https://www.collegeconsensus.com/rankings/best-college-alumni-networks/
I’ve seen this ranking before and it’s not my favorite, mainly because the methodology they use is vague and unsubstantiated. The Forbes ranking of alumni networks feels more straightforward since it just uses two data points: the alumni donation rate and the 7-year median donation per student. Amherst is #4 on this ranking as well, but the other colleges have quite different positions.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2018/08/21/grateful-grads-2018-200-colleges-with-the-happiest-most-successful-alumni/#22984c221a0a
@writingpumpkin03 The schools do get shuffled around a bit. Happy to see Amherst remains solid.
Amherst has a specific alumni mentoring program that matches alumni volunteers with students who want to participate. I don’t know if that is unique but my kid got value from doing it two different semesters.
One of her job offers as a senior was from a firm where her boss a couple of levels up was an alum and it fast tracked her there.
I only post these anecdotes since this is the Amherst forum.
@Meddy Yup. It just rubs me the wrong way sometimes when people (not accusing you guys lol) assume that the biggest-name schools have the strongest alumni networks. For example, Columbia’s ranked #10 on the College Consensus website despite having an abysmally low alumni donation rate. The hard data that Forbes uses demonstrates that top LACs tend to have much stronger alumni networks.
I see donation rate and network as separate. There are plenty of great alumni networks that exist at schools where the donations are’t reflective of what the network can do you for your career.
@eb23282 That is true. I still think that LACs tend to have the tightest-knit alumni networks (although a downside is that those networks are smaller and more regional).
They’re smaller but maybe not necessarily regional. Or in a way that matters much? D also had an internship and an internship offer from alumni and both were in New England. But the alum-aided job offer was for Chicago. If the LAC pulls mostly regionally that’s probably the case more often than if it has students from all over.
And she and her friends are, post graduation, working coast to coast, only some in the region.
Is it possible that small, rural LACs need to foster strong alumni networks because few recruiters come to campus ?
P.S. I understand that the very elite, highly ranked LACs may attract recruiters as do those in a consortium such as Pomona, CMC, etc. & Swarthmore, Haverford & Bryn Mawr–all of which are suburban, not rural LACs, but recruiters have to use their time & resources in an efficient manner and there are just too few students & too few majors at most LACs.
What does “come to campus” really mean in 2019? @Publisher My kid’s recruiter interactions were all online via the college’s software that recruiters pay(?) to use to reach those students. It’s like a LinkedIn just for the college. First contact there (resume available to them because she put it there), then phone interview, then maybe skype or phone again, then flown out to meet in person.
That said, I know the wall st/consultant type companies do a lot of stuff on campus - there are programs, lunches, workshops and such that help the students but are also recruitment avenues.
Interesting to note the elite colleges & universities which are not on the list of “The 50 Most Supportive Alumni Networks for 2019”:
Not included are:
Williams College
MIT
Yale
Penn
Emory
Boston College
NYU
College of William & Mary
Wellesley College
Claremont McKenna College
Washington & Lee
Harvey Mudd
Davidson College
Grinnell College.
NYU is the only one that makes sense to me there 
@Publisher At Williams, most companies that travel to campus to recruit are big financial/consulting firms and tech firms. Most other opportunities are online through the college’s job/internship software website thing.
I’m learning that there really seems to be something special about the Amherst network unlike maybe some of the the top, larger schools like one that my husband went to. We will be in public and they will make the connection and flash the school sign or say some slogan to acknowledge the university. Yet whenever we wear anything Amherst, people will stop us and ask questions and be very interested or share their story with us. Not once has anyone flashed me a Mammoth sign (which would be strange since I think they put their fingers in their mouths like tusks lol!)
Amherst is great place for sure. But this ranking is not measuring what some may think. Professional connections and quiet support behind the scenes. Social capital that can be called upon at crucial moments in life. Every Nescac and larger r1 universities , especially in its region have this in droves. Yale and Penn perhaps internationally. Smaller schools outside of it location are a smaller universe to call upon in these moments. They have to make up for it with these other measures. I would think that wash and lee and Wellesley can have this benefit at times. MIT maybe doesn’t need it or care. lol.
Mammoth sign is brand new; I don’t imagine many alums use it.
My Amherst grad daughter was working in admissions during a summer before Senior year. She had a 30 minute interaction with an alum while his daughter was in her interview. During that small amount of time, she received an invite to stay at their home in LA, as well as use of his daughters car to go to a med school interview. We had to laugh, as he told his daughter when she came out if the interview that she would need to get a ride to school with friends as he was giving use of her car to my daughter while she was in LA. I know it’s a small, one person story, but there were many more like them from her as an Amherst grad.
I’m sure he was nice and sincere, but of course in that setting his comments could cynically be viewed as motivated by more than alumni generosity?