Networking and making connections early on in your college career is extremely important; but, it’s not very practical to hand out your resume to everyone you meet!
Introducing the Collegiette business card!
Having a business card shows initiative and a sense of professionalism to potential employers, and helps all undergraduate students establish a brand. Your business card is like a ‘pocket resume.’ The design, style and information on your business card can say a lot about you, so you have to construct it carefully.
What to include:
1. Name:
This kind of goes without saying, but we are covering the basics here! Typically one’s name is displayed in a large font at the very top of the business card. It is not necessary to include your middle name (if you have one) or any titles (Miss, Ms. or Mrs.)
2. Contact Information: Phone number & E-mail address:
Contact information should be the main focus on college students’ business cards. As you know, most college students are not fully employed and are seeking employment or internships. It’s vital that your number and E-mail are readily available for potential employers.
3. College, class year and major:
Your field of study, class year and college are your title. It’s a good idea to include these to make others aware that you are currently a student seeking professional development.
4. Social media networking sites:
Adding LinkedIn and Twitter icons to your business card can be very beneficial. These provide yet another means through which employers will be able to contact you. This is not a necessity and only do so if you plan to keep your LinkedIn up-to-date and your Twitter account professional.
5. Creativity/Design:
Add a little flare to your business cards!
To all of you design majors: consider this business card your next work of art and create a masterpiece!
For those of you who are not design majors, your card doesn’t need to be black and white. Add some color and fun font! (Just try not to go overboard!)
Where to order:
I suggest VistaPrint – http://www.vistaprint.com/ – I just ordered my own business cards from this site. They look great and were delivered one full week earlier than the expected delivery date! The prices are extremely reasonable and the designs are perfectly business professional!
Happy networking!