Take Advantage of World Learning’s Online Networking

written by Jennifer McClearen, Career Counselor, SIT Graduate Institute

As I clicked “submit application” on yet another online employment opportunities site, I hopefully sent my professional self into cyber space. I wondered who would be receiving me on the other side and if that person would be able to distinguish me from a mound of other virtual applicants.

Not willing to leave it to chance, I logged on to the LinkedIn website (a “Facebook” for professionals) and searched my “connections.” No one I knew personally was working for the organization, but another SIT Graduate Institute alum was employed there and was “connected” to several people I knew. Introducing myself to the alum via email, I timidly asked for any information she had relating to the open position in her organization. I hopefully sent my professional self into cyber space yet again.

The alum wrote back to me within 10 minutes with her number and a friendly “anything for a fellow World Learning alum.”

Although a job did not materialize from the conversation that I later had with this particular connection, I learned a very valuable lesson about the new world order of social networks—defined as an online community of people who share interests, experiences, or affiliations. In the troubled economic climate that confronts us, it is ever more important to maintain connections with the World Learning family. Some studies show that nearly 70% of jobs are obtained through networking, so we need each other to maintain career vitality in troubled times.

LinkedIn is a social networking website that utilizes a virtual six degrees of separation to link people of like career experiences and interests. Once you connect with people you know, the site will create a network for you that includes your friends and colleagues but also their affiliates.

LinkedIn has features for both the job seeker and for the individual desiring to boost or maintain professional relationships. A job seeker can survey organizations and uncover anyone working there who is connected to her within a few degrees. A trainer can join professional interest groups and participate in online discussions relating to his field of expertise. A non-profit manager can search for guest speakers for an upcoming conference she is planning. The list of functions is long and constantly expanding.

While other social networking sites may not be geared towards professional connections and job opportunities, there are advantages of keeping in touch via Facebook or Twitter. On a smaller scale than LinkedIn, Facebook can search your contacts and networks for people affiliated with organizations or job markets you are targeting. Additionally, strong social networks provide a forum to interact with people whom you completely lost touch with via other communication methods.

Join us on World Learning’s Facebook and LinkedIn pages in order to connect with old classmates and alumni from other cohorts. Our network is only as strong as its active participants.  Build and maintain your social network because you never know when someone would be willing to do “anything for a fellow World Learning alum.” 

Jennifer McClearen is a career counselor at SIT Graduate Institute and a recent alumna of the Program in Intercultural Service, Leadership, and Management.