I hope everyone is enjoying their summer and finding time to rest, reflect and rejuvenate for the upcoming academic year!
I'm pleased to inform everyone that a session my colleagues and I presented at NASPA 2011 in Philadelphia, PA was recently featured in the Women in Higher Education Journal. The author of the article, Mary Helen Conroy (Director of Career Connections for Women in Higher Education) wrote about our session which discussed how to network and increase your social capital in higher education.
My colleagues and I were honored when Mary reached out to us and ask to feature our session as an article in this journal. I highly encourage you to visit www.wihe.com to subscribe to this journal and receive a hard copy of the article. You can also view the article below. The article is timely, informative and provides useful strategies and best practices for networking in higher education.
I'm pleased to share this recognition with Mr. Kelvin Harris and Mr. James Frier, who were co-presenters for this session at NASPA. Kelvin is the Student Life Specialist/Student Conduct Coordinator at CUNY - Kingsborough Community College. James is a Resident Director at Northeastern University.
Network Your Way to Increased Social Capital
Much has been written about networking . When done with a purpose, this tool creates unlimited opportuni- ties and collaborations that build your social capital, which contributes to a person’s academic and professional prog- ress . Men are especially good at it .
For graduate students and young professionals, develop- ing social capital can help get you that first research grant or land you that special job .
Increasing social capital is an important career objective for David jones, associate director of residence life at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, Kelvin Harris, student conduct coordinator at Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn, NY and James Frier, residence life coordinator at Texas Tech University .
They spoke about the power of networking with a purpose at the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) conference in March in Philadel- phia . Their networks shaped the panel . Jones and Harris met as undergrads at Eastern Connecticut State University . Jones was Frier’s supervisor and mentor at a previous job .
Web of inclusion
Networks resemble spider webs . As you add people to your network, your web – or your social capital – grows . The web is the visual representation that links you to oth- ers who may be in a position to help you professionally . It could be as a job reference or a connection to professional development opportunities .
Networking offers various avenues to gain social capital . Young professionals can learn the craft, gain skill sets and see their career through various lenses and perspectives .
The benefits of networking are endless . You gain expo- sure, create mentorship opportunities, intentionally diver- sify your relationships, develop a support system and posi- tion yourself as knowledgeable .
Networking best practices and strategies include holding leadership positions on committees and organizations, corresponding peri- odically with colleagues, keeping an
updated resume and presenting and publishing whenever possible .
Little things like wearing a name tag to a large event, being early to meetings and programs or exchang- ing business cards can also increase your network, and in turn, your social capital, to reach individual and group goals .
“It’s critical to professional development,” said Harris . “When faced with a crisis, I can call on some- one who has faced a similar crisis for suggestions and sup- port . Based on my own experiences, it gives you a sense of comfort during times that may be difficult .”
Social capital helps you to reach experts from areas dif- ferent than yours . You can use it to bring a program to cam- pus, to collaborate with peers, to get feedback on a resume or to explore a posted job .
Social capital can also enhance your personal life . Because young professionals move around a lot especially during the early stages of their career, the network can help find a place to live and adjust to the culture of the new
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school and the community, easing the transition .
Elements of networking
Social capital revolves around five elements:
• Expose – It exposes you and your work to others who might be in a position to further your career .
• Enlighten/educate – Social capital provides a way to identify articles and literature that can help drive conversa- tions with more experienced professionals .
• Engage – Don’t look at a new contact only through the lens of how it can help you . Instead, see it as being engaged in a two-way conversation .
• Ensure – When you meet a new professional, seek ways to develop mutually beneficial outcomes from the relationship .
• Ethical – When using your social capital, value integ- rity . Don’t disenfranchise people in your network .
“Some people are out only for themselves while others are out for the greater good of the community,” said Jones . “You want to advance the group collectively and further the community good and growth in relationships .”
Mention networking to an extrovert and she will readily embrace the concept . Introverts are less enthusiastic . “It can be intimidating, especially for those who are introverted to meet people ranking higher than them,” said Harris .
Social media
But there’s an exciting solution: Tools like Facebook, Twitter, Skype and LinkedIn have made it easier to make the initial connection as well as to stay in touch . Social media provide an “increased opportunity to network dif- ferently,” said Harris .
For women who find overt self-promotion difficult, these electronic tools provide a comfortable and effective way of promoting their professional activities at a distance .
When presenting workshops, Jones tweets about them and uses LinkedIn to showcase his skills and suc-
cesses . “It provides me more credibility in my work,” he said . He posted his publishing
an article in the Journal of College Student Development on his Facebook page .
A Twitter hash tag community, #SAChat, attracts young student affairs professionals from across the
country . Facebook, with its 500 mil- lion users, also has a chat feature . With
Skype you can chat face-to-face online without incurring travel costs .
Social media can be a force for good or it can derail a person’s career . “You always have to make sure to hold yourself to the highest levels of ethics and behaviors,” said Harris . Someone in your network may become an unofficial reference in a future job search .
Five years past their master’s degrees, Harris and Jones want to enlighten their graduate students and new profes- sionals . “It’s our obligation to give back to our community,” said Jones .
—MLS
Contacts: Jones at David_Jones@uml .edu or 978 .934 .5160 Harris at Kelvin .harris@kbcc .cuny .edu or 718 .368 .5348 Frier at James .frier@ttu .edu or 806 .742 .2610
For women who find overt self-promotion difficult, these electronic tools provide a comfortable and effective way of promoting their professional activities at a distance.
Women in Higher Education (www.wihe.com) / July 2011
