Start an Alumni Association

Each Alumni Association requires a main point of contact who shall be listed as the President of the Alumni Association. The President oversees the work of their Association, ensuring that all of the other volunteers are acting efficiently in their roles. They are the main point of call for the Alumni Relations Office and the face of an Association. They need to ensure that they are always involved and informed as to the present activities, personnel events, and the financial position of the Association. Ultimately, they are the manager of the association and hold responsibility for the decision-making. The President must be based in the region of the Association and be available for all events.

All Alumni Association Presidents are required to write an Alumni Profile that will be featured on the Alumni Association webpage and shared when the group is launched. All other volunteers who support the Alumni Association are encouraged to write an Alumni Profile too.

Read Brunel Alumni Profiles here: https://www.brunel.ac.uk/profiles

Write your own alumni profile here: https://www.brunel.ac.uk/alumni-profile-form

Each association will have an online group for members to connect with each other, share photographs of events and promote any upcoming gatherings or events. This will be what the leaders decide to be most culturally appropriate to receive the most engagement (for example WhatsApp, WeChat, LinkedIn, Facebook, the Brunel Network).

Brunel’s expectation is that all Alumni Associations should hold a minimum of one in-person event in the year, however volunteers are welcome to host more. The event volunteers choose can be what volunteers are most interested in or what is most suitable to the country’s culture. Some examples are provided below:

• Lunch, dinner or drinks reunion;
• Professional networking event or an alumni talk;
• Earth day or charity event where members do good in the local community;
• Social events such as arts and crafts.

Additionally Alumni Associations can run virtual events which the Alumni Office can provide a Premium Zoom account to help volunteers manage the event.

The Alumni team will support volunteers with promoting the alumni association, sharing events by email and social media, and helping to develop ideas.

Volunteers receive a monthly email from Brunel with updates about activities from other Brunel Alumni Associations.

The Alumni team will share opportunities to engage association members with volunteers. This may include sharing details of International Alumni of the Year Awards, Study UK Alumni Awards, volunteering opportunities and key university news.

Be welcoming and create a safe environment, demonstrating respect and fair treatment of everyone.

Demonstrate passion and commitment to the alumni association and to refrain from public criticism of fellow volunteers, staff or the university.

Be organised in the management of your role and be responsive when communicating with our office.

Reflect the core values of Brunel University including being ‘Open and honest’, ‘Fair and Inclusive’, ‘Determined’ and ‘Focused on excellence’.

Contact alumni@brunel.ac.uk to organise an introductory meeting about setting up an alumni association.