An overview of the recent Alumni survey
The Alumni Office would like to thank everyone who participated in our comprehensive 2019 Alumni Survey. This study is part of an effort to learn about alumni perceptions of the UFS – from your time as a student, but also as an alumnus. We are doing this to enhance the value we offer to current and future alumni.
With your assistance, we were able to gain better insight in order to guide strategic planning in the future. We believe that it is important for us to deepen our knowledge and understanding about your experience of the UFS. The survey provides insight into matters relating to stakeholder satisfaction and brand engagement, which in turn guides us in developing a plan that is inclusive, transparent, and will strengthen the positive relationships we have with our alumni as we continue to engage across provincial and international borders.
The survey was conducted towards the end of 2019. It included a random sampling of responses from all UFS alumni – 95 812 reachable via SMS and 46 804 reachable via email. A quantitative approach was selected as the optimal methodology. The survey achieved a 99% confidence index with a margin error of 2% and provided robust data points for decision-making.
Some key findings
- Most alumni had a good experience while studying at the UFS.
- Their lecturers, the academic programme, and graduation ceremony were top-rated services while at the UFS.
- Overall, alumni feel that the UFS offers a welcoming environment and has a good brand image.
- As alumni, respondents feel relatively disconnected from the UFS; however, this does not mean that they have a negative experience.
- Alumni believe that they should help to identify job opportunities for graduates, serve as brand ambassadors for the UFS, and mentor current students and young alumni.
- When it comes to overall perceptions of the UFS, the value of the degree, quality of campuses, and safety have the most impact on alumni perceptions.
- The top factors when making a decision to donate and/or support the UFS, are knowing exactly what the donation will be used for, knowing that the UFS has a good institutional ranking, and ensuring better quality facilities for current students.
- South Campus alumni had the best student experience.
- Alumni who studied in the Faculties of Education and Theology and Religion rated their student experience best.
- Among alumni who graduated between 2016 and 2018, 55% say it took less than six months to find a job. That is down from 96% in the 1980s.
- The younger the alumni, the more positive their experience as an alumnus.
“We are excited about the rich information that the survey gave us, and confident that we will be able to incorporate these findings into our planning. We thank all our alumni participants for finding the time to complete the survey,” said Annamia van den Heever, Director of Institutional Advancement, UFS.