One of the primary functions of the Orange County Alumni Club is to connect with prospective students in high school and transfer students in community college. We share our personal experiences about being a student at Berkeley. We do this through two functions – Outreach and Scholarship.
OUTREACH
The goal of Outreach is to connect with students who are considering attending Cal. We primarily do this by staffing college fairs at high schools and community colleges. In the fall of 2012, we coordinated the staffing of 26 college fairs with a team of 64 alumni volunteers. This allowed us to reach nearly 10,000 prospective students. We provided them with literature about Cal and put a face to our university.
Most of the Outreach events happen in the fall before admissions applications are due. In August we host a training session in Orange County for Outreach volunteers. Members of the Admissions Office provide up to date information about academics, admissions, and financial aid. The university's website for College Fair Alumni Ambassadors explains the process.
High school Outreach events are typically in the evening and community college events in the morning and afternoon. Our goal is to provide 2-3 trained volunteers for each event.
Our Outreach schedule is:
August: Training of alumni Outreach volunteers.
September – November: Staffing Outreach events at high schools and community college campuses.
In addition, we usually host two other Outreach events. The first is a UC Berkeley night in Orange County in the fall. This allows us to meet students and parents that are interested in attending Cal. In this setting, we can convey more detailed information and devote a lot of time to answering questions. Occasionally, we are asked by campus to provide volunteers for events in the spring.
The other event is the New Student Reception in the spring. This event is for students that have been admitted to UC Berkeley. The event takes place in April before the Student’s Intent to Register (SIR) is due. This gives us one more chance to talk about our great university and help students make their decision. In 2012, we hosted a crowd of over 500 and had 40 alumni on hand to share their experiences attending Cal.
SCHOLARSHIP
In the spring, we also support the Alumni Association’s Scholarship program by interviewing and awarding scholarships to entering and continuing students. Participation in the scholarship programs is a rewarding experience and a great opportunity to meet future Cal students.
There are two scholarships that we work with – Leadership and TAAP
The Leadership scholarship is open to all students. The TAAP scholarship is for students that come from a background that would make it difficult to attend UC Berkeley and has an income requirement. To learn more about the scholarships, see the university's page on Scholarships.
LEADERSHIP SCHOLARSHIP SCHEDULE
March: Application reading
March – April: Interviews
TAAP SCHOLARSHIP SCHEDULE
March: Application reading
Early April: TAAP Scholarship Interviews
HOW TO HELP
The club is only sucessiful in these functions because of our decidated alumni volunteers. As these events get closer, we will inform members of volunteer oportunities through our email list.
