When I have thought of the word “networking,” I have imagined lawyers in New York City drinking martinis after work or corporate business men playing a round of golf on the weekend, closing business deals. Based on who I am and what I value, networking absolutely did not seem to be for me. Yet this perception has been narrow: it limited networking to transactional interactions that benefit the few who fit the mold and exclude others with less power and access. Recently, I have reconsidered my understanding of the value of networking and how it can relate to broader aspects of our students’ vocational journeys beyond careers. Faculty and staff members can play an important role in facilitating networking opportunities that encourage our students to explore who they want to be in the world.
Rethinking Networking
A colleague of mine is a master networker—she is great at reaching out to new people, following up on conversations, and making connections between people she knows. One of her strengths is in knowing who is around her and seeing the possible connections between them, as well as following through to make these connections. She works in our career center and has undoubtedly facilitated several internship opportunities, informal coffees, and more for our students. Observing and talking with her helped me realize how relevant my own network is to my students on their vocational journeys. My perception has further shifted based on feedback from students who have told me that speaking with professionals in their fields of interest has shifted their perspectives on their own paths. Networking can be about more than transactions; it can be about making connections, gaining support, and learning. While networking is often tied to specific careers or industries, I see now that the connections students make with people provide them with opportunities to consider broader questions about what kind of lives they want to live and to witness models of living. I may be late to the game in realizing this, but this simple shift in perspective has helped me understand how invaluable networking can be to our students’ vocational exploration.
I see now that the connections students make with people provide them with opportunities to consider broader questions about what kind of lives they want to live and to witness models of living
Networking Supports the Vocational Journey
The vocational journey is not a solitary endeavor. As students come to understand themselves and their own sense of vocation, they often do so in community with others. While we are part of that community as faculty and staff members, we can also encourage students to network so they can make new connections, gain support, and learn from others. I want to suggest three ways to incorporate networking into your work with students to help support their vocational journeys and build connections with others:
1. Invite alumni to campus. As students imagine their future lives, they will benefit from seeing a variety of role models. Students in my discipline of psychology often hear people ask, “what can you even do with a psychology major?” I have heard similar questions directed at people interested in English or philosophy majors as well. Our alumni are our best evidence that you can find work with these particular degrees, and their stories have a strong impact on students. For example, this past spring, students shared that they learned from a alumnus panelist that it is okay not to know what you want to do right away and that it is okay to change your mind. Additionally, a panelist spoke about the process he has used to create a meaningful life beyond work by finding ways to engage with his community through volunteerism and play. He wove vocational considerations organically into his presentation, which resonated with my group of students.
2. Encourage informational interviews. An informational interview is an informal conversation with people who are working in a field of interest. As a career exploration tool, it can be used while students are trying to figure out what career interests them or while they are on the job market. Faculty and staff members can encourage or assign informational interviews and can frame them from a vocational perspective. For example, students can ask both the typical informational interview questions (e.g. “What is the path to this position?” or “What is it like working for this company?”) and more vocation-related questions (e.g. “What do you find meaningful about your work?” or “How do you find a sense of purpose in your work?”). Additionally, students could be encouraged to ask questions about their interviewee’s life outside of work (e.g. “What, if any, activities are you involved in outside of work?” or “What are your values, and how do you see yourself living those out in your work and personal life?”). Adding vocational questions to the informational interview may help students to move beyond simply considering a career or job to considering what kind of lives they want to lead.
3. Capitalize on the internship experience. Many institutions encourage or require internships, which is another career exploration tool that can help students learn what they like and what they don’t like. Internships typically provide an experiential opportunity for students to apply their knowledge and work towards self-identified learning goals. Many of my students intern within non-profit, human service agencies that serve a variety of populations needing support. The actual experience of working with people and understanding non-profit work is often illuminating for students. But beyond achieving their learning goals and gaining exposure to the work, students have the opportunity to network and talk with a variety of people in their internships. We can encourage students to talk with their supervisors and colleagues to get to know who these people are, what kinds of lives they are leading, and how they have come to understand the work that they do. Questions similar to the informational interview questions may be relevant. The internship experience should help students not only learn if they like the work itself or not but also if the work aligns with their understanding of how they want to be in the world or not. This understanding can be enhanced by networking with people within the organization.
Final Thoughts
Depending on your background, networking may feel normal and natural, or it may feel foreign and uncomfortable. If you fall in the latter group, I hope that these suggestions help you to reconceptualize networking as an important and useful part of the vocational journey. We can only provide our own perspective to students, but by giving the gift of our network or by encouraging students to do their own networking, we can also help increase their number of connections and help them see a variety of ways of being in the world. Talking to many different people and gaining new perspectives may help them to further understand and discern their own next steps.
Samantha Brown is an assistant professor of psychology at Coe College, where she is also the faculty co-director of C3: Creativity, Careers, and Community. She is a NetVUE Faculty Fellow, and was a member of the 2021 cohort of the Faculty Seminar on Teaching Vocational Exploration. For more posts by Samantha, click here.
Great post!