What ever happened to the guy in your accounting class with the tapered jeans? What about the girl with the loud laugh who skewed the curve? Have you lost track of friends from a study group?
A new service provided by Brigham Young University's Marriott School may hold the answers. After more than 18 months of planning, designing and programming, the school has launched the alumni portals Web service. Each portal is customized to a specific program and graduating class (i.e. MBA 2002, BS Accounting 2004, etc.).
The portals place powerful tools in the hands of alumni to renew connections and establish new relationships.
Entrance through an alumni portal provides access to class directories, alumni profiles, career management tools, Management Society links and a powerful search of 40,000 Marriott School and nearly half a million BYU alumni.
"I believe this new tool will help our graduates really leverage their Marriott School degree," says Dean Ned C. Hill. "One of the benefits of going to this school is the strength of the alumni network you're tied into. We've had wonderful people through here that are doing great things."
The alumni search tool allows for searches by degree, graduation year, industry, expertise, employer, geographic area, name or any combination of these. Graduates can also upload photographs and files as well as manage their own profile—controlling access to personal information by choosing what information they want displayed.
"A significant feature of the new alumni portals is the class directory that's customized to your class year and degree," says Robert Gardner, director of Marriott School Alumni Relations. "It shows who graduated in your class and also connects you to the greater BYU alumni database so you can conduct a broader search."
Gardner says the new networking tool was created after consulting with other alumni and evaluating students' suggestions about enhancing the Marriott School's alumni networking services.
"Alumni portals use the Web environment to harness the power of our alumni network," Gardner adds. "This service is designed to bring your Marriott School community closer to home."
Alumni portals are accessed online through http://marriottschool.byu.edu under the "alumni portals" link. Both graduates and currently enrolled students may gain access to the new service with a net ID assigned by the university. Net IDs can be created through the site for graduates who do not have one.
Writer: Andrew Watson
