Infographic from 2018 alumni survey depicting how respondents described themselves (creative, talented, hardworking, competent and unique).
Connect RISD Alumni Association

2018 Alumni Survey

We surveyed alumni during the summer of 2018 to better understand how they feel about RISD and how we can better serve them.

Alumni are proud of RISD
97% reported feeling proud to have attended RISD.

Alumni event participation
59% of alumni respondents had not attended a RISD event in the last two years.

Top areas of interest for events

  • Art and design disciplines
  • Sustainable development
  • Climate change
  • RISD’s future

Levels of alumni engagement
61% of respondents rated their engagement as low, but 79% percent said they wanted to be more involved.

Top alumni concerns

  • RISD's affordability (57%)
  • Career preparation (51%)
Infographic alumni as entrepreneurs and their calling to be an artist or designer; of what alumni valued about their time at RISD: immersive, hands-on, discipline-based studio education; students push the limits of their own expectations and inspire each other; the studio environment fosters curiosity, flexibility, empathy, imagination and expansive thinking

RISD contacted approximately 26,000 alumni and nearly 2,500 alumni completed the survey, garnering a 10 percent response rate. The survey's margin of error was just under 2 percent. Alumni were very thoughtful in their responses: 27 minutes was the median amount of time that alumni spent taking the survey.