I've had a bit of fun playing around with LinkedIn's new alumni network analysis tool (LinkedIn Announcement | Actual Tool). I attended Dartmouth College during the mid 1970's; apparently the number of software nerds who live in northern Minnesota and work for a Fortune 100 firm are quite rare!
Seriously, one could use this tool to leverage and find connections. Students who are considering a college to attend might be interested in learning how graduates five years out are succeeding with their chosen careers. The possibilities are interesting. Obviously one needs access to schools other than just one's own, but that process can be easily worked. Just use the "browse by other schools" functionality (see send screen shot for Harvard).
College connections are very strong, and with a little creativity one should be able to find a "connection" to entice people from schools other than your own to respond to your queries. I believe your results will be much better than "cold calls & emails". People are individuals, and like to be treated as such!
Click to maximize this image: Dartmouth 1974 to 1978
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Search for Harvard College via LinkedIn Alumni
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