Barnard Connect
Launched in Fall 2019, Barnard Connect facilitates connections among Barnard students and alums for the purposes of networking and establishing mentoring relationships. Now with more than 4,000 members, Barnard Connect allows members of the community to create profiles that feature information about their professional background, identity, interests, and more. Students and alums can reach out to one another directly on the basis of shared affinities. Barnard Connect participants receive regular updates about the platform, invitations to virtual events, and resources related to best practices for establishing and maintaining professional connections.
Barnard Connect By the Numbers
Total Student & Alum Members of Barnard Connect.
Number of Barnard Connect users who identify as the first in their family to attend college.
Continents where Barnard Connect Mentors are based.
A Powerful and Supportive Community
Having access to the global network of 36,000 Barnard graduates is a powerful opportunity for students and alums alike. Barnard Connect — the College's own virtual mentoring network — makes it easy to set up career chats and develop initial discussions into ongoing mentorships. As an exclusive opt-in networking tool for Barnard students and alums, reaching out to someone new goes from "cold outreach" to "warm outreach." Because you already have two very important things in common - Barnard College and a desire to stay connected with others in the community!
Barnard Connect Helps Students and Alums Build Robust Mentoring Communities
Since the platform launched in 2019, 5,134 message threads have been created between members of the Barnard community. Areas of expertise of alums in the platform are incredibly varied including academia, biotechnology, design, healthcare, international affairs, finance, journalism, law, publishing, K-12 education, consulting, film & television, technology, nonprofit, politics and more!
For Students:
- Barnard Connect provides access to a supportive network of Barnard alums who are embedded within their academic and professional disciplines. By sharing their own stories, knowledge of industry resources, and advice alums are fantastic sources of knowledge about navigating both college and the post-undergraduate world of career and study.
For Alums:
- The platform provides an opportunity for alums to give back to the Barnard community by sharing your experience, advice, and knowledge with Barnard students who have similar career interests or are just starting to explore a field. Alums also have the option to connect with and be mentored by fellow alums, because professional connections are always helpful and building our mentorship community happens over a lifetime.
Special Features
Barnard Connect has a number of special features that make this tool a strong Barnard-specific complement to other networking platforms you may be using.
Direct Messaging: On Barnard Connect, there is no separate step of sending out a connection request before you can message alums. Message people right away for faster more efficient connections.
Message Templates: New to networking? Barnard Connect makes sending that first message easy by providing users with sample email templates about common topics to help you get started. That said, we highly encourage you to customize your messages to specific users based on their background and your specific questions and interests.
Meeting Requests: Barnard Connect allows you to attach a meeting request, where you can indicate your availability, right to your message, making scheduling a breeze.
Curated Connections: Complete the matching quiz and Barnard Connect will suggest profiles of connections that you may be interested in reaching out to.
Industry, Location, Academic, and Identity-Based Filters: The platform's many filters allow you to find people with shared experiences, interests, identities, and more!
Imported Profiles: Import your LinkedIn profile, to make getting started in Barnard Connect an easy and quick experience.
Ready to connect? Get started on Barnard Connect today!