Senior networking night to be Nov. 3

Networking night to help students build business relationships

 

ANGOLA — Trine University will host a networking night Wednesday, Nov. 3, for Trine students who plan to graduate this year.

The event aims to help students learn networking etiquette and build relationships with area businessmen and women, said Linda Bateman, the university’s director of career services. Bon Appetit and Trine University are sponsoring the event, and Allegiant Works, Head to Toe Salon, Triton Energy and Kirk Johnson of Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance will give away prizes valued at more than $50 each.

“This is an opportunity for students and those in the business world to exchange information and ideas,” Bateman said. “Networking is give and take and it’s about learning to connect with people face-to-face.”

Jamie Morton, a 2009 graduate of Trine University, said learning how to network helped her get her first job out of college. Morton, a communication major, helped plan last year’s senior networking night.

“Being able to network is extremely important,” Morton said. “Everybody can put you in contact with someone else. Taking part in this event helped me realize I could walk up to someone else and feel very confident introducing myself.”

Morton now works as an account manager for 92.3 The Fort radio station in Fort Wayne. She applied for the job while interning with the Tin Caps baseball team. When she interviewed with the station, she learned that the woman who was interviewing her was friends with her boss at the Tin Caps.

“You network without trying to network,” Morton said. “Who I knew, I believe, helped me get the job.”

Students who attend this year’s networking night will have the opportunity to hear from two guest speakers, Andy Fuller and Michelle Merritt. Fuller serves as a public relations account executive at Villing and Company, a full-service marketing communications firm in South Bend. Merritt is the vice president of member relations and communications for the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce.

Trine University senior Katie Hurst, who is majoring in hospitality and tourism management, has been involved with planning the event. She will serve as the evening’s emcee.

Representatives from more than a dozen businesses — including Pepsi Americas, Eli Lilly, NSK, Allegiant Works, Zimmer and Triton Energy LLC — will participate in the event.

Students who attend will receive a network resource booklet and 10 personalized business cards to hand out to those they meet. Generous appetizers will be served. The event will begin at 7 p.m. in Witmer Clubhouse on Trine’s 18-hole, championship Zollner Golf Course.

For more information or to get involved with next year’s senior networking night, contact Bateman at (260) 665-4124 or batemanl@trine.edu.