Featuring on the NIRF top 100 tables is certainly prestigious for any College or University. However, getting a better score for your institution can be tricky and a tedious task.
In our recent study, we interacted with over 56 Partner Institutions having top ranks in NIRF learning how they have managed to get a perfect NIRF score, and found out that one of the contributing factors is a strong alumni network! Surprised? We too were!
Alumni Communities play a very crucial role in boosting NIRF Rankings for their Institutions. We all know that alumni are a strong support to the institution and serve many valuable roles, one of them being helping institutions build and grow its brand.
Here are 3 parameters that will help you boost your NIRF Rankings through Alumni Support:
Collecting an Updated Alumni Database
As institutions grow, so do their alumni. An updated alumni database is a powerful resource to own. But finding an up-to-date alumni database is a challenge in itself for many institutions. It is very important for the institutions applying for NIRF to:
- Get a complete and updated alumni data
- Find higher education details of alumni
- Identify easily what are the alumni up to these days
Over the years, institutions tend to lose touch with their alumni community and hence, collecting the required alumni data becomes difficult. We have identified that to build a strong alumni database it is very important to build positive relationships and engage with your alumni community regularly.
Seeking Alumni Support:
The alumni are strong supporters of the institutions. Harnessing the power of the alumni community is beneficial for students, institutions as well as alumni. With one of the NIRF parameters being showcasing alumni support received, institutions can plan various activities and leverage their community through:
- Campus Placements – The alumni network of an institution is one of the biggest sources of placement opportunities for the students. They can help students get placed at their respective organisations.
- Mentorship and Expert Sessions – Alumni can play an active role in voluntary programs like mentoring students and taking expert sessions in their areas of interest and expertise.
- Career Guidance – Alumni is a huge talent pool whose guidance can be beneficial to many students and other fellow-alumni in their respective areas of study.
Fundraising and Scholarships
When it comes to fundraising, the effort is everything. Or is it? A strong alumni network can be one of the biggest benefactors of an institution that can contribute to various activities of the institution. Right from institute development projects to student welfare to scholarships, alumni support helps institutions provide the resources necessary to give students an unforgettable and inspiring experience.
Fundraising is one of the tools that enable institutions to focus on what really matters: providing quality education, building a strong brand and achieving success.
Conclusion
All three above-mentioned factors, if achieved, will not only boost your NIRF Rankings but will also make your alumni relations strong. A good ranking is a testimonial that your institute has worked on every parameter and provided the best resources, infrastructure and facilities to the students.
In order to fulfill these parameters, an institution will have to put in a lot of effort to boost alumni engagement and track the same in the right way, thereby building strong and positive relationships with their alumni community.
You can read Ideas to build your perfect Alumni Engagement Strategy Stage-Wise and build a perfect alumni engagement cycle.
Write to us on [email protected] about your thoughts on NIRF strategy and other challenges that you feel need to be addressed with insightful content.
February 16, 2023
