**ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF LEADERSHIP GIVING**
By Emily, Chicago
I work in the Alumni Relations and Development Department for a major university in Chicago.
My job has three parts:#1 is raising money for various programs and projects at the university, #2 is planning and implementing cultivation events for alumni, and #3 is setting up alumni with volunteer opportunities with students.
It is hard to generalize what a “normal day” is like, but here is my attempt without going into the nitty gritty details.
In my department we are split up geographically and my territory is the Southeast region. I travel to Atlanta, Tampa Bay, Charlotte, New Orleans and so on. I spend a lot of my time contacting alumni in my various regions and asking if they would like to meet to discuss their time at the University. I try to get about 10 to 12 meetings or “visits” and then I book my flight to that region.
I meet these alumni for coffee, lunch or visit at their work place. I usually spend about an hour or so talking about their experiences at the university and what they liked and disliked. I also ask if they want to volunteer by interviewing prospective students, and then I share news about upcoming events. I give updates about what is new at the university, such as new buildings, professor appointments, and scholarships. Last, but not least, I ask if they would like to increase their giving.
It is somewhat like sales because I am trying to “sell” the university, but I think for me it is about connecting people back to their university, discovering their interests and seeing (if at all) how they want to give back.
Another part of my job is events. I usually try to plan smaller cultivation events in the more popular cities. These events can be anything from a professor giving an intellectual lecture to hosting a happy hour at a neighborhood bar.
Fundraising is a great job if you like to meet interesting people and enjoy good conversation, but you have to always remember at the end of the day it has to do with bringing in the money, because without alumni donations a university will not survive.
