Terry Connect Student Resources

The Directory allows you to search for contacts with a number of criteria

• Profession
• Location
• Job Title
• Career Specialization
• Terry School/ Terry Year
• Any keywords entered in the additional fields on the user profile, etc.

On Mobile Devices

You can search based on keywords (e.g., “TAMU”  “Engineering”  “Transfer”  “Lawyer”), and you can refine your search to people in your area, people in your specific industry, potential mentors, and more.

 

On a Desktop or Laptop

You can narrow your search with the filters provided, or you can type keywords into the search bar.

 

You can also refine your search to find profiles of people who are either seeking or offering help.

You can reach out to a fellow user and send a message or attachment. This option is at the top of the user’s profile, below their name. This is also where you will see any other social media platforms they have connected. In the example below, you could click the LinkedIn logo to visit Blair’s LinkedIn profile.

Clicking the calendar icon, if available, allows you to request a meeting with the person. You can request a specific date and time, and you can indicate the preferred meeting format (phone, Skype, in person, etc.).

 

You can control whether or not other users can send you messages or meeting requests in your Privacy Settings.

You send requests for help and/or mentorship from the side panel in a user’s profile. This panel lists how the user is willing to help.

 

Once you click “Request Help” or “Request Mentoring,” you will be asked to indicate the specific way that you want to connect.

When you send a request, your main objective is to introduce yourself. Once you establish a connection, you can schedule a time to meet (virtually or in person), when appropriate. Increase your odds by sending requests to a number of participants on Terry Connect, but remember to customize each request for the person you are approaching.

• Introduce yourself and provide the following information:
  • Your University
  • Your major(s) and any areas of emphasis
  • Your goals/ desired career field
  • Why you chose to reach out to this specific contact

• If the person responds, and if their profile allows it, you can request a meeting to get to know each other and to go over your questions. Your request message lays the groundwork for your first meeting, so there’s no need to ask a large number of questions initially.
  • When possible, a face-to-face meeting is best. Just be sure the person has indicated that they are willing to meet for coffee in their “Willing to Help” options. If you and your contact are not in the same area, suggest a Skype meeting or Google Hangout. Your next option would be a phone conversation. This will still be more personal than email alone.
  • Provide your availability to help your contact determine how best to fit your meeting into his/her schedule.

• Be persistent, but be patient. Some Alumni may be in a career field where they don’t have a lot of free time. Don’t expect an immediate response to your message – give them some time to get back to you (at least a week). If you want to check in, send them a new message and ask politely if they have time to speak with you. The Foundation cannot guarantee a response every time, since this is a voluntary process. Terry Connect users who have indicated that they are willing to help agree to be as responsive as possible, but certain times of year may be busier than others. Also, everyone has a different experience and a different path, so it’s worth the effort to reach out to multiple people.

 

• Greeting DOs
  • Make sure you are spelling the person’s name correctly!
  • Include your resume and a brief summary of your goals.
  • Ask if they would be willing to set up a date and time for a visit (either in person, via video chat, or on the phone).
  • Provide your general availability to help your contact determine where your schedules may align.
  • Be courteous and patient. Your contact may be busy, so you may need to wait several days for a response.

• Greeting DON’Ts
  • Do NOT begin your message with “Hey…”
  • Do NOT immediately ask for a job or for information about open positions within the contact’s company.
  • Do NOT ask for special consideration because you are a fellow Terry Scholar.
  • Do NOT use slang or informal abbreviations: “I’m looking 4 a job & I would like your help plz.”
  • Do NOT use emojis or other aspects of personal messaging J  🙂  lol!!!
  • Do NOT recycle the same greeting and message for every person you message. Tailor each conversation to the prospective mentor.

 

Example Greeting

Hello _____________.

My name is __________. I am a [Terry Year] Terry Scholar, and I currently attend [University]. I am studying [Major/ Field of Study], and my ultimate goal is [what you hope to achieve with your education]. I am excited to connect with you because [reason for reaching out]…

Keep in mind that Terry Scholar Alumni mentors on Terry Connect want to help you succeed. Always be conscious of the time Alumni devote to advising you (especially if it is during work hours). Be respectful by being prepared.

• Update and provide your rèsumè. If you are meeting your contact in person, email your rèsumè ahead of time and be sure to bring a physical copy with you to the meeting or email it ahead of a virtual meeting or phone call.
• Have a specific objective in mind. When you meet with your contact, you should know ahead of time what you’re trying to learn. Make sure this is something you can only learn through a meeting. Your contact will wonder how diligently you’ve done your research if you ask questions that can be answered by a simple internet search. Again – your objective should not be for them to give you a job after meeting you once. This is an opportunity to learn and to gain a mentor.
• Do some initial research on your contact’s career field and/or employer. Read their Terry Connect profile and/or LinkedIn page. If they have a staff profile on their company’s website, be sure to note any details that were not shared on Terry Connect. If you are meeting with someone to talk about graduate programs, it is still appropriate to research career fields along with any schools and programs of interest.
• Come prepared with questions. Warm up by focusing the initial questions on your contact, and show genuine interest in the answers. Give them a chance to talk about themselves. Once you have learned a few things about your contact, you can shift the focus to questions about topics that directly impact you.

