Posted on Monday, August 3rd, 2015 by Çağla Akbaş Tags: Alumni, Thoughtful Alum

If you’ve ever felt the urge to buy fresh pencils and open the first page of a crisp new notebook, it means you are an alum. The memories of the good-ol’ days of your Alma-mater are still fresh in your mind, whether you graduated two years ago or 20, most probably you remember them like yesterday. After graduating you have been successful in landing jobs in local, regional, and national companies or agencies. It’s for sure that your Alma-mater contributed to making you who you are today.

However, being an alum doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to cut off all ties with your once cherished Alma-mater. What you often forget is that you share a lifelong bond with not just the Alma-mater but also the students, who you might have never met. As an alum, you need to communicate with and understand the perspectives of the new generation of students in your Alma-mater. This new generation of students needs to be understood by the people who have experienced college life before, their alumni. Have you taken any action before to fill the gap between new generations and the industry?

Do you think that you are a thoughtful alum? It is never too late to play your role, here’s how to check if you are a thoughtful alum:

• Do you have a membership in their alumni committee/association?
• Have you tried to reconnect your institution and get engaged to their Alma-mater?
• Do you attend events and reunions to meet current students?
• Do you mentor students through all decisions in their school/college life?
• Do you motivate and encourage students with your support.
• Do you have information about the alumni network?
• Have you provided internship/jobs/projects in your company to students?
• Do you share your experience and knowledge with students and give them advice for their professional development?
• Have you ever donated (financially or in-kind) to your institution?

As an alum, it is time to give back to your alma mater. Giving back does not always involve donations, it may be through one of the examples above, may be as simple as giving a graduation speech.

Do you consider yourself to be emotionally detached or feel that your Alma-mater’s reputation doesn’t really make a difference in your life?

Guy Burry who won the best alumni award (York University, Canada) has the following to say on his outstanding contribution: