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Newcastle Alumni on LinkedIn

With LinkedIn, you can research the career paths of more than 134,000 of our former students. Find out what they did after graduation and how they got there. Reach out to them for advice and inspiration.

How to connect with alumni

Find out how to connect with alumni on LinkedIn in three simple steps:


Advice on contacting alumni

Before you contact anyone on LinkedIn, think carefully about what you want to know and how best to make use of a graduate's valuable time.

Do some background research on their role and organisation. Tell them what you already know, to help them tailor their advice to your needs.

If you’re asking to connect with them:

  • make sure you're on their full profile first
  • add a note to personalise your request
  • don’t send the default message.

Explain who you are and why you’re contacting them. If they accept your connection request, send a follow-up message thanking them and go into more detail about what you’d like to know.

 

Top tips

Our alumni are busy and may not be able to respond immediately. If you don’t receive a reply:

  • review your message to make sure it was appropriate
  • send a polite follow-up email after a week or so to check that they received your original message.

When you receive a reply, please acknowledge and thank the graduates for taking the time to respond. Keep in touch with them and update them with your progress. You never know when they may hear of a relevant opportunity they could recommend you for.

It can be useful to talk to others in the field. The graduate may be able to suggest other people who can help you. Get specific names and titles and ask if you can use the graduate’s name when setting up any future contact.

 

Example message to a graduate

Hi…

I found your profile in the Newcastle University Alumni Association group. I’m studying marketing at Newcastle and am really interested in a career in digital marketing.

I saw that you’ve had a variety of digital marketing roles and I’m keen to get your advice. Would you be willing to answer a few questions about your experience?

Many thanks

Your name

 

Questions to ask

You should try to get advice about a role or industry to help you in your career planning and job search. Don’t ask directly for a job or work experience.

Try to avoid asking general questions you could easily find the answer to from the company website. Use this opportunity to ask specific questions - perhaps two or three initially.


More help

If you need more help using social media for your career, please book an information appointment through MyCareer

Take part our careers workshops on using social media - for dates and times, see Events.