Mentors & Networking

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Resources and support to help you network & connect with your Trojan community.

As a member of the Trojan Family, you can reach out, share insights, and make new connections with fellow Trojans as you advance in your career. We encourage you to take advantage of all the networking resources available to you, all of which can be found here!

Expand Your Professional Network

  • Networking
    Networking is powerful and vital to your career success. The purpose of networking is to establish relationships to share career information that may lead to new contacts and employment opportunities. Remember, networking is a two-way street! Networking Benefits: • Communicate your professional expertise, interests, and goals to fellow Trojan alumni • Establish rapport with Trojan alumni and other professionals • Increase your knowledge of industries and organizations • Learn about new fields of interest and build new connections • Identify opportunities through personal recommendations and referrals • Share information with Trojans about your industry, career path, organization, people, and opportunities • Follow-up with new and existing networking connections
  • Find new connections through USC, social media platforms, and professional associations
    The USC Career Center and the USC Alumni Association offer many opportunities to expand your network with the USC Trojan Family. The following are formal and informal networks available exclusively to alumni. Trojan Network Trojan Network, USC’s exclusive online professional community, actively connects Trojans across different fields and industries. You can network with professionals by industry or location, receive or offer mentorship, and reconnect with classmates and colleagues. Sign up today and tap into the power of the Trojan Family. USC Alumni Association The USC Alumni Association provides many opportunities to expand your network, including connecting with fellow Trojans through online regional and international events, affinity alumni groups, and associations.. LinkedIn LinkedIn manages the world’s largest professional network on the Internet, with over 467 million members in over 200 countries and territories. Create a LinkedIn profile to get started.  To use LinkedIn: 1. Think of your complete profile as your brand. 2. Make your LinkedIn profile a living representation of you and the skill set you can offer potential employers. 3. Update your profile often, engage with alumni and industry groups, and begin building your network of connections. The USC Career Center, USC Alumni Association, and professional schools offer alumni access to many different USC LinkedIn groups of students, alumni, and employers. Professional Associations Find new contacts by researching organizations, industries, professional associations, and conferences that are related to the work you are potentially interested in. Access the USC LibGuide Professional Associations section or the Career Access Resource Library (CARL) and type in the field of interest in the search engine for related information. Many professional associations have discounted rates for students. Industry professionals are often impressed and willing to mentor proactive students who join, participate, or volunteer for these associations.
  • Asking to connect
    Steps: 1. Determine what information you want to learn. 2. Think about people you already know who might lead to someone with the information you are seeking. Start making a list of the people that come to mind, including family members, friends, neighbors, classmates, former employers, colleagues, former colleagues, former professors, and supervisors. Include contacts you might know through social, professional, and civic affiliations. 3. Update your Trojan Network and LinkedIn profile with your current contact information, a professional picture, and relevant experience. 4. Google yourself and check your online presence. Eliminate information that may seem unfavorable. 5. Begin contacting people you know and share your career aspirations. Introduce yourself to new professionals and request a 30-minute informational interview to learn about their industry, organization, or profession. 6. Prepare for the informational interview by writing out your questions and preparing for questions they might ask you, 7. Dress in the attire appropriate to your desired industry for networking events, interviews, and informational interviews, even if the meeting is virtual! 8. Send a thank-you note or email within 24 hours of your meeting. 9. Invite your new contact to connect with you on Trojan Network and LinkedIn and keep in touch. Remember: a strong network is critical to a successful lifelong career!
  • Repeat the networking process again and again!
    Networking is a give-and-take opportunity. Just as we expect fellow Trojans to help during your times of need, we expect that you will serve as a good resource for fellow alumni and students along the way. Sharing what you have learned with others will help you too so please be generous with helping others along the way.

Mentorship Resources

  • Importance of Mentors
    Mentors can be defined in many different ways. Defined by the Webster dictionary, a mentor is a “trusted counselor or guide.” Oprah Winfrey has been quoted with stating “A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope inside yourself.” Finally, politician John C. Crosby defined mentoring as “Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.” Regardless of how you define a mentor in your own life, USC is committed to providing diverse opportunities for all students to make connections and learn from formal and/or informal mentors. Through casual or planned conversations, informational interviews, and real-world projects, mentors can often provide general advice, offer insight into different career paths, connect you with others in the field, discuss the recruiting process, and provide ideas to help advance your career. USC offers several different alumni mentorship programs. We have highlighted a few but encourage you to speak with school-based career center regarding specific major based mentorship programs and the USC Alumni Association for affinity based mentorship programs.
  • Mentorship Programs
    1. Trojan Network: Learn from alumni regarding their career and industry-related experiences. You can gain/offer valuable advice from alumni during brief chat sessions, informational interviews, mentorships, and mentorships. 2. First-Generation Mentor Program: If you are a first-generation Trojan alumni, you can connect with first-generation undergraduate students to provide knowledge, confidence, and tools to grow their network and advance in their career endeavors through alumni mentorship.

Sidebar

Career Management Information, Research, & Employment Opportunities

Leverage your alumni career benefits today. Our alumni career resources are designed exclusively for you and can be accessed on-demand anywhere in the world. We offer robust resume reviews, career management tools,  online networking, and targeted research information. Our goal is to help you create a competitive job search strategy, make valuable connections, identify potential employers, and land your next opportunity.  View a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Additional Resources & Tools

USC has alumni across the world and in every industry imaginable. Reaching out to alumni is a great way to …

An informational interview is an informal online or in-person meeting you initiate with a professional in the career, industry, or …

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