"Where should I study?"

"Which institution is going to secure a good quality education and successful career?"

"Who are the successful Alumni of the institution?"

These are some of the questions which confound a student when deciding the perfect Institute to suit their needs. Universities, Colleges and Schools have just mushroomed sallover within the past decades worldwide. Students have plenty of choices when choosing the best and most promising one. With everyone offering the best of syllabus, faculty and infrastructure, Alumni relations have become a strategic asset for any kind of higher education institution willing to stand out from the domestic and international competition.

This means that…

An organization's alumni are the reflection of its past, representation of its present and a link to its future.

Educational institutions are changing the way they see and interact with their alumni community. Earlier, alumni and their alma-mater were treated as separate entities wherein one's existence was independent of the other. Local alumni chapters were formed as a means to interact with other fellow alumni. However, these associations seldom had any interaction with the institution they graduated from.

With the advent of Social Media, alumni relationship has taken a different flavour altogether. Universities have started to harness the power of alumni through various networking platforms like Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter etc. by creating their alumni groups and profiles on them.

Here are 4 ways in which alumni association are creating a powerful positive impact:

1. Support system

An engaged alumni network allows the University to benefit from the skills and experience of our graduates, by offering their support to our students, to the institution and to each other. If we keep them well informed and engaged, alumni are our most loyal supporters and our best ambassadors, offering invaluable marketing and promotion across their personal and professional networks.

2. Offering expertise

Talented alumni will likely have a wealth of experience and skills to share with current students via talks and meets. In certain cases, this could go even further with alumni offering to practically support students in work placements and help them launch their careers. Suryadatta's alumni create an engaged alumni network which is beneficial because engaged graduates are much more likely to want to "give back" to the University.

3. Assistance in Employability

Alumni network has a real life benefit for current students. Alumni also donate their valuable time to offer career support to current students. This enhances the students' experience and give them that competitive edge in today's tough job market. The alumni network of a college is one of the biggest sources of placement opportunities to the students. Alumni can help students get placed at their respective organizations.

4. Mentorship and Scholarships

Alumni can play an active role in voluntary programs like mentoring students in their areas of expertise. They also play a significant role in contributing scholarships to deserving students. Alumni get in touch with students and share their expertise and best practices in a given field.

"My [professional] mentoring journey has been very rewarding. I have learnt a lot about myself and my own career trajectory", says an SGI student.

Leveraging the alumni community can be a win-win for both the institution and the alumni. Many of them are willing to 'Give-Back' to their alma-mater as a sign of their gratitude and affinity towards the institution.

Reconnect. Find and reminisce with fellow graduates; see what everyone's been up to!

Give back. Make meaningful connections, recruit future Wildcats, speak to students and advise fellow alumni.

Expand. Leverage your professional network to get introduced to people you should know.

Advance. Advance your career through inside connections who work at top companies.

This alumni connect by SGI allows you to reconnect with classmates and expand your professional network through this alumni-only environment. Integrated with social networks and extending SGI's culture of helping and giving back, you will be amazed at the vibrant ecosystem of the Alumni network!