Welcome back to Moving from College to Career! We use this space to share practical guidance you can actually apply as you explore careers and prepare for recruiting.
As always, our goal is usefulness over noise. If there’s a topic you’re curious about, just reply to this email. We’d love to hear from you.
Today's Tactics: 3 Career Habits AI Can’t Replace
As we shared on LinkedIn last week, AI is now table stakes for anyone navigating the school-to-career transition. In order to really accelerate and differentiate, though, you need to learn from real people and build meaningful relationships.
Below are a few practical, actionable ways to do exactly that.
Look for Career Compasses
As you move through college, pay attention to people who could help you navigate decisions. These are potential career compasses. People whose judgment you trust and whose paths you want to learn from.
Keep an eye out for:
- Professors or TAs who offer perspective, not just instruction
- Older students who have made choices you’re curious about
- Club leaders, advisors, or supervisors who seem thoughtful about their paths
When you notice someone like this, try to move the relationship beyond a single interaction. Ask for time to talk one-on-one, stay curious about their experiences, and keep the connection going over time. A few relationships like these often matter more than dozens of surface-level ones.
Track Relationships Like an Asset
When you do build meaningful relationships, the key is staying intentional over time. A simple way to track conversations and follow-ups makes it easy to keep connections alive and growing.
Create a streamlined system:
- Keep a short list of people you’ve talked to
- Note where you met and what you discussed
- Add a reminder for when it might make sense to check in again
This isn’t transactional. It’s how you treat relationships with care, and let them compound over time.
Use the Holidays to Strengthen Key Connections
As we shared in our most recent newsletter, the holidays can be a time to set yourself up for future recruiting success. We gave tips there for connecting with the people around you and using the break to reflect on possible career directions.
It can also be a time to think about relationships you want to build or maintain.
Consider who you’ve met this semester, who you haven’t connected with in a while, and who could serve as a helpful compass, advisor, or mentor.
While you have a bit more time than during the semester, send a short note to a contact you haven’t checked in with recently — even a few sentences to reconnect can make a big difference. Make a simple plan for how you’ll continue building these relationships when you return to campus.
Speaker Spotlight: How Initiative Opens Doors
Paraj Mathur shared with us how he landed his first internship at a startup as a freshman, despite early college students rarely getting these roles.
His approach? Scrappy research, thoughtful outreach, and persistence.
Check out our LinkedIn post to see Paraj’s tips for taking bold, early action in your career! You'll also find a video of Paraj explaining his strategy on our website here.
Alumni Spotlight: How Introships Changed Her Major — and Her Career
Remi Short (UNC Chapel Hill ‘24) came into college planning to major in business. After participating in Introships' Career Discovery Program, she realized her passion was in public health and immediately switched her major to focus on health policy and management.
Through Introships, she was connected with the head of the public health school — a key relationship that helped her navigate the major change. Today, Remi is a healthcare consultant, building on the clarity and connections she gained through the program to make an impact in her field.
We hope you found this helpful! Feel free to reply with any questions or feedback, and stay tuned for more from the Introships team here and on LinkedIn / Instagram!
Joe Fiveash & Sean Wetmore
