Born in the twenty-first century: the Alumni Association

On 1 February 2005, an independent, university-wide alumni association was formed for the first time in the university’s history. This followed similar faculty-specific associations that already existed for the Faculty of Business and Economics, the Faculty of Medicine, and the Faculty of Law. For the Europe Institute, established in 1993, it was also clear from the beginning that founding and maintaining such an association belong to current best practices.

This organization, which adopts a tradition from universities in North America and England, serves various functions but is also tailored to the individual needs and contributions of its members, unlike a classic support association. While the primary purpose described in the statutes mentions a public/social function – specifically “promoting the relationships between the University of Basel, its alumni, and the public” – its main purpose is to maintain a network of potential individual supporters, or as it is formulated: “promoting contact among the alumni of the University of Basel and with their alma mater.” A third objective addresses a purpose similar to the support association’s, namely “promoting the University of Basel, especially in teaching and research beyond the support offered by public funding.” A fourth objective focuses, once again, on benefits for potential individual supporters, specifically “promoting scientific and scholarly exchange between representatives of different fields.”

Preliminary stock-taking showed that potential members had more interest in the personal benefit of such an association than in benefits to their alma mater. The most important need (almost 90 percent) was support for career entry. Over 80 percent indicated interest in scientific/scholarly events and lectures, 75 percent would have liked to see networking with colleagues, and over 70 percent were interested in practical continuing education. Furthermore, over 50 percent wanted general information about the university. In the “business” of giving and taking, over 50 percent of potential alumni were willing to personally mentor and share their knowledge with the university and participate in informational events about careers and studies.

To facilitate networking, an electronic alumni portal was created, allowing alumni to store their profiles in a Who’s Who directory, update them on their own initiative, and choose for them to be seen or remain private depending on their own needs. This facilitates a number of benefits, among them making individual contacts, gaining targeted access to specialized knowledge, carrying out employee searches, and reconnecting with former classmates.

The social function was fulfilled from 2005 to 2007 through alumni days offered by the university. These have since been replaced by smaller, more frequent meetings called alumni round tables at Hotel Basel. In the founding year, approximately 100 direct members and 3,800 collective members joined the alumni association. The membership has since grown to 4,852 (528 direct members and 4,324 collective members), representing some 47 percent of all graduates.