BEFORE = PREPARATION
- Reflect on your professional interests and identify 1-2 potential career paths.
- Identify your skills, talents and preferred work environment and their applicability to your chosen paths
- Compose at least three questions which will give you the information you need to determine which career path would be a good fit. For example: What are your daily tasks and responsibilities? What is your weekly schedule? What do you find most rewarding about your job?
DURING = CONVERSATION
- Be proactive. You need to initiate and orchestrate the conversation
- Introduce yourself giving your first and last name as well as your major
- Begin with comments or questions about the others person’s work that will lead to further discussion
- Remember, you are building a connection and when you network, there is a potential relationship with that person’s circle of family, friends and past business contact
- End the conversation with a request for a business card and permission to follow-up with any questions
AFTER = FOLLOW-UP
- Write thank you notes to each professional with whom you have had a conversation
- Identify what you learned from your conversation with that person
Take advantage of opportunities to network right here at Wheaton!