Alumni membership fee – when to charge

[Rhiannon Matthews]

We’re establishing a new Alumni Association and will charge a lifetime membership fee.

We need to decide when best to charge the fee and I wanted to gauge what others thought about this. Our two main options are to charge on enrolment or charge at the start of Year 12.
We’re also considering charging in Year 10 at the start of the Senior School.

I’d love to hear from people about what you do at your school, or what you’d like to do!

Thanks, Rhiannon

Cornish College

[Caroline Lovell]

Hi Rhiannon

We charge the alumni life membership fee in the Term 3 accounts of the Year 12 student. We send out a letter to parents regarding the Old Girls Union and what if offers in Term 2.

Kind regards
Caroline Lovell

Roseville College

[Lucy Wilson]

Hi Rhiannon,
We charge an alumni membership fee at the time of enrollment, which covers a lifetime membership.
Kind regards,
Lucy Wilson
Kristin School (Auckland)

[Cassandra Macgowan]

Hi Rhiannon,

We originally charged a lifetime fee to the Year 12 students, so an exit-fee model. However, a few years ago we moved to an entry-fee model, where the students are charged upon enrolment. The entry-fee is higher than the exit fee, however, a portion of the amount is given to the school for the current students. The reasoning behind this is to provide benefit to the students prior to them becoming alumni. For example, we support a Targeted Tuition Programme that is run throughout the year that provides exam skills sessions, tutoring in subjects, etc. We start marketing the alumni association as providing benefits and opportunities before the students leave, hoping that it will encourage them to stay engaged.

I hope that helps!

Regards,
Cass Macgowan
Scotch College (Perth)

[Rhiannon Matthews]

Thank you everyone! It’s helpful to hear what others are doing and some of the rationale behind it too.

Thanks again for taking the time to answer.

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