• Write an informative profile headline. Your headline is a short, memorable professional slogan. For example, "Honors student seeking marketing position." Check out the profiles of students and recent alumni you admire for ideas.

• Pick an appropriate photo. LinkedIn isn't Facebook. Upload a high-quality photo (your profile will be 7x more likely to be viewed) of you alone, professionally dressed. No party shots, cartoon avatars, or puppy pics!

• Show off your education. Include all your schools, major(s) and minor, courses, and study abroad or summer programs. Don't be shy - LinkedIn is an appropriate place to show off your GPA, test scores, and honors or awards.

• Develop a professional summary. Your Summary statement is like the first few paragraphs of your best-written cover letter - concise and confident about your qualifications and goals. Include relevant work and extracurriculars.

• Fill "Skills & Expertise" with keywords. This section is the place to include keywords and phrases that recruiters search for. Find relevant ones in job listings that appeal to you and profiles of people who have the kinds of roles you want.

• Update your status regularly. Posting updates helps you stay on your network's radar and build your professional image. Mention your projects, professional books or articles, or events you're attending. Many recruiters read your feed!

• Show your connectedness. Groups you join appear at the bottom of your profile. Joining some shows that you want to engage in professional communities and learn the lingo. Start with your university and industry groups.

• Collect diverse Recomnedations. The best profiles have at least one recommendation for each position a person has held. Recruiters are most impressed by recommendations from people who have directly managed you.

• Claim your unique LinkedIn URL. To increase the professional results that appear when people search for you online, set your LinkedIn profile to "public" and create a unique URL (e.g., www.linkedin.com/in/JohnSmith).

• Share your work. You can also add actual examples of your writing, design work, or other accomplishments on your profile, where you can share rich media or documents. What better way to sell your skills than to show employers exactly what you can produce?

Ensure your messages, comments, and updates stand out from the crowd.

• Be authentic. Communicate on LinkedIn the same way you would in professional interactions outside of LinkedIn. No need to be overly formal or change your style - be real, be you, but be professional.

• Customize your connection requests. Instead of using the generic "I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn" message, tailor each request. Remind him/her where you met or explain why you want to connect. They'll be more likely to respond.

• Be responsive. Reply within a few days to connection requests, personal messages, or comments on group discussions you post. Stay on top of your LinkedIn inbox! This will keep you top-of-mind with people and opportunities.

• Research before reaching out. Review a person's profile before contacting him/her on LinkedIn. You'll make a stronger connection by highlighting things you have in common or specific aspects of his/her experience you want to discuss.

• Be targeted and personalized. Stay away from stuff like, "Hi everyone - I'm sorry for the mass message!" Your connections are more likely to respond to personalized messages. If you do want to announce something in a mass way, use a status update instead.

• Be careful with introductions. If you're asked for an introduction to someone in your network, remember that your reputation is on the line. Unless you're confident in recommending someone or you know the connection well, it's okay to politely refuse.

• Keep it short and sweet. In today's busy world, no one wants to read long, dense paragraphs on their computer or smartphone. Keep your profile summary, messages, group discussion postings, and recommendations clear and to the point.

• Proofread. Remember that everything you post on LinkedIn could be seen by a wide audience (even private messages could be forwarded or saved). Represent yourself well by double-checking spelling, grammar, style, and tone.

• Give more than you take. Balance your needs on LinkedIn with those of your connections. In addition to updating your own status and asking for help or connections, try commenting on other people's updates and helping with their requests.

• Always say thank you. When someone answers a question you've posted, provides an introduction, suggests a job, or otherwise helps you on LinkedIn, send him/her a thank you message. The golden rule applies online just as much as it does in person.

Get connected and get your career going.

• 100% complete = 40x more opportunities. Building connections starts with people seeing all you have to offer. Members with complete profiles are 40x more likely to receive opportunities through LinkedIn.

• You're more experienced than you think. Think broadly about all your experience, including summer jobs, unpaid internships, volunteer work, and student organizations. You never know what might catch someone's eye.

• Use your inbox. Networking doesn't mean reaching out cold to strangers. Start building your LinkedIn network by uploading your online address book (from your email account) and connecting to people you know and trust.

• Get personal. As you build your connections, customize your requests with a friendly note and, if necessary, a reminder of where you met, who you met through, or what organization you have in common.

• Join the "In" crowd. LinkedIn Groups can help you form new connections. Start with your school groups and reach out to alumni (they love to connect with students). Find volunteer organizations and associations you belong to.

• Lend a (virtual) hand. As you build connections, think about how you can support others. Comment on a classmate's status update or forward a job listing to a friend - your generosity will be returned!

• Update your status early and often. Networking isn't just about who you know; it's about who knows you. Stay on your network's radar by updating your LinkedIn status regularly - what you're reading working on, and more.

• Request informational interviews. As a student, don't ask professional contacts for a job. Instead, ask for a brief phone conversation to seek their job search advice. Alumni, family friends, and industry leaders are often willing to do so.

• Do your homework. Before an informational interview, a formal interview, or a networking event, use LinkedIn's Advanced Search and Company Pages to learn about the background and interests of the people you're meeting.

• Step away from the computer! Support your online networking with a real human touch. Set up calls, attend live events, and send snail mail notes to people you interact with on LinkedIn.