LinkedIn has quietly launched its "Your College Alumni" feature (click image to enlarge).
What is it?
Search for a company when you are logged in to LinkedIn, and you'll see a page showing
- the company's profile on LinkedIn;
- a tab showing employees in your LinkedIn network;
- a tab listing employees who are your fellow alumni, and
- a tab with new hires, if any, at that company.
"Your College Alumni" pulls alumni of all institutions from which you list an undergradaute or graduate degree in your profile. It won't tell you which institutional connection you share with company employees (but you can find out by looking at an individual employee's LinkedIn profile).
You can see how you are linked to each individual as well (1st, 2nd or 3rd degree connection, or shared LinkedIn Group membership).
The assumption seems to be that your fellow alumni will be more approachable and ready to network with you because of your alumni connection. By revealing your network within that company, LinkedIn may make it easier for you to gain inroads for business development, job hunting, information interviewing and more.
Have you noticed this feature? Have you used it?
Will you promote it to your own alumni?
Leave a comment.
Thank you to Alumni Futures advisory group member Liz Allen of Adaptivate who tipped me off that this function was up and running on LinkedIn.