Associate Alumni

SMU took a decision in 2020 to broaden its community of alumni to include successful graduates from selected continuing education programmes.

This decision was taken as increasingly there have been individuals from SMU’s continuing education programmes (e.g., SMU Executive Development) who have either contributed to the University, or have a keen interest to stay connected with SMU with much to offer to the University and its students.

According associate alumni status to graduates of continuing education programmes, over and above degree (undergraduate and postgraduate) programmes, is not uncommon in universities around the world.

More recently, with the call for universities to be “institutes of continual learning”, SMU’s move to create an associate alumni category is well-aligned as it seeks to offer lifelong learning opportunities to an even larger community of graduates.

This community of professionals represents a valuable yet largely untapped resource that SMU could leverage to achieve its long-term aspirations. The ‘SMU Associate Alumni’ Scheme expands and enriches the overall SMU community ecosystem. Associate alumni are a valuable resource for SMU alumni as well as for existing students and the schools. 

Selected programmes of study offered by SMU's continuing education programmes (e.g., SMU Executive Development) have been identified where individuals would qualify to be an associate alumnus.

On successful completion of selected programmes, individuals will be invited by ExD to join the SMU Associate Alumni Scheme to register themselves to be an associate alumnus.

Those who accepts the invitation provides their registration information back to ExD for registration. ExD will then verify the eligibility of the associate alumnus and once verified, Office of Alumni Relations will send out a welcome email to associate alumnus.

On submission of the form to the Office of Alumni Relations, the application will be verified within 4 weeks and the individual will be informed thereafter on the outcome.

Whereas an SMU alumnus is one who has graduated from SMU with either an undergraduate or postgraduate degree, an associate alumnus is one who has successfully completed a selected continuing education programme (see Point 2 above).

Definition of "SMU alumni" and SMU associate alumni"

Existing SMU alumni who also complete an ExD continuing education programme that qualifies them to be associate alumni will still be identified as “SMU alumni” as they have completed a full SMU degree.

An email confirming the success of the application to be an associate alumnus will be sent to the applicant, which serves as proof of one’s associate alumni status.

Individuals are encouraged to either download a copy of the email or print it, and present it where necessary or required.

Presently, the associate alumnus will enjoy most benefits of an SMU alumnus. These include:

• Up to 20% discount* on SMU Executive Development Short Courses (*For selected programmes only. One discount applicable per registration. Multiple or combined discounts will not be accepted.)
• Invites to professional networking events, workshops and webinars
• Opportunity to be an SMU associate alumni volunteer
  • See the opportunities for SMU alumni community volunteering here.
• Quarterly alumni newsletter, SMU Circle, and other SMU alumni communications
• Privileges and discounts with selected SMU merchant partners

Our Phase 1 milestone for the size of our associate alumni community is to reach 500 members. We envision the size of our associate alumni community eventually reaching 1,000 members or more.

By expanding the reach to include individuals who undertake several continuing education programmes at SMU, the University is able to tap on the vast knowledge and expertise of a much larger community whose experiences would be invaluable.

As SMU works towards Vision 2025 through the 4 “I”s – Integration, Industry, Innovation, and Internationalisation – the alumni and associate alumni community will be a rich resource that can contribute towards the aspirations of SMU.

In turn, as SMU builds its brand in industry both locally and internationally, the value of the SMU degree or certificate increases, which will benefit the alumnus and associate alumnus.

Engaging our associate alumni is the combined responsibility of the SMU Office of Alumni Relations and those SMU units that offer continuing education programmes.

Currently, the one SMU unit offering continuing education that is partnering with SMU Office of Alumni Relations on the Associate Alumni Scheme is the SMU Executive Development.

The SMU Office of Alumni Relations collaborates with many parts of the University to continually support alumni and associate alumni engagement.

SMU alumni and associate alumni are also encouraged to reach out to one another as the network is only as strong as the members who invest their time and energy to building their connections.

SMU began sending invitations to individuals who have successfully completed programmes of study that qualify one to be an associate alumnus, from July 2022 onwards (Refer to item number 1).

Please click here to access the webpage that allows you to register to be an SMU associate alumnus

(NOTE: Please ensure that you meet the eligibility criteria before submitting your application or it will be rejected. If in doubt, please contact associatealumni@smu.edu.sg

For further information or queries, please email us at associatealumni@smu.edu.sg