Pitt Commons: Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community
University of Pittsburgh — Goal 1 Initiative Pitt Commons: Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community
Utilizing the Pitt Commons career platform, the Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community initiative will expand on existing resources by providing mentorship and networking experience to individuals who lack access to traditional social capital networks.
These networks are essential to gaining access to meaningful postgraduate employment opportunities. The Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community initiative seeks to fill that gap.
The initiative will integrate career and networking advice on the Pitt Commons platform by leveraging University of Pittsburgh alumni as volunteers, making professional network building more accessible and more meaningful to students as they near graduation.
Staff members will survey students using the Pitt Commons platform and measure the initiative’s success by collecting the following data: number of connections, quality of connections, variance in type of connections, and understanding of how connections can be useful professionally.
Pitt Commons puts social capital to work. It helps University of Pittsburgh students and graduates come together, lean on one another, and leverage the power of community to seek out and secure meaningful opportunities.
Initiative Differentiators
The Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community initiative expands the existing Pitt Commons platform with a specific focus on facilitating experiential learning opportunities and building social capital and professional networks for graduates who have not traditionally had access to those resources.
Key Interventions and Milestones
Throughout spring 2021, staff members will review user data on the Pitt Commons platform and adjust programming to increase the quality of engagements for students. Planned strategies for continuous improvement include: evaluation of student needs and program outcomes, analysis of engagement data, and marketing efforts to grow subscriber rates, particularly among underrepresented populations. The initiative will begin its expansion in April 2021, and new graduate programming will begin in June 2021.
Expected Impact
Beyond growing registered users on the Pitt Commons platform and increasing the quality of interactions on the site, the Early Career Alumni Employment and Networking Community initiative will lay the foundation for inclusive access to critical career resources like mentorship and professional networks.
