Networking is about meeting people in the industry you want to work in and getting known. There is professional networking, which you should be mainly doing, and general social networking, which can also be useful but should be secondary in your career planning activities.

Have you made your business cards? Do you have extras in your wallet right now?
Do you have a personal website or weblog, or at least a profile at LinkedIn?
Do you have an online resume of your experience so far posted to this site, with a link to it on your business card?
Are you a student member of at least one professional association in your industry/industries of interest?
Are you on any social networks (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.)? Have you joined (or started) industry related groups there?
Have you attended professional conferences (you can go for free as a volunteer) in your industry/industries of interest?
Are your professional conferences in digital calendar (pref. a web-based one, like Google's calendar) with email alerts?
Have you started a searchable online list of contacts (pref. a web-based list, like Gmail) in your industry?

Please use small font (10 point Arial) and add your name w/ a dash (- Joe Student) at the end of your submissions.
Your work here benefits not only you but all UAT students in your major who come after you. Thanks!
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Share your best tips and links about Networking for career planning below.
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A Forum
If you're really looking to network towards career planning, why not go to this forum which is centered around Career Advice? Probably the best way to network, in my opinion, is to find a public place and stab a question. Try it out today! -Paul Ardiles

Advice on Networking - A small list of things to do in order to succesfully build up your network of contacts in order to get your foot in the door in almost any job situation. - Cody Ziegler

Breaking In
http://www.igda.org/breakingin/
this articule talks about how to break into the video game industry and have a succesful career - Brad Reamer

Career Journal "CareerJournal.com is the Internet's premier career site for executives, managers and professionals. The site's job database offers more than 100,000 available positions, including job listings in the CareerJournal National Network, a database containing opportunities from local and national newspaper, magazine and TV station web sites

DirectMatches [Link]
This is a social networking site that is orientated toward people in various industries becoming aware of the services of others. Allowing your customer base to become larger. Not the best networking site, but it is still in its early stages. -Christopher Sell

LinkedIn
This is a social networking site that is made for networking within technology industries. You can set up a profile, add contacts, and make "connections" in the industry. The site it also used by companies searching for new employees and LinkedIn will inform you when opportunities in your field pop up. It is a great networking site for any tech student. -Bernard Clary

Merchant Circle [Link]
Another social networking site developed toward those of various industries for networking together. -Christopher Sell

http://www.careerjournal.com/jobhunting/networking/
This is a nice site that gives a list of sites about career networking for specific occasions. It has articles such as "Virtual Networking" and "Networking during holiday parties." Very useful site. -Garrett Pickering

Go To Conventions
across the U.S. CareerJournal's resume database offers the most confidential access on the Web, and provides candidates with flexibility and security in posting their credentials online. And CareerJournal's unlimited JobSeek Agents will alert candidates whenever a job is added that matches their criteria." - Steven Janca

Well if one thing is for sure, it's that in order to get a career in the game industry, it's best that you network and build a list of professional contacts to get started. The Best way to do this is to attend one to a few of the various conventions / conference / seminars that happen on a very regular basis in the industry. A very famous one is the GDC (Game Developers Conference)
-Edward Southerland


Resume Tips and Job Hunting Advice from the Emurse Blog
"Professional networking is an important aspect of your career. Understanding basic professional etiquette, introduction etiquette and general social networking can go a long way towards your success."
-W. Alex Plageman