Create an LinkedIn Profile

Employers can find you on LinkedIn and you can find jobs of interest. Make sure you complete your profile, with information about your education, experience and competence. Some useful tips:

• Choose an appropriate photo of yourself where you look professional
• Make a great headline and consider keywords, so that recruiters will find your profile and quickly see why you are relevant for them
• The summary should be short and precise with key skills, unique qualifications and your work passions
• Write short descriptions in the background sections. It may be a good idea to use bullet points
• But do not forget to show who you are – let your personality shine through (your values, passion and skills)
• Make projects you have worked on visible (links, videos, presentations, articles etc)
• Choose some skills that describes your competence (not to many), and remember that they are keywords as well
• Do not forget your language skills
• Get and give endorsements
• Participate in relevant groups
• Remove anything unnecessary

Define yourself. Prepare a short presentation (1-2 min) of who you are, your main skills, what motivates you and what you are looking for. Practise your introductory speach. You can get help using our forms to map your competencies or identify your goals.

Define your current network. You might not think of them as your network, but it can be family members, family friends, your friends, fellow students, lecturers, past employers and work mates. They may have (or get) connections in your field of interest to whom they can introduce you.

Go broader and make career connections with people outside your immediate environment:

• Employers: Introduce yourself to employers at Career Fairs and other employer events on and off campus. Some businesses arrange breakfast meetings, conferences or webinars.
• Guest Speakers: student organizations or the study programme events may have guest speakers that often include a networking opportunity.
• Alumni: Join NTNU Alumni to learn from previous students and get the possibility to job shadow. Maybe a NTNU alumni works in a company you are interested in and are willing to give an advice or answer your questions?
• Social Media: Find and join theme groups at LinkedIn. LinkedIn groups are informal communities formed around industries or professions. If you want to make connections at a certain business, try following company pages and engaging with their company status updates.

• Start in your current personal network and build up your confidence in your networking skills.
• Get involved at student organisations or projects at campus, be engaged at study groups or classes, and talk to professors or business representatives.
• Prepare for career fairs. Check out the overview of career fairs at NTNU and how to prepare (bottom of the page)
• Observe what companies of interest are sharing or posting in social media and learn how they are using the network. Try commenting on a post to start a conversation. Consider how you can contribute.
• Do not expect to get something in return straight away. You need to invest your time and effort first. Instead of asking for a job directly, it might be better to ask for advice and information.  You can for example ask for suggestions on how to expand your network. Your main goal should be to build a relationship.

A follow-up will further establish your connection, and might lead to a great opportunity.

• Follow up help or advise from your contacts with a thank you note or email
• Keep in touch. If a recommendation from a contact in your network proves useful, let your contact know!
• Share any knowledge you feel would be useful for your contacts.
• Keep contacts updated with your news, for example that you have graduated.
• Ensure your online profile is always up-to-date

Always remember that the best way of building a strong network is to support others in return.