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Ways of increasing the employability prospects of the members of your alumni network

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Between new graduates and experienced professionals, the job market is now very competitive. Graduates think that their lack of job experience leaves them disadvantaged while young professionals think that changing coursework might have rendered their academic papers useless. According to the latest data from the IMF, the unemployment rate in most of the sampled countries stands at more than 10%. One of the leading motivations for people joining alumni associations is the chance to network and improve the chances of their employability.

When running an alumni network, the following are some ways of increasing the prospects of employability for the members.

Encourage Them to Take Online Courses

Education course works change depending on the findings of different research studies and to reflect the technological changes in various fields. Your alumni members will not be the best choices for employers without extra training in some topics that are relevant to their primary degrees. Encourage them to take the many online courses available to boost their knowledge in various fields and employability prospects. You can even contact the many online schools for a discount for your alumni members to encourage them to sign up.

Invest In Their Hobbies

Most people think that hobbies are only for passing the time. Hobbies can, however, improve people’s employability skills since they can push their limits in various aspects. For instance, alumni members who love writing can start blogging in their free time. While this is a hobby to them, blogging improves their writing skills and gives them an added advantage in the job market.

Give Them Opportunities to Showcase Their Skills

People might know what those looking for employment are capable of without the opportunity to showcase their skills. Organise functions in which your alumni members get to showcase their skills to prospective employers. You, for instance, get those with exceptional marketing skills to run your stall and get people to sign up to your association during a higher education alumni network fair. Some of the best-selling employability skills nowadays are communication, leadership, teamwork, initiative, self-management and problem-solving.

Connect Them to Volunteer Activities

Volunteering is not only a way to get something to add to a CV, but it also helps communities and gives the volunteer the chance to make a difference. In volunteering, your alumni members can also pick valuable skills and discover new roles that they are good at. Since getting volunteer activities is, at times hard for individuals, use your network to connect members to good organisations where they can volunteer.

Train Members on Social Intelligence

Most organisations will nowadays vet their job candidates according to their social media presence. Train your members on how they should handle their social media presence to guarantee it does not paint them in poor light among prospective employers. In training, you can show them how to sell themselves on online platforms as the best people for specific jobs.

Approximately 87% of alumni associations grapple with maintaining the highest levels of engagement with their members. If your association has a high job placement rate for its members, you can rest assured that engagement will not be an issue for you. With the above steps to maximise the prospects of employment among alumni members, your association is guaranteed to be among the most active. This translates to a long-standing alumni network and the sustenance of your association’s funds.

Have you utilised any of the above tips to improve your employment prospects? Share the benefits of this in the comments below.

Career CamelWays of increasing the employability prospects of the members of your alumni network

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