Virtual Networking with Commonwealth Campus Students

Smeal alumni can volunteer to help both first- and second-year commonwealth campus students who are tracking toward Smeal.

Alumni can volunteer to help first- and/or second-year Commonwealth Campus students by facilitating a "Virtual Networking" session, which is part of their coursework. Most of these students are aiming to come to Smeal as third-year students. 

First-year students are taking BA 197, which is a pre-major course.

  • The purpose of this assignment is to provide the students with an opportunity to have a conversation with an experienced professional, and to also practice setting up an online "Zoom" meeting room. For most students, this will be the first time they are in a "networking" conversation. This is truly a learning experience for these students - they will not be evaluated on the quality of the conversation; the intent is for the alumni volunteers to help them feel more comfortable and confident.

Second-year students are taking BA 297, which is a career planning course. 

  • The purpose of this assignment is for the students to practice networking in a low-pressure setting. The students may also be focused on fine-tuning their resume, exploring future student organization involvement, considering various career paths, discovering key resources and sites to pay attention to, and planning their summer & fall internship experiences. The students will come prepared to the conversation with a few questions they might want to ask, related to these topics. 

FALL 2025 DATES AND SIGN UP WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE SUMMER

What to expect:

  • A one-time 30-minute Virtual Networking Session will take place with the student(s) you are assigned to before the end of April. 

  • You will receive email instructions with the student(s) you are matched up with and other details. The student(s) will contact you via e-mail and together, you will decide on a time that works for the two of you during the semester. The student will then provide you with the Zoom link (alumni volunteers must have access to Zoom during the time of their sessions). 

  • During the Virtual Networking Session, you and the student will introduce yourselves and then have a 30-minute conversation related to the themes above (some more details will also be shared via email by the course instructor ahead of time).

  • We will ask that you please provide very brief feedback to the course instructor via e-mail after your conversation (more details to be provided).

  • If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jen Crispell (Director of Alumni Relations) or the course instructors who you receive further information from.

  • Volunteers are not expected to build long-term mentoring relationships with the students. The purpose is to provide the BA 197 & BA 297 students with "real-world" networking practice and an opportunity to learn from your professional knowledge, experiences and insights.