Why do people care so much about their alma mater?

And students are surprised why alumni feel the same sentiment

I’m still in college but did you go to a school with a strong sense of school spirit? My first summer living on my own me and one of my other roommates went to big sports schools and the two others went to schools with very weak culture. They thought it was so odd that me and our other roommate wore school apparel, and kept up with our schools sports and really actually liked our schools. They saw college as just a place to go for 4 years and get a degree and leave. I’d would imagine those two types of schools would make alumni with a big difference in how much their care about their school/helping current students at their school

I think it's less about you doing it for the school and more helping out the kids who had to go through the same challenges as you. For example, the kid who's reaching out is likely also having to deal with the tuition costs, debt, etc. This is amplified for non-targets. Not only do they have to deal with the tuition but also the lack of BB presence at the career fairs.

The kids who reach out and mention the school they know you went to are just trying to establish common ground so you're more comfortable talking with them. Of course, you don't have to help them, but maybe even forwarding them over to someone who is willing to talk with them is the least you could do.

It's a competitive process no matter what school you go to so getting a leg up in any way you can is crucial. Yes, it's true the kid messaging you on LinkedIn is "taking advantage" in a way. That may bother some people but most understand it's just business and simply part of the process. They truly need someone to go to bat for them because they don't have Harvard University on their resume.

Does it blow complete asshole for both of you? Absolutely. You have better things to do than talk to some college kid during your workday. Might sound harsh but let's be honest, it's the truth. The other side of the coin is the kid who feels uncomfortable as hell because he knows he's interrupting your workday to essentially just shoot the shit enough until you like him and hopefully pass his name along so HR looks at his resume. Again, it sucks but that's how the system operates now.

I know you haven't graduated yet. I'm just speaking in general.

Two things:

1). It’s a coming of age time in most peoples lives. So the experiences at university are important and the shared experience creates that connection.

2). A lot of self selection into specific schools. Maybe 70-75% pick a school for a specific reason and 25% attend because it’s the best ranked school they got into. You went to Notre Dame - there’s a lot of shared catholic heritage and similar backgrounds despite growing up all over the country. MIT probably a bit dorkier than most and into science a ton. Those two stand out but a lot of schools have some connection like that where the school naturally recruits a lot of like-minded people.

I am not at the stage where I can help students yet, however I think that I certainly will in 2-3 years from now.

The main motivating factor for me is the staff, specifically my Vice Course Director, who I have an amazing relationship with. So, if I were in any kind of position to potentially help any of their future students (however they must have attended my MSc. or recommended by x person) then I wouldn't hesitate. Though I'm still completing my graduate studies, I have already received a ton of help and support, which the Vice Course Director really had no obligation to extend. My university has also been very kind and accepting, thus for me it would be a way of returning said kindness. Your MSc stays with you for life, and the fact that they can recognise that, and go out of their way to assist me in making sure I truly make the most out of it, is truly touching. My gratitude only grows even further, when you compound everything with the fact that my Vice Course Director is pretty much glued to their office because of unfeasible workloads.

So I think for those that truly care, it comes down to a deep personal relationship not with the institution, but rather the people behind it.

I got IB internships my freshman and sophomore summers because the two MD alumni of the high school and college I attended took a chance on me mainly because they could relate to what I had gone through when they were at my high school and at my college. Because of those experiences, I was able to get an FT IB analyst role.

Now I just want to do the same for people who went to the same high school and/or college as me. I hope the people I help can do the same thing, and the cycle continues...

Generally people look for similarities in others (nationality, languages and by extension even common unis) so it makes sense that some may like this. I personally like to help anyone from any university if I can. And the school spirit thing plays in too

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I will probably never donate to my alma mater, but a lot of alumni helped me through recruiting, and so I now return the favor with current students. I think most people are in a similar boat.

I attended an ivy and don't particularly care about my alma mater

However, I am a bit partial to those that attended a competitive undergrad, all else equal. Misery loves company

I have huge pride for my alma mater.

I get if people are only a little partial to the school they went to (had a good experience but didn't totally buy into the spirit, etc.), but I honestly find it weird when someone has zero affinity to their alma mater.

