Alumni Liaison - Update
In 2013 the University contacted Graduates requesting applications to join an alumni committee. The aim was to provide a new focal point for discussions between the University and the Alumni, and to facilitate better two-way liaison and communication, which is especially important as the University proceeds towards merger with the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.
The application process, which was twice extended to ensure that any interested parties had the opportunity to apply, closed in November 2013, and the University is extremely grateful to the Graduates who responded with great interest and enthusiasm.
The applications we received, however, were not of sufficient breadth and diversity to be able to appoint a committee to represent the whole of the alumni - i.e. tens of thousands of Graduates of the University of Wales in over 30 countries across the world with whom we are in regular contact. Applications did not meet all the criteria put in place to ensure due regard for equality of opportunity, gender balance, fresh input and a balanced range of age and study disciplines.
The University has therefore decided to look to a different approach and at its meeting in March 2014 the University Council adopted a revised Ordinance - to view this ordinance, please click here.
Please note: the important aims of the organisation of the graduates (paragraph 2 of the Ordinance) have not changed. What has changed is the manner in which these aims will be achieved.
The previous version of the Ordinance was adopted in 2007 at the time of a significant restructuring of the University of Wales, after a number of constituent colleges had chosen to become independent universities with their own degree awarding powers. It envisaged that a committee with eleven members would meet in person in the UK to represent the Graduates of the University, much as its predecessor - the Guild of Graduates, had done before. The formation of this committee (the Alumni Liaison Committee) was the purpose of the exercise we launched in March 2013 to recruit members.
In March 2014 the University Council agreed that circumstances had changed since 2007 and that, as a result, Ordinance 28 (previously Ordinance 22) had become out of date. In particular, it was in need of amendment to reflect improvements in Internet services and social media communications, and the greatly expanded and much broader international base of the University of Wales Alumni community. Council also agreed that bringing together a committee to meet in the UK did not represent good value and use of Alumni funds.
In place of a committee of eleven, the revised Ordinance has provided for the creation of the University of Wales Alumni Forum (UW Alumni Forum) which will be open to much broader participation by its operation as an informal and largely internet based forum of the Graduates of the University.
All Graduates who applied to become a member of the Alumni Liaison Committee have been invited to become a founding member of the UW Alumni Forum, alongside representatives of the Alumni Association’s International Branches and Sections. There will be opportunities for other Graduates to join the forum.
Council agreed that the UW Alumni Forum would provide a more effective way of improving communication with Graduates, and be a good platform for the future.
More information on the UW Alumni Forum is provided in the form of frequently asked questions - to access this, please click here.