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Networking - Queen's Connects

Welcome to Queen’s Connects Career Network for Students and Alumni. This LinkedIn group is maintained by Queen’s University (Canada) for Queen’s students and alumni.  Designed to make a difference in the lives of students and graduates, this group facilitates conversations about career experiences and through the sharing of information about industries, fields, or roles.

Alumni members can provide insight, perspective and encouragement on career paths and options. Student members can ask questions in a secure and welcoming platform designed to facilitate interaction with alumni (e.g., asking about how to translate the value of experiences at Queen’s for specific types of work).

  1. Create your LinkedIn profile (if you do not yet have one).  For help with this step see LinkedIn Support below.
     
  2. Access Queen's Connects Career Network for Students and Alumni. 
     
  3. Request admission to the group by selecting ASK TO JOIN. 
  1. An administrator will review your profile to verify your status at Queen’s University (student, alumni, staff, or faculty status). They may reach out to confirm eligibility if further information is needed.
     
  2. Please ensure your profile contains all the information necessary to verify that you are a current student or alumni, staff or faculty, or family member of alumni or current student at Queen’s University at Kingston, Ontario.

Please note that this group is vetted which means that your eligibility to join this group needs to be verified according to the criteria laid out below. 

  • Students: must be registered in a degree program at Queen’s University. First-year students are eligible after 1 month of successful study
  • Alumni: must be an alum of at least one degree program at Queen’s University
  • Staff: must have a Queen’s staff number and have worked at/be employed by Queen's at the time of request
  • Faculty: must have a current/past affiliation with Queen’s at the time of request as a sessional instructor, lecturer, professor, or researcher

(If you use a name in LinkedIn that does not correspond with your name in SOLUS, please contact Career Services to let us know.)

Alumni:

Ensure your profile contains the formal title of your degree and the year of graduation:

Bachelor of Arts, Honours -- History (2011)

 

For students:

The name of your program and the dates of enrollment:

Bachelor of Science, Honours -- Biochemistry – Candidate (2011 - 2015)

This group has been created within the LinkedIn framework to provide a welcoming and secure place for Queen’s students, alumni, staff, and faculty to start conversations, ask questions, and provide encouragement about career development.  Participation in this group can be one piece of your overall online brand and job search strategy.

Queen’s Connects Career Network group members are able to message each other for free through LinkedIn.  It allows for career path conversations, Q&A, and encouragement in a Queen’s-specific forum.

Click on the Members tab to discover more about group members. 

The kinds of questions students often ask include:

 As an alumnus, you can offer encouragement through:
  • What advice do you have about asking for an information interview?
  • How soon did you start planning for life after graduation?
  • Everyone says “Research the employer!”  What does that mean?
  • What did you do that was helpful in finding work?
  • When did you get your break?
  • How did your Queen’s experience shape your current career?
  • How has your experience at Queen’s been helpful?
  • Describing the career strategies that helped you find work
  • Discussing how you explained the value of your Queen’s experiences to others when networking or interviewing
  • Explaining the twists and turns of your career path and what you learned along the way
  • Explaining how you gained experience and exploring possibilities as a student (such as, internships, co-curricular, paid or volunteer roles)
  • Expanding on the topic of “soft” skills, and how they manifest in your field or work
  • Sharing what you notice about successful applicant candidates at your organization
  • Sharing resources for behavioural competencies important in your field

When you join the group, you will have a chance to see how other people have reached out.  When you are ready, please consider introducing yourself in an online post to the group. Very short introductions tend to work best. Each month we have a new Alumni Mentor who monitors the group and responds to people who reach out in the forum for help. They will respond within a day to welcome you and will probably ask you a few questions to help the online community get to know you. Responding promptly to any comments or questions shows that you are monitoring the group and ready to network. If you have questions about responding, consult with a Career Counsellor. Consider coming to Drop-In Career Advising at Career Services. 

You can choose how frequently you receive digest emails (daily or weekly) in Settings (click on the ellipses ...).

Leveraging LinkedIn (PDF, 392 KB)