News

Ready, set, network!

February 28, 2006

You’ve heard of speed dating? Get ready for speed networking.

At this year’s Freeman Days in New York and Houston recruiting events, the Freeman School is introducing a new twist on traditional networking: speed. In a format adapted from “speed dating” singles events, students move from one recruiter to the next in five minute blocks, with two minutes to give an introductory pitch, two minutes to get feedback from the recruiter and one minute to move on to the next recruiter.

“We wanted to do something to build networking skills and get people to understand the value of being able to present yourself very quickly and concisely to potential employers,” says Bill Sandefer, direct of graduate admissions and interim director of the Career Management Center. “It got off to a bit of a rocky start, but at the end of an hour and half, people were standing in line saying, ‘I want to do one more!’”

According to Sandefer, students need to be increasingly focused on building traction with every professional contact. “About 85 percent of all placements happen before they’re actually posted,” Sandefer says. “Students need to learn to take advantage of the opportunities that are all around them.”

Speed networking also enables students get face time with more recruiters, an important benefit given the disadvantage Freeman students are starting with. Hurricane Katrina forced the rescheduling of both Freeman Days in New York and Freeman Days in Houston, two of the fall’s most important recruiting events. Many companies use fall recruiting events to select which students to interview in the spring, so Freeman students are working overtime to meet employers, land interviews and make up for time lost to Katrina.

Freeman Days in Houston will take place March 9-10, with a speed-networking session followed by a reception featuring Dean Angelo DeNisi on Thursday, March 9, at the Doubletree Suites Hotel. Employers and alumni interested in hosting an event, participating in the speed networking session or attending the reception should contact Mary Rose O’Neill at 504-865-8465 or moneill@tulane.edu for more information.