Feel somewhat similar. Always love helping people in my school, but no chance in hell I'm donating a dime to them in the future when I pay full tuition just so they can keep knocking down and building new shit to have a pretty campus. Thinking back to a bankerella thread when she was asked to donate to her school (I'm paraphrasing here), "of course x university has my gratitude. They also have $250k of my money. I believe this concludes our business"

I guess ill take the contrarian point here to the OPs position here. For me tuition is just that, room/board and the classes you take, all of the other non-school shit is intangible, which is what in my mind I donate toward.

In my case I had a great time at my school, met all of my current friends, met my current gf, went to the gym for free, and was able to continue to use the library/internet to teach myself finance and apply for jobs when I was struggling after undergrad. That extra shit is why I give back, if it's to buy new computers for the library, or as someone else alluded to "tear down old buildings just to make new shit," really whatever the reason, I'm paying so that hopefully someone else gets a shot at those intangibles that I had. If you didn't have a great time during your 4+years I guess I could understand why you wouldn't want to give back, but for me personally, school was way more than just education, as I'm sure that it was for a lot of other people on here as well.

My school is not hurting for money for sure. So while I do not write checks to the university I would be remiss to disregard the impact it has had on my life both as a student and as an alum. The recognition of the school landed me countless interview opportunities coming out of undergrad and later in life when I switched careers entirely the university was still a strong and supportive network that I took advantage of.

I go back to my school once a year to speak and volunteer with a couple different committees throughout the year. There are some great old school bars by the campus still open and when you walk in on a Saturday afternoon you often see multi-generations of graduates sitting at a table (a son/daughter, parent(s), and a grandparent) and that's something we all get a great amount of enjoyment from.

VERITAS BABY

It's part of the game. Universities have become such money making machines and the only reason they are raising their fees is because the government allows students to take on more debt, and because they know they will keep on making money from donations. Professors don't get paid that well, but the admin costs and useless bureaucrats are swelling the universities' rank. I won't even go into SJW jobs that are being offered and mixed gender bathrooms that are being subsidised by your donations. The system is rotten and needs to change, a funding crisis for one would be welcome.

To me, it's really a pay-it-forward philosophy. Most of the serious internships and full-time jobs I've gotten so far have been through networking with my school's alumni. Because of that, I do feel a strong sense of responsibility to help students in my alma mater who have been in my shoes before because I know what it's like to feel confused, clueless, and overwhelmed.

I give back to my university (both undergrad and grad) and the students that come from it for three real reasons.

1) The school brand reflects on me

When new grads from my university are successful, it is evidence for the school's high ranking. I want the school to continue to be ranked highly because this keeps my brand high as well. I paid for the brand and the network. "Why do all these x kids work at ? the school must not be very good" isn't something I want to hear. I want x grads on my team. I want them to get promotions. I want us all to be super successful and all help each other. For the money aspect, % of alumni that donate goes into a lot of rankings. If $20 will help then I'm cool with throwing in a 20 every year. There were a ton of fantastic programs at both of my schools. Some shitty ones too but oh well.

2) My personal brand

People talk - A LOT. If you're currently a student and ask an alum for a coffee chat and then blow them off, you can bet 100% that their 10 closest alum friends will hear about it with the full name and LinkedIn profile passed around. I give a lot of time to my mentees and they've expressed a lot of thanks. I wouldn't be shocked if they mentioned this to other people. I think it's nice to be known as a helpful alum. This one is sort of throwing random good karma into a smaller version (i.e. just the alum pool) of the universe.

3) I enjoy helping people

Full disclosure: I don't give a LOT and I don't help a LOT. I give a bit of my time and money. It's really not that difficult. We'll see if I keep it up when I'm 50.

I totally get people that don't want to donate their time or money. I really get it and respect the thought. But I do hope you didn't go to either of my schools because of pt. 1 above.

As students from your alma mater go out into the workforce and (hopefully) do well, that enhances your school's reputation and increases the value of your degree. That's how I see it working.

(most) Alumni think like players on the same sports team. That's why the majority are willing to help out. Reputation is never finished, it's constantly developing, and it gets boosted up each time an institution produces another successful graduate. Old grads help new ones because bolstering the rep helps everyone.