments, industry and business organisations realise their potential place among diplomatic objectives.
THE WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES:
The workshop theme will explore:
Best practice in managing alumni relations including strategies for identifying, tracking and engaging alumni.
Ideas for developing people-to-people connections with alumni cohorts including:
Intra-ASEAN Alumni
Alumni returning from Australia to an ASEAN country from both scholarship and private study
Transnational Education (TNE) program alumni who have attended Australian campuses and programs in ASEAN countries
New Colombo Plan Alumni who have been in an ASEAN country and then return to Australia
Building public-private partnerships between institutions, government, alumni, industry and business organisations.
Highlighting the role alumni play as a referral agent and coordinator ofshort-term internships and job opportunities for students and each