Wanna make the most of your college experience while preparing for the “real world”? I got you! This post goes over 10 simple yet effective networking tips for college students!
Comment below what your major is! I would love to hear!
10 Amazing Networking Tips for College Students
1. Attend Workshops
If your university offers workshops on campus, attend them! They can be very useful.
For example, here at my uni, they had a workshop “How to Network” which was very interesting and useful because we got a helpful worksheet and also got to meet new people and practice networking.
Search for the career department of your college on Facebook or Instagram and follow them since they will probably post any upcoming workshops! This is one of my favorite networking tips for college students and it’s so simple.
2. Conduct Informational Interviews
I haven’t heard of them either before I went to that networking event and took a Business Bootcamp class in my freshman year.
Informational interviews are basically “interviews” where you ask the person about their job and what they like and dislike about it. It’s also a great opportunity to network and connect to possible job opportunities!
At first, I really didn’t want to do it (I’m an introvert haha), but then it was actually really interesting and helpful! I have also heard of people getting internships from interviews like this, so it’s a super-strong networking tip!
Related: 10 Tips for a Successful Online Interview
3. Join a Professional Fraternity
If your college has a professional fraternity or sorority consider rushing and joining one! They are kind of like fraternities/sororities except for the difference that these are professional and have the goal of creating networks for your business and personal life, instead of only social like regular sororities.
Being in an organization like this gives you endless networking opportunities and connections for life!
If you want to know more about professional fraternities, this blog post from Jamie Liu is very good at explaining the differences!
4. Prepare an Elevator Pitch
This is often overlooked when it comes to being a college student. But, it’s something very beneficial and comes in handy when meeting important people.
Essentially, an elevator pitch is a short introduction of yourself that “sells” you or what you do. In the business world, it is often used for product pitches (when introducing a new idea to people) or to answer the question “tell me about yourself”.
Having an answer prepared is so much more professional and beneficial than rambling about how you don’t know what major to choose.
Related Post: 10 Tips For Business Majors To Boost Your Career
5. Attend Campus Events
Campus events are amazing ways to meet new people and do something fun. They don’t have to be strictly related to your career path for them to be beneficial for you.
Some events that my campus had was for example our recent innovation week where we had several speakers come to campus and talk about different topics, as well as free food and games outdoors.
If your college/university does something like this make sure to attend!
6. Join a Club
My next networking tip is to join a club! I know this one is common sense, but it still belongs to this list!
There is usually at least one club/involvement fair per semester, so make sure to attend that or if your university has an involvement website you can check out events and clubs there!
For example, you can join clubs related to your major. I am an entrepreneurship major and part of the entrepreneurship club!
I know that there are clubs for almost every major, so that is very beneficial for meeting like-minded people and build your network!
You can also join some fun clubs to expand your connections and know people from different areas too. For example, I am passionate about sustainability and so I joined that club as well.
Taking on leadership positions is another benefit of being involved in clubs and organizations. They are great CV boosters and give you experience in positions.
Related Post: 15 Ways to Get Involved on Campus
7. Study Abroad
This one is a little bit out of the ordinary, but that’s what makes it so amazing. Studying abroad doesn’t only teach you more about yourself, another culture, and potentially a language. It’s also an amazing networking opportunity.
Going to another country gives you 2x friendships from a university, 2x professors to connect with, and 2x people to meet. Also, having connections all over the world gives you an amazing advantage to students only studying in their own country.
Whether you go abroad for a may-term program with faculty and other students or study abroad for a whole semester, you’ll walk away with lots of advantages.
Here to name a few:
- Meet people from around the world – great for friendships and networking!
- Getting to know a different culture broadens your horizon and is great for seeing things from a different angle sometimes
- It looks great on your resume
- it’s just a ONCE IN A LIFETIME EXPERIENCE
Interested in studying abroad? Read this guide before you do anything else!
Not for you? While I think anyone can and should study abroad, sometimes it just isn’t possible. In that case, reach out to the international office at your college/university and ask if there are any incoming (or how many) international students. Meeting students from around the world can be done without traveling abroad!
8. Connect with Professors and Advisors
Professors and advisors are with you all the way from freshman year to the day you graduate, so why not take advantage and develop good connections with them?
I am not saying to make them your best friends, but being on good terms with them or asking them questions/going to office hours can be beneficial for possible job recommendation letters, etc!
9. Do an Internship
Besides just looking good on your resume, internships are amazing ways to gain experience in a field and make connections for possible job opportunities.
Doing an internship is one of the best networking tips for college students, as you can connect with potential employers, get recommendations, and learn about the field.
To find internships, you can either go on a hunt on your own on talk to the career department at your university. They usually have good company recommendations or sometimes even applications you can fill out to apply through them. A very helpful resource!
10. Enjoy the Process
And lastly, enjoy the process! Getting a degree of any kind is not only about landing that perfect job after graduation.
It’s also about meeting people along the way, having fun, and learning! Make sure to not miss that point within all the stress of getting a good job.
I hope these networking tips for college students helped you figure out what you can actively do to improve your time in college/university, take advantage of opportunities, and make the most of your time.
Don’t forget to comment your major below!
Until soon,
Leave a Reply