Building relationships is one of the most valuable things you can do during your college experience. From a career perspective, conversations with professionalsabout their career paths, the organizational culture they work in, and tips for entering a career fieldcan offer insights you won’t find anywhere else. These connections can help you explore career fit and uncover opportunities, often before they’re publicly posted.
The articles and resources on this page are designed to help you gain confidence about engaging in conversations with people from a career lens. Sometimes these conversations may be a structured informational interviews. Sometimes these conversations will be a matter of asking a speaker a few questions after a presentation they give on-campus. Other times, you might engage in dialogue at a networking event. Whatever form these conversations may take, remember it is all about connecting with and learning from others.
What is career networking?
Career networking is the process of building and nurturing professional relationships to exchange information, explore career paths, discover new opportunities, and stay connected within your field of interest.
Building your networking toolkit
Before diving into networking conversations, build the right tools for success:
Create a strong resumeto market your skills and experiences.
Develop an elevator pitch to introduce who you are and what you are interested in.
Know what you want to learn by identifying questions and topics you’re curious about.
Create a strong LinkedIn Profile that reflects your goals and personality.
Ready to grow your career network? Start here!
Start with your existing network (friends, family, professors, supervisors, etc.)
Recent graduates can make cold outreach much more effective by using alumni connections, demonstrating genuine curiosity, making specific and respectful requests, and prioritizing learning over immediately asking for jobs.
Successful networking is less about having the perfect script and more …
By Greg Denon
Greg DenonAssociate Dean, Career Services & Cooperative Education
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