Alumni Survey Results 2023

In spring 2023, alumni were invited to complete a survey about their life, experiences and perceptions of Edinburgh Napier University. The survey was designed to help the Alumni Team to understand how it can build better relationships with its alumni. 

Thank you to everyone who completed the 2023 alumni survey. Your answers are helping the team develop the ENU Alumni Network and enhance alumni services. 

You can read a summary of the results below. 

Facebook logo on blue backgroundLinkedIn logo on blue backgroundTwitter logo on blue backgroundInstagram logo on blue backgroundYoutube logo on blue backgroundEnvelope icon on blue background

79% of graduates believe the University has positively impacted their life

Who are our alumni?

The ENU Alumni Network is a vast global community made up of 165,000 alumni in 183 countries. By completing the survey, you have helped the Alumni Team understand the community better. 

Interested in learning who your fellow alumni are? Keep reading! 

 

Which School or Faculty did alumni study at?
 The Business School  43%  
 School of Applied Sciences   11%
 School of Arts & Creative Industries   14%
 School of Computing  10%
 School of Engineering & the Built Environment   12%
 School of Health & Social Care   10%

 

Where do alumni currently reside? 
Scotland, Central Belt 41% 
 Scotland, outside Central Belt  7%
 England, within London  3%
 England, outside of London  8%
 Wales  0%
 Northern Ireland  1%
 Outside of the UK, but within Europe   16%
 Outside Europe  24%
 Prefer not to say  1%

79% of alumni are proud to be a graduate of Edinburgh Napier University

What hobbies and interests do ENU alumni have? 

A bar chart listing the top hobbies undertaken by alumni. The top three activities are: Travel, eating out and outdoor activities  

 

It’s great to see alumni involved in so many different activities. 

We, your Alumni Team, love celebrating our alumni’s successes on our digital channels. This includes activities undertaken in your free time. Please get in touch if you have any news. 

Additionally, we are developing our post-Covid events programme, with many new events series launched in the past year. We’re grateful to our Alumni Champions for helping us organise events across the world. If you have an idea for an alumni activity connected to your interest or hobby, let us know

The breakdown of the results is as follows: Travel 64%; Food/eating out 59%; Outdoor activities 52%; Film/cinema 47%; Learning new skills 44%; Nature 43%; Live music performances 41%; Personal fitness 39%; The environment 39%; Social drinking in pubs and bars 37%; Technology 37%; Creative hobbies 33%; Politics/current affairs 32%; Theatre 30%; Stand-up comedy 28%; Television 28%; Watching live sports 28%; Arts exhibits 27%; Podcasts 26%; Playing sports 26%; Shopping 24%; Web television 23%; Video games 19%; Fashion 18%; Nightclubs/club nights 11%; None of the above 4%.

 

Alumni employment

We asked you about your employment status and are delighted to hear that 61% of alumni are employed or self-employed in a career relevant to the qualification they undertook at ENU, and a further 20% work in career that was influenced by the qualification but was not directly related. 

The top industries that ENU alumni are employed in are health and social work (12%), finance and insurance (11%), education (10%), professional, scientific and technical (10%) and information and communication (10%). However, 19% of alumni work in a field not listed. 

If you are self employed or are thinking of taking your career into your own hands and work for yourself, you can access support from Bright Red Triangle (BRT) – the University’s hub for enterprise. BRT host a Freelance Academy which provide aspiring freelancers with the tools and knowledge and they need to succeed. 

BRT also offer 1:1 business advisor appointments, hotdesking space at their start-up studio, and funding opportunities. Register for free now!

The current employment status of our alumni is listed below. 
Employment status

A further 1% of respondents are out of work but not looking and 3% currently are looking for work. Edinburgh Napier doesn’t stop supporting you when you graduate. If you are on the job hunt there are resources available. For those who have graduated within the last 2 years, you have access to the Student Futures Career Hub. Here you will find a range of digital support and interactive careers resources and tools (such as a CV builder and interview simulator). You can access this on myFuture, where you can also book one-to-one meetings with a Career Development Consultant, confirm your attendance at one of Student Futures’ many fantastic employer events or search for vacancies on the University's student and graduate job board. 

Additionally, the Alumni Team run a range of networking groups. Click here to view a range of industry and country specific groups. ENU staff members and alumni often post job vacancies in these communities.

Alumni communications

 

Bar char listing the topics that alumni want to hear about

 

 

We asked you what you be interested in hearing about from the university and you said the following topics were most interesting to you.   

The breakdown of the results is as follows: News in my industry 42%; Research carried out by the University 41%; Events 39%; University success stories 34%; Alumni success stories 34%; The University in the news 30%; Jobs at the University 30%; Student success stories 28%; Sporting success stories 10%; Other 4%; None of the above 17%. 

When asked which of our communication channels alumni follow, the majority of respondents didn’t follow any.  We share university news, alumni success stories, events invitations and opportunities that will advance your career, plus much more, on our digital channels. You can follow us via the links below. 

 

Follow our digital channels

Getting involved

42% of survey respondents didn’t know how to get involved with the University.  

There are opportunities to get involved with the alumni community all over the world. This network can help you take your career to the next level, breathe new life into your business, help you reminisce about University life and more. 

You can learn more about them below. 

85% of alumni are satisfied with their experience whilst at Edinburgh Napier University.