Networking Emails

On this Page:

• Emails after a Career Fair
• Post-Interview Emails
• Emails on LinkedIn

Writing for networking requires a balance of professionalism, research, and follow-through.  Many recruiters receive a large number of emails, and therefore writing for networking requires writers to be concise and direct, while still professional.

Emails after a Career Fair

Career fairs are an exciting way to meet with companies that are looking for undergraduate and graduate students for internships and full-time jobs. During a career fair, be sure to keep track of several pieces of information regarding each company you interact with, such as company contact name, their contact information, some brief notes about your conversation topic, and the position you’re interested in.

Emails should be timely. Recruiters will be interacting with many students and will be quickly looking through applications and resumes that they have received. Any networking email should be sent within 24 hours after the career fair. A quick response will give you a better chance of being noticed again by a recruiter.

Emails should be concise and meaningful. An email post-career fair should mention something about the interaction you had with the recruiter or company representative. You can tailor this message to reflect your own interests or experiences.  

Emails should have a call-to-action. Post-career fair emails should end with a goal in mind. The conversation you have with a company representative or recruiter can give you insight on what the next steps would be. Adding meaningful details  helps the recruiter remember you, shows that you have a connection to work the company does, and further boosts your credibility as a potential candidate. 

Keeping your email concise, detail-oriented, and with a call-to-action will help you build relationships following an on-campus career fair.

Post-Interview Emails

A tradition of job-searching and interviewing has been to send a card to the individuals who interviewed you thanking them for their time. It has become easier (and for some companies preferable) to send follow up emails instead of a card. These emails follow a few basic principles

Post-Interview Emails should:

• Thank the person for their time
• Re-establish your connection to the person
• Be personalized and specific
• Be confident and future-thinking

Emails on LinkedIn

Communication over Linkedin should be similar to emails as discussed above: concise, meaningful, and action-oriented. Two types of emails specific to LinkedIn include writing to connect with someone you’ve met or to introduce yourself to someone who you have not met before but share a connection with.

Connection requests. When adding other users to your network, or “Connections”, it is common courtesy to include a brief message with the request. This message is very short, so prioritize the connection you made or a way to remind them about how you met. 

These messages may or may not need to include a call-to-action. Consider the professional relationship you are looking to develop and how this message can assist your goal. 

LinkedIn messages to introduce yourself. When messaging a connection who you haven’t met but have something in common with, it’s important to be professional and clear about your intention. It’s always best to have either a connection or a referral to the person with someone you both know. Here’s one example:

LinkedIn Dos and Don’ts 

When communicating over LinkedIn, no matter the purpose, there are a few general rules to know:

Do:

• Be professional and formal
• Be clear about your intention when communication
• Include how you know someone or
• Include how you were referred to the person

Don’t:

• Send a connection request without a message
• Directly ask someone for a job

Related Links:

• Job Search and Application Writing
• Career Center: Drop-In Services
• Career Center: Professional Communication