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Support a UCL student this January through our Alumni-Student Chats programme.
Provide expertise, inspiration and advice to a current student and help them prepare them for life beyond UCL.
Through our Alumni-Student Chats programme, you'll be paired with a current student from a similar academic discipline or home country*. You’ll have the chance to share your experiences and offer practical advice, either virtually or in person.
This is a fantastic opportunity to connect with a student in January and support them as they begin Term 2 of their academic journey.
How does it work?
Participants are invited to arrange a 30-minute meeting with their matched student, to take place during the week of Monday 27–Friday 31 January 2025.
If you are interested in signing up, all you need to do is:
- Complete an expression of interest form.
- Using the email address you provide, you will be matched with a current student. Details of this, along with guidance on what subjects you might want to talk about, will be communicated by Tuesday 21 January.
- It’s over to you to arrange a phone call, a Skype or Zoom call, or whichever platform works best for you and your match. If you're based in London and both you and your student match would like to meet on or near campus, then you can suggest this too. This meeting should take place between Monday 27 and Friday 31 January.
- In February, we will send you a short survey to see how it's gone.
There’s no obligation on you to form a relationship beyond the conversation; it can be a one-off conversation, or the start of something more (we hope it will be the latter).
*We will aim to generate a match based on these criteria but cannot guarantee. In some instances, alumni may be matched with two students
What should I talk about?
These conversations aren’t prescriptive, you can talk about whatever you want. We aim to match you with a student who has studied a similar degree or is from a similar location. You can use the time to find out about one another, your experience at UCL, your hometown, your respective job roles, what you are working on now, your challenges or successes – whatever you'd like.
We will update this page with further guidance in January, but some questions you might wish to help answer are:
- How can students make the most of their time at UCL?
- What skills are employers looking for?
- How has your specific degree helped you in the world of work?
- What services/networks are helpful for working in a country outside of the UK?
The most important thing is to be curious and approach these conversations as a chance to learn more.
