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Director of alumni relations vs director of public affairs

The differences between directors of alumni relations and directors of public affairs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a director of alumni relations and a director of public affairs. Additionally, a director of public affairs has an average salary of $114,639, which is higher than the $106,332 average annual salary of a director of alumni relations.

The top three skills for a director of alumni relations include alumni relations, alumni engagement and alumni association. The most important skills for a director of public affairs are government affairs, public policy, and external stakeholders.

Director of alumni relations vs director of public affairs overview

Director Of Alumni RelationsDirector Of Public Affairs
Yearly salary$106,332$114,639
Hourly rate$51.12$55.11
Growth rate8%8%
Number of jobs23,65026,290
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age4242
Years of experience44

What does a director of alumni relations do?

The director of alumni relations is liable for relationship management between a university and its alumni. They serve as a connection between the graduates and the university community. One of the major duties of directors of alumni relations is to create engaging activities and events for alumni to participate in, such as homecoming weekends, class reunions, and dinner parties. This job requires excellent communication skills to coordinate their engagement activities with the other departments of the university, from the office of president to campus security.

What does a director of public affairs do?

Directors of Public Affairs are executives who manage the public relations and communications initiatives of the company. They oversee all external communications that are intended for broadcast. They create guidelines on the proper crafting of communication materials that will be published or broadcasted. They also lead the public affairs department in networking activities and industry events. Directors of Public Affairs must be level-headed, calm, and creative. They should know how to communicate with the public, handle crises, and create successful brands.

Director of alumni relations vs director of public affairs salary

Directors of alumni relations and directors of public affairs have different pay scales, as shown below.

Director Of Alumni RelationsDirector Of Public Affairs
Average salary$106,332$114,639
Salary rangeBetween $68,000 And $165,000Between $70,000 And $187,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CALas Vegas, NV
Highest paying stateCaliforniaNevada
Best paying companyMarshall UniversityKaiser Permanente
Best paying industryEducationPharmaceutical

Differences between director of alumni relations and director of public affairs education

There are a few differences between a director of alumni relations and a director of public affairs in terms of educational background:

Director Of Alumni RelationsDirector Of Public Affairs
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common majorBusinessPolitical Science
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Director of alumni relations vs director of public affairs demographics

Here are the differences between directors of alumni relations' and directors of public affairs' demographics:

Director Of Alumni RelationsDirector Of Public Affairs
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 35.6% Female, 64.4%Male, 57.6% Female, 42.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 74.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.9% Asian, 5.1% White, 75.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage16%16%

Differences between director of alumni relations and director of public affairs duties and responsibilities

Director of alumni relations example responsibilities.

  • Work cross functionally to write and manage multi-million dollar budgets, alliances and ROI analytics.
  • Supervise the creation of mailing of annual fund announcements, appeals and thank you's to achieve annual fund goals.
  • Program development includes managing and building strong relationships with corporate and affinity partners to secure sponsorship and career enhancement for alumni
  • Design performance review process and share oversight with route sales leadership.
  • Design, management, and oversight of administrative budget ($ 2,000,000) & employee benefits, including 401k.
  • Assist in identifying appropriate market segments to develop effective annual fund solicitations and/or appeals for print, electronic and social media.
  • Show more

Director of public affairs example responsibilities.

  • Manage crisis communications, securing any media articles and editorials in support of the company.
  • Manage communications with students, alumni and faculty, including distribution of all social media
  • Prepare testimonies for city and state oversight hearings.
  • Revise and place opinion editorials on behalf of the museum's executive director.
  • Produce, edit, and publish issue orient videos for YouTube and internet.
  • Execute Marketing/PR campaigns, events/exhibits, copywriting, and print, broadcast and outdoor advertising.
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Director of alumni relations vs director of public affairs skills

Common director of alumni relations skills
  • Alumni Relations, 18%
  • Alumni Engagement, 9%
  • Alumni Association, 8%
  • Alumni Events, 6%
  • Event Planning, 4%
  • Alumni Programs, 4%
Common director of public affairs skills
  • Government Affairs, 12%
  • Public Policy, 11%
  • External Stakeholders, 7%
  • Policy Issues, 6%
  • Government Relations, 5%
  • Press Releases, 4%

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