UNLV alumni are proud of their school, and they want others to know it. They want to remain connected to the university, but they want an easy way to come back. They felt well-prepared to start their careers after college, and now they're looking for help making a change or moving up.
Those are just a few of the facts that the UNLV Alumni Association learned from the 2007 Alumni Attitude Study. Graduates of more than 75 universities were surveyed about their experiences as students and as alumni, and more than 1,000 from UNLV participated.
The two areas highlighted most were communication and benefits, says Keri Russell, associate director for membership marketing for the association. Alumni want regular updates about the university and the association, and they want benefits from membership that are relevant to their lives and location.
Building a strong association on a traditional commuter campus can be tough, Russell says. "But the survey also showed that many people feel a strong connection to UNLV and the experiences they had here. They have a lot of pride, and they want to share that pride with others — they want to bleed Rebel red."
Almost 89 percent indicated that their current opinion of the university is either "good" or "excellent." And they are spreading the word. Sixty-five percent indicated that they promote the university regularly or all the time.
Getting the Word Out
New UNLV Alumni Association programs
and more efficient processes in
alumni relations are making it easier
to stay connected. Recent changes have
resulted in association membership doubling
in the last year to 3,700 paid members
out of 65,000 graduates. "With such
diversity in our graduates and a very young
alumni base, we can't take a one-size-fits-all
approach," Russell says.
The survey helped show the association that it has to get members when they're young — even before graduation. That means branching into the hot frontiers of electronic communication. First will be a revamped website with social networking features, due to launch this summer.
The survey reinforced that the association is on the right track with efforts to improve communication. With the hiring of a full-time communicator, a more traditional print newsletter was revived this spring; the second edition is scheduled to come out this summer. An e-mail newsletter is also in the works.
This summer, all members will receive a revamped welcome kit. It includes a membership card and a brochure outlining the benefits of joining the association — a direct response to the survey, which showed that many alumni were fuzzy on the perks of joining the association.
Building a Broad Benefits Program
Although the majority of UNLV alumni
— 59 percent — live in the Las Vegas area,
a relatively large number of them live out
of state, compared to alumni from UNLV's
peer universities.
"The feedback on the survey showed that the out-of-staters want to be connected to the university, and they want some benefits to hit close to home," Russell says. "It's not surprising that somebody in Denver doesn't value two-for-one appetizers at Applebee's in Nevada."
So the association has spent the last year developing new benefits that can be used anywhere, such as travel discounts, deals on health care and AAA coverage, and free subscriptions to the Rebel Nation sports newspaper. Out-of-state alumni are also being sought as volunteer ambassadors for the association and the university, and to set up alumni groups in their regions.
Benefits are also going upscale. Soon alumni everywhere can join a wine club for discount shipments from wineries such as Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery, owned by alumnus Glenn Carano.
The Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas offers members 25 percent off in its restaurants, shops, and spa. And Russell says the association is reaching out to generate participation from more local women in its popular golf league and other activities.
Career Help After the First Job
UNLV survey respondents indicated that
their extracurricular activities were tied
to their major to a greater degree than
alumni of other universities — 43 percent
at UNLV compared to about 30 percent for
all schools surveyed. They tend to be more
job-oriented, perhaps because UNLV is a
young university with many commuter and
nontraditional students. That information
helps the association reach far-flung subgroups
of alums, and is driving a focus on
college-based ties to the association.
Alumni still want career support and guidance from their alma mater even years after graduation, Russell says. "Our somewhat older graduates are asking for emphasis on career development benefits. They want extra support for those earlyto mid-career transitions a few years after graduation."
Today, all association members can tap into UNLV Career Services, which helps place students in full-time jobs and internships. The association also offers networking events and business forums throughout the year. But, Russell says, mid-career alumni may need more specialized offerings. The next step is for the association to evaluate how it can help graduates even years after they've left UNLV.
