"This is a new format, where the 'Study in Europe' consortium does not only organize training sessions and seminars for national agencies in European countries, but also for European higher education institutions and universities," said Eero Loonurm, Program Manager at the Education and Youth Board. "Alumni helps to raise the international reputation of higher education institutions and strengthen the competitiveness of the country. Therefore, we invited top-tier trainers to Estonia and provided international knowledge on alumni marketing and alumni activity management here on site, where it was easiest for representatives of Estonian higher education institutions to participate."
Organizers of the event, Eero Loonurm, Piret Puuorg and Sabina Maidla are glad that the impact of this training has already extended beyond the seminar in Pärnu, as participants have already forged connections with one another outside the event. „Universities encounter a variety of challenges when it comes to managing alumni relations, from finding effective ways to engage alumni to shifting societal attitudes toward this issue. Conversations with peers struggling with similar challenges provided participants with fresh perspectives and creative solutions,“ said one of the organizers Piret Puuorg.
Among the participants were representatives from universities in the Baltic States, Sweden, Croatia, Slovakia, Spain, Romania, the Czech Republic, Belgium, and other countries.
The keynote speakers of the conference included Maria Gallo (Ireland), author of the book The Alumni Way and trainer, as well as Rachel Bray (Switzerland), Alumni Relations Manager at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).
“Alumni are a crucial part of an institution’s advancement activities: to the external world, alumni generate invaluable marketing, as they can bring or even promote the expertise of the institution to their professional networks. In that sense they are great ambassadors to boost the institution’s public image and reputation. Moreover, for the institution itself, internally, they can serve as great role models for current students and are often well placed to offer practical support to students as they start their careers. By engaging alumni, an institution can continue to benefit from their skills, experience, time, and resources,” said Jasper Witteveen, Project Officer at European Education and Culture Executive Agency.
The "Study in Europe" service contract contributes to the visibility and attractiveness of European higher education, particularly outside Europe. The project's goal is to strengthen the message of Europe as the best study destination in the world through marketing and communication platforms. Additionally, the aim is to organize events and cooperation seminars in priority regions selected by the European Commission to introduce the European study opportunities, as well as provide training and development activities for European national agencies.
The partners of the "Study in Europe" consortium include NUFFIC (Netherlands), the Education and Youth Board of Estonia, Campus France (France), DAAD (Germany), DZS (Czech Republic), and the pan-European think tank ACA (Academic Cooperation Association).
