#4: Networking / keeping in touch

The importance of keeping in touch with faculty, supervisors and other contacts as you move through life is a lesson that I missed in undergrad, but learned by the time I applied for my MA. After I completed my first degree in art, I failed to keep in touch with faculty members that had played formative roles in my development. I never really gave it a first or second thought, until I needed recommendations to apply for the MA, and had to contact people for the first time in over a year to ask them a favor. While my former teachers were for the most part happy to oblige, some were difficult to get a hold of, and I felt uncomfortable pursuing my request further because I hadn’t remained close with them. Many years later, I have started re-contacting some of these teachers, not to ask a favor, but simply to let them know I think about them often, to thank them for being pivotal figures in my life, and to share my current achievements with them.

When I finished my MA, I had learned my lesson—I still email my former teachers periodically to see how their teaching and research is going. When a teacher comes out with a new book, I read it and let them know what I enjoyed most about it. If I publish or otherwise create something relevant (like this guide!), I send them a link or copy. If I have a question that they could best answer, I pose the question to them. Consciously remaining in contact with great influences in your life is not only a good tool for ‘marketing’ yourself, but maintaining a relationship with them enriches and fulfills you (and them!). Sometimes life moves so fast that we forget to perform ‘maintenance’ on things like contacts—don’t make this mistake. New online tools like Facebook address this issue—these online forums allow us to read and comment on what our peers are up to, when we might not otherwise extend an email or phone call.

To sum up the point: staying in touch helps your teachers and employers to write more informed, more heartfelt letters of recommendation, and keeping them informed of your focus and exploits will help them to give you better advice on doctoral programs, should you seek it from them.