Winter Career Quest is here! Learn more & find a list of sessions here.

Did you know that 40-80% of jobs are filled through referrals?

By investing time in relationships today, you lay the foundation for a thriving career. In Milestone 4, you’ll discover essential strategies to cultivate a strong professional network, setting you up for lifelong career success.

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Start Getting Connected

Networking expands career opportunities for a lifetime. Build a strong network of connections to access across your career by developing and nurturing academic and professional relationships. 

Download and complete the toolkit below to create a strong foundation for building relationships. This toolkit will help you identify your existing connections, learn networking best practices, and develop a professional introduction that showcases your value.

Networking is an ongoing process. Now that you’ve identified your existing network connections, learned best practices, and prepared your elevator pitch in the Networking Toolkit (PDF) or (MS Word), it’s time to expand and diversify your connections to unlock more career opportunities!

Cover of the Networking Activities Handout

Download and review the Networking Activities Handout to identify networking activities that will benefit you most. 

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If you’re feeling nervous about getting started, read CPD’s Top 10 Tips for Working With Networking Anxiety

LinkedIn Alumni Tool Cover Photo

LinkedIn Alumni Tool
Resource Guide

Gain career insights from WGU students and alumni—including data on where they work, what they studied, and their top skills. View LinkedIn Alumni Tool on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn WGU Students and Alumni Group Cover Photo

WGU Alumni & Students

Join this LinkedIn Group to connect with other WGU students and alumni. 

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Student & Professional Organizations

Connect with industry peers, develop your leadership skills, and build a lasting professional network at WGU. Professional associations and networks offer a valuable platform for connecting with others in your field, providing education, resources, and insights to advance your career and stay up-to-date with industry trends.

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WGU Handshake 

Grow your network by connecting with WGU alumni, students, and employer partners.

Review these resources to learn more: 

Messaging Employers in Handshake (Handshake Article).

Handshake Peer Messaging (Handshake YouTube, 3:05)

It’s important to stay in touch with your network to maintain positive relationships, which can lead to ongoing support, collaboration, and mutual benefits. Review the content below to identify strategies for nurturing your connections over time.

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Learn Follow-Up Strategies & Best Practices

To foster long-term relationships, engage regularly with your connections via email, phone, professional associations, and social networking platforms, like LinkedIn and Handshake.

*To access LinkedIn Learning videos, please first  log in with your WGU credentials.

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Use Your Networking Email Template

Use the “Networking Thank You Email Template” from your Networking Toolkit (Page 3) to follow up with any contacts after meetings/events or when they provide advice, insights, or support.

  • Consider creating a shortened version of your template for text messages and direct messages on online platforms.
  • Direct Message/Text Example: “It was great meeting you at [Event/Location]! I really enjoyed learning more about [topic] from our conversation. Would you be open to a coffee or a brief virtual meeting soon? I’d love to chat further. Looking forward to hearing from you!”

Great work completing Milestone 4!

If you’d like more support with networking or have additional questions about this milestone, our career advisors are available to assist you.

Contact us at careers@wgu.edu or read our FAQs. 

Featured Articles

The Benefits of Joining Professional Associations

Are you seeking a way to stand out from other candidates in your field while having unique access to other professionals and best practices/recent developments?  Are you aware of the top professional associations related to your field and/or where to locate such information?  View …

By Jennifer Rhodes
Jennifer Rhodes
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Ask A Grad

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Networking Tips for Introverts

You may be wondering how to network when you’re an introvert. Well, you know what they say, “ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE”. Introverted individuals’ biggest fears could very well be networking, and that’s ok. The tips I will provide you with …

By Shante Mack
Shante Mack
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Career Resources

Whether you are currently employed in the position you desire or are searching for a new position, it never hurts …

Dress for Success

Did you know that hiring decisions can be made within the first few minutes of your interview? …

Use this resource to identify networking strategies and activities to help you expand your network and connections.

To locate the …

This activity will help you identify connections and learn best networking strategies.

To locate the file, follow these steps:

This activity will help you identify connections and learn best networking strategies.

To locate the file, follow these steps:

Connect with fellow graduates and expand your professional network using the WGU LinkedIn Alumni Tool. This resource allows you to …

Contact & Location

Phone
801-274-3280
Address

4001 S 700 East, #700
Salt Lake City, UT 84107

Career Service Hours

Monday 6:00 am - 7:00 pm MST
Tuesday 6:00 am - 7:00 pm MST
Wednesday 6:00 am - 7:00 pm MST
Thursday 6:00 am - 7:00 pm MST
Friday 6:00 am - 7:00 pm MST
Saturday by appointment only
Sunday by appointment only

Office hours nationwide are 6am MST to 7pm MST.  Appointment and drop-in hours are available on weekends. Please reach out to careers@wgu.edu for assistance at any time.