Research Symposium

BIO

Jasmeen Santos-Ramirez is a second-year student at Florida State University, pursuing dual degrees in Political Science and Human Rights and Social Justice. She is originally from Largo, Florida, and plans to attend law school after graduating. Some of her involvements on campus include: Orientation Leader '24, Global Scholar '25, interning at the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights, and has completed 250 hours of community service in Tallahassee.

Alumni Engagement and Student Success Through Shared Affinities

Abstract

Our research project, "Alumni Engagement and Student Success Through Shared Affinities", aims to investigate the relationship between alumni engagement and student success at Florida State University. Through our investigation, we identified the reasons and methods for alumni remaining connected to the university, and determined which student groups alumni are most likely to engage with. Over five months, we conducted 40 interviews with students and 40 interviews with alumni to gather qualitative data on the engagement levels of each constituent at the university, as students or after graduation, based on the constituents we interviewed. In one-on-one meetings with our research mentor, Ms. Jacey Darrah, we analyzed our interviews and received data from Undergraduate Studies (UGS) event surveys and email communications to determine the correlation between alumni participation methods, the spaces in which they were involved, and any limitations to their participation. The project demonstrates that alumni who were heavily involved with affinity programming during their undergraduate years are more likely to remain active post-graduation, and similarly, engaged students are more likely to interact with alumni. The findings suggest that inviting more alumni to campus events and encouraging student participation in professional development organizations can broaden the university’s alumni base, potentially increasing future donations and funding for university programs.

Keywords: Affinity groups, alumni engagement, alumni outreach, institutional advancement, student-alumni relationships