How To Professionally Network
How To Professionally Network is a Villanova Career Center guide that helps students understand what networking is, why it matters, and how to begin building professional connections. Networking means developing contacts and exchanging information with others to support career exploration, job searching, and long-term professional growth.
This guide explains that networking can happen through intentional outreach, informal conversations, or structured events such as career fairs, conferences, and meetups. When done thoughtfully, networking can help students learn about career paths, explore industries, connect with alumni and professionals, and stand out during the job or internship search.
This guide covers:
- What networking is and why it is useful
- How networking can support career exploration and job searching
- Where to start when building a professional network
- How to identify the information you are looking for
- How to identify people who may be able to help
- How activities and organizations can help expand your network
- Villanova resources that support networking
- How to have career conversations with professionals and alumni
- What types of questions to ask during informational interviews
- How to follow up with a contact after a conversation
Villanova resources highlighted in the guide include:
- NovaNetwork: Villanova’s official social and professional networking platform
- LinkedIn Alumni Tool: A way to search for and connect with alumni by company, location, industry, and more
- Career Connections: A resource for career education content, networking resources, and industry or identity-based connections
- Handshake: Villanova’s platform for jobs, internships, events, employers, and networking opportunities
Career conversations, also known as informational interviews, are an important part of professional networking. These conversations allow students to speak with working professionals or alumni to learn about their career path, role, industry, organization, and advice for entering the field. The guide explains that students should approach these conversations professionally and should not directly ask for a job. Instead, the goal is to build trust, learn from the contact’s experience, and develop a supportive network.
Sample career conversation questions include:
- What is your educational and professional background?
- How did you get from Villanova to where you are now?
- How did you prepare for this career path?
- What do you like or dislike about your job?
- How did you decide to enter this industry?
- What should I do to best prepare for a job in this field?
- What skills and background are needed to be successful?
- What are the tasks you do in a typical workday?
- What challenges do you experience on the job?
- Are there professional publications or organizations I should know about?
Students are encouraged to end career conversations by asking if the contact can recommend additional professionals to speak with. After the conversation, students should send a thank you email, mention something useful they learned, follow through on any advice received, and connect with the person on LinkedIn or NovaNetwork to stay in touch.
Students who would like more support can schedule an appointment with the Career Center through Handshake for help with networking, identifying contacts, and preparing for professional conversations.
