College & Remote Networking
88% of professionals consider networking to be critical to a thriving career
The Importance of Networking
- Professional Benefits
- Opens doors to opportunities
- 70% of people were hired at a company where they had a connection
- Provides you with connections
- 7 in 10 planning to work with their company for 5 years have a mentor
- Prepares you for a professional future
- Jobs requiring average to above average social skills +8%
- Jobs requiring average to above average social skills +8%
- Opens doors to opportunities
- Networking and College
Meeting people is a crucial value of higher education
- The benefits of university groups after graduation
- Student organizations are a great place to hone lifelong skills
- Leadership
- Communication
- Service
- Teamwork
- Greek students are happier and more engaged at work
- 85% of Fortune 500 executives are fraternity members
- Student organizations are a great place to hone lifelong skills
69% of students no longer have regular access to their classmates, friends, and network ㅡ What are ways we can keep in contact digitally?
Tips To Help
- Connect Online
- Reach Out Genuinely
- People miss real human connections, not just networking
- Duke University
- Students created Facebook group to connect with each other after the campus closed indefinitely due to coronavirus
- Ask Questions
- To be interesting is to be interested
- Direct conversations toward mutual interests and goals
- Understand Everyone Is Struggling
- “The key to long-term social networking success is to always remember there are people using the technology. People like you and me, with messy, complicated distracted lives” – J. Kelly Hoey, Build Your Dream Network
- Reach Out Genuinely
- DIY Your Virtual Campus
- Stay Engaged
- Share your experiences and let others know you’re still in their life
- Utilize popular social media like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter
- Be Proactive
- With schedules disrupted, it can be easy to fall into a lack of structure
- Instead, focus on the future: create group chats for study, meetings, & class discussion
- Think Outside the Box
- Utilize online resources to maintain as much connection as possible
- Some ivy league sororities are using Zoom to conduct pre-rush events and applicant interviews
- Stay Engaged
Don’t know where to start? LinkedIn is used by over half of all college graduates
- Take Advantage of LinkedIn
- Stand Out
- Enhance your profile with your achievements
- Beyond career-related: include volunteerism, awards, and honors
- Showcase Your Expertise
- Emphasize your skillset and why people should contact you
- Include links to content such a a blog or website in your profile
- Get Involved
- Be active in your university’s alumni group and built-in network
- Join a group, make a post, reach out to an alum – start somewhere
- Stand Out
Many anticipate the trend towards digital will remain long after quarantine ends ― How are students coping now?
Creative Solutions
- Socializing From Home
- From February-March 2020, utilization of remote communication tools spiked
- Hangout Meets By Google 5X
- Microsoft Teams 4X
- Zoom 3.5X
- Google Classroom 2X
- 86% of students are looking for ways to recreate in-person socializing with peers
- From February-March 2020, utilization of remote communication tools spiked
- Soundtrap
- App used to create music and collaborate with others in real time
- Events like concerts, open mics, and speeches can be streamed & still experienced as a group
- Unmasked
- Created by Dartmouth student to facilitate anonymous peer mental health support
- 52% of students feel anxious about their displaced education & loss of normalcy
“If fall 2020 can’t happen on campus, we need to find a way for it to happen, vibrant and unchecked, online” -Eduventures researcher Richard Garrett
Don’t be afraid to network remotely now ㅡ It may be how we stay connected in the future
Sources:
https://blog.linkedin.com/2012/09/20/the-best-way-to-network-with-alumni-on-linkedin
https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2020/04/duke-students-stay-connected-social-media-quarantine
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/linkedin.htm
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/10/share-of-u-s-adults-using-social-media-including-facebook-is-mostly-unchanged-since-2018/https://www.networkworld.com/article/3532440/coronavirus-challenges-remote-networking.html
https://www.fcc.gov/coronavirus
https://jkellyhoey.co/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/BYDN_Newsletter_Final.pages.pdf
https://blog.linkedin.com/2017/june/22/the-best-way-to-land-your-next-job-opportunity
https://tophat.com/press-releases/adrift-in-a-pandemic-survey/https://apps.apple.com/us/app/beer-with-me/id618435598
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/10/13/jobs-requiring-preparation-social-skills-or-both-expected-to-grow-most/https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2020/04/pre-rush-introduces-pnms-to-greek-houses-over-zoom
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/