Networking at the Conference

A Conference Primer for Graduate Students

In what will surely become required reading for graduate students, Devashree Gupta and Israel Waismel-Manor walk conference neophytes through the why, when, where, and whats of academic gatherings in "Network in Progress: A Conference Primer for Graduate Students." Published in the July 2006 issue of PS: Political Science and Politics, this article offers the definitive guide for those attending their first Annual Meeting, and a gentle reminder of the importance of the academic conference to even the most wizened veteran.

More on Networking:

The following is from "Becoming Part of the Research Community," which is part of a longer paper entitled, "How to Be a Good Graduate Student," by Marie desJardins.

One of the most important skills you should be learning in graduate school is how to "network.' Breaking into the research community requires attending conferences, meeting established researchers, and making yourself known. Networking is a learned skill, so you shouldn't expect to be an expert at it immediately; but it is also a skill that you can, and should, learn in order to be a successful member of the research community.

Just going to conferences and standing in the corner isn't enough. If you're not normally an outgoing person, you have to make a conscious effort to meet and build relationships with other researchers. Presenting papers is a good way to do this, since people will often approach you to discuss your presentation. Introducing yourself to people whose presentations you found interesting, and asking a relevant question or describing related research you're doing, is also a good way to meet people.

You should talk about your research interests every chance you get. (But be sure to spend some time listening, too: you'll learn more this way, and people will feel that your conversations are a two-way street.) Have summaries of your work of various lengths and levels of detail mentally prepared, so that you can answer the inevitable "So what are you working on?' intelligently and clearly. If someone expresses an interest in your work, follow up! Send them e-mail talking about new ideas or asking questions; send them drafts of papers; ask them for drafts of their papers and send them comments. (If you do this, they'll be sure to remember you!) Bring business cards with your e-mail address to conferences to help new acquaintances jog their memory.

Maintain the relationships you form via e-mail, and by re-establishing contact at each workshop or conference you attend. If you work at it, and use your initial acquaintances to meet new people, you'll find that your "network" grows rapidly.

Sometimes these contacts will grow into opportunities to do collaborative research. Seize these opportunities: you will meet more people, often become exposed to new methods of doing research or new subfields within your research area, and the responsibility you feel towards your collaborator may give you more of an incentive to stay motivated and keep accomplishing something.