The past couple of months have been filled with opportunities to connect with our alumni community – from supporting future students and strengthening collaborations internationally, to informal gatherings across Australia, to reliving memories back on campus.
Agnes Gibson, Head of Campaign and Supporter Engagement, said: “It’s wonderful to see our alumni community coming together from right here on campus, to around the globe. Alumni are a key part of our University and these events offer valuable connection opportunities. It was also brilliant to see alumni guiding prospective students at our offer-holder events, by offering insights into their time at University.”
Read on to find out more about our recent alumni events, both on Whiteknights campus and around the globe.
Community Festival
Held on Saturday 17 May, it’s safe to say this year’s Community Festival has been our most popular yet, with thousands of people coming to campus to enjoy everything the University has to offer.
From snakes, to stormtroopers, research talks, science, bubbles, live music, workshops, and of course, our Alumni Campus Tours and Drinks Reception. Our Alumni Drinks Reception welcomed over 50 of our graduates, from across different decades, back to the Students’ Union to reminisce on their student years over lunch and drinks. The atmosphere was buzzing as alumni reconnected and met new friends, whilst browsing our displays of alumni stories and quizzes.
This year we also welcomed staff member and member of The Friends of the University of Reading, Michael Fulford, who led our Campus Tours. Michael shared a wealth of historical knowledge with our graduates who were able to see how the campus landscape had changed, spot their old academic buildings and halls, as well as admire the new buildings that have cropped up since they graduated.
Michael, who has led countless tours around the walls and amphitheatre of Silchester, said why leading his first tour at the University grounds was so special: “The University is rightly proud of its beautiful campus and any opportunity to share my enthusiasm with others is to be seized!
“The tours almost led themselves as alumni had so many great stories to share about their experience of buildings, whose functions are now totally different to what they were in their day. It was a privilege to hear those stories.”
Class of 1980 graduate, Karen Devoil (nee Meekings), who attended the Community Festival, said: “The event was a fantastic occasion with so much to see and do.
“It succeeded in showcasing the University of Reading’s impressive heritage and current work, as well as being great fun!
It was wonderful to revisit the campus after so many years, and of course the memories came flooding back.”
Australia Get-togethers
It was a pleasure to reconnect with some of our alumni who are living on the other side of the world, when Marcus Dowse – the University’s Head of Mobility – visited Australia in April 2025.
Marcus hosted three informal get-togethers in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney, and it was brilliant to bring our graduates together to hear the latest University news, reminisce over memories, and make new connections with each other. Marcus said: “It was wonderful to meet with these groups of alumni in Australia. They all held very strong positive sentiments for their time at Reading and it was lovely to hear their memories, and find out more about their career journeys and achievements.”
One of the alumni who attended, Phil Myers, said: “I want to say how much I enjoyed meeting with Marcus and other alumni at the Brisbane Gathering. It was really good to reconnect with the University of Reading after so many years.”
Offer-holder Networking
The University of Reading and Henley Business School recently visited China, South East Asia and Nigeria to run a series of offer-holder networking events. These are events where we invite alumni to meet with prospective students, who hold an offer to study with us, to answer questions about life and studying at the University. These events are incredibly valuable to prospective students who are able to get an honest and firsthand review of studying here, and are also a great opportunity for alumni to reconnect with the University.
We held these recent offer-holder events in Beijing in China, Abuja and Lagos in Nigeria, as well as Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Bangkok in South East Asia in April and May 2025. The offer-holder sessions were, in some locations, followed by an Alumni Gathering where graduates could reconnect, make new connections and network.
During the Beijing Alumni Reception, graduates from the Henley Business School and the University of Reading were brought together for an evening of networking, refreshments, and reconnecting. Guests enjoyed a welcome address from Vice-Chancellor, Professor Robert Van de Noort, and shared stories of their time at Reading and Henley, and their journeys since.
Ryan Marner, Events Officer at Henley Business School, said: “It was wonderful to see so many alumni in attendance and actively engaging with the University. It was great to hear about their achievements and ideas for future events in China.”
Stories of success among our graduates emerged throughout the trip, including how one, now-retired graduate – Qinfang Lu – had applied knowledge gained from food processing studies in Reading to enhance freeze drying processes in the Chinese food industry. Read more about Qinfang’s story.
Of the events in South East Asia, Hristina Dimova – Global Student Recruitment Regional Manager – said: “These offer-holder events were very useful to our prospective students. Talking in their native language made them feel much more comfortable discussing what really matters to them, and our alumni did a brilliant job of offering a glimpse of what life is like when studying at Reading or Henley.
“Our alumni fed back that they really appreciated the opportunity to meet some of their peers and build new connections, looking forward to more in the future.”
Would you like to join us at one of our future events? Make sure your details are up-to-date and you have opted into receive our event emails.
