Apart from presenting research, conferences offer ample opportunities to meet fellow researchers, future colleagues, and potential mentors. You want to go with a goal in mind. If there are people you’d like to connect with, and you know they will be attending the conference, you can introduce yourself over social media and start a conversation that makes meeting them in person all that much easier. You can also look within your preexisting network to see if anyone you already know will be at the conference, and coordinate a time to meet to maintain your prior connections.

If you want to talk to specific people you know will be at a conference, and they are on the program, attend their talks show face, and if appropriate, ask a question to show engagement, or approach them before or after the talk. AAOS often has mentorship focused events which are great opportunities to meet people. Panels related to matching into residency, orthopaedic surgery work culture, diversity, medical education, etc. are all great places to meet potential mentors. Those conducting research on this topic are likely invested in mentoring students.

It helps if beforehand, you look into the research and training of this person and prepare for what specifically you want to talk to them about, whether it be their research interests, career path, institution etc. The ideal scenario is if you are with an attending/resident who knows you, and you can ask them to introduce you to someone of interest. People are often more receptive if there is already a level of familiarity established. 

However, you don’t have to spend the entire conference tagging along with the same person. Open yourself up to meeting someone new during lunch, while waiting in line, or if you’re sitting next to them at a talk. Start with questions as simple as “Where are you coming from?” or “What brought you to this conference?” Don’t forego these serendipitous encounters, or else you might miss out on an unexpected, but meaningful connection. Always remember to be respectful of the other person’s time, and you can exchange contact information to talk further. 

Conference networking isn’t all about meeting attendings – it is equally valuable to meet other medical students and residents. The larger your network, the more people you have to share ideas with, collaborate with, and turn to in the highs and lows. Social media is often a great and easier place to connect with fellow medical students and residents.

Follow up! The faculty you meet at conferences are incredibly busy people. Not only did they likely meet many people at the conference they just attended, but they are also returning home to a busy work-life to catch up on. Give the attending several days to a week after the conference to get settled, then send a follow-up email or message. This will hopefully jog their memory that they met you and hopefully kickstart your mentorship relationship and potential for future collaborations.