Sample Questions

• Be open and honest. Remember, the Alumni have walked in your shoes as a Terry Scholar, and they will want to get to know you as a person. Be prepared to share your interests and your experiences as a Terry Scholar and as a student.  Let them know your goals and share any concerns or challenges you may be facing in regard to your career path.  Most of all, don’t be afraid of demonstrating what you already know. Have you read an interesting research article or learned something from a recent internship? Open up and share!
• Be courteous and say thank you.  Afterwards, follow up with an email to thank your contact for their time. Be sure to personalize your message and thank them for specific pieces of advice or stories they may have shared. If you had a good experience, ask if they will be willing to stay in touch should you have additional questions.

All Terry Scholars are automatically granted access to Terry Connect. Your Student Profiles will remain active as long as you are in good standing with the Foundation. Termination of your Terry Scholarship will result in deletion of your profile.
Upon graduation from our program, your student profile will be converted to an Alumni profile, and you will be encouraged to fill out the “Willing to Help” fields. Alumni who do not adhere to our posting and conduct guidelines will have their profiles deleted from the platform.

The Terry Foundation is proud to provide this framework for Scholar Alumni to mentor current Scholars in their career fields and to network with each other. While several Scholar and Alumni job placements and internships have been the direct result of contacts found on the former TAP list and on Terry Connect, you should NOT contact Terry Connect users and ask for a job or internship directly. All willing mentors have identified the specific ways they are willing to help; please respect these choices and only request help in the specific areas it is offered.

By using Terry Connect, you commit to the following:

• I understand that Terry Connect is for use by Terry Scholars ONLY, and I will not share or use the personal contact information it contains for commercial purposes, solicitation, or mass communications of any kind.
• I pledge to conduct myself in a professional manner when using Terry Connect.
• I pledge to be respectful of my mentors’ time as working professionals. I acknowledge that I must be patient and understand that some Alumni may be willing and able to invest more time than others.
• I will NOT ask any Terry Connect Participant for special consideration or favors because I am a fellow Terry Scholar.
• I will NOT ask a Terry Connect Participant for a job or for inside information about open positions with their company unless they have stated on their profile that they are willing to do so.
• I will inform the Foundation immediately if I observe someone using Terry Connect inappropriately.

Terry Connect is a closed network only accessible by individuals that we have approved. You can control the amount of information that others on the site can see about you through your profile settings. Please review the Terry Connect Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for more details.

Please be aware that any information that you share will be viewable by everyone on the platform. The Terry Foundation does not have direct control over how another member may use the information. If you have any concerns about your privacy, we recommend you remove personal identifiable information and enter it in the Terry Portal only. You may also opt to delete your Terry Connect profile at any time.

Please note that Terry Connect is meant to be a networking platform, not a social media platform. Memes, political debates, and other content that is deemed unrelated to professional networking are not allowed. Unprofessional or inappropriate content will be promptly removed.

You should not publish content that may be seen as abusive, obscene, indecent, or offensive. This includes:

• Offensive or derogatory content relating to sex, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, religion/beliefs, age, or any other such trait
• Content that is insulting, hateful, defamatory, threatening, discriminatory, or pornographic
• Behaving in a bullying, intimidating, or harassing manner towards other users, organizations, or page administrators
• Contains, or alludes to, unlawful material
• Encourages anyone to act in violation of the terms of their scholarship
• Constitutes spam or promotes or advertises products that have little relevance to the spirit and purpose of networking between Terry Scholars
• Associates the Terry Foundation, its Board, its staff, or its affiliated university partners with personal views or comments

The Terry Foundation will not edit any of your comments or posts, but we will determine whether content violates any of the above terms and will remove it if necessary.  If you post content that violates these guidelines, and we have to remove it, we will contact you to explain why. Transgressors may face disciplinary action, which could include any of the following, depending on the nature of the offense:

• an official warning
• deactivation of your Terry Connect account
• probation status or even termination of your scholarship (if you are a current student on funding).

You should always be mindful that any content which is posted online – even within closed groups – may make it into the public domain.

The Terry Foundation reserves the right to use content posted in Terry Connect for the Yearbook or other publications. We pledge to seek consent from the original poster, when necessary and appropriate.