One year.
Four seasons.
One rhythm.

1. Visa status: [Approved / Pending / Unsure]
2. Housing: [Secured / Looking / Unsure]
3. Do you know 3+ people in cohort? [Yes / No]
4. Why did you come? [1 sentence]
5. Do you know how recruiting works? [Yes / No]
6. Any health thing we should know? [Optional]

• Day 1: Intake form + all 6 blockers checked
• Day 1: Peer buddy assigned — someone who arrived on time
• Day 2: Mentor clarity call (30 min)
• Day 3–4: Buddy introduces you to 3 people + your regional group
• Day 5: Join a peer group
• Day 7: Coordinator check — all resolved? If not, escalate, don't drift.

Honest expectation: you skipped two weeks of bonding. Expect extra effort through Winter. Your buddy is your bridge.

Available paths: Stayer, Returner, Climber.
Not available: Pivoteer — portfolios need 8+ weeks; forcing one into 6 sets you up to fail.

• Day 1: Intake + all 6 blockers + declare your path (now, not week 4)
• Day 2: Join your path group right away — skip the whole-cohort welcome
• Day 3: Map your timeline with a mentor: real dates, weeks left
• Weekly: path standup + one 1:1 check-in — twice the usual pace, because you have no time to spare

• One person. Named. Not a group.
• One connection point. Why them, specifically?
• One sentence about you. No resume dump.
• One small ask. 15–20 min, one question, or one intro. Never "any advice?"
• One easy exit. "If you're busy, no problem at all."
• Under 120 words. If it takes more, cut it.

Hello [name],

[Connection point: why them, 1 sentence.]
[Who you are: 1 sentence.]
[The ask: 1 specific thing, with a time limit.]
[Easy exit: 1 sentence.]

Thank you,
[Your name]

Hello Maria,

We both went through IBEAR — I'm in the current
cohort, you were an earlier class. I'm exploring
supply chain roles in São Paulo and you made that
exact move. Could I ask you two questions about
how home-market hiring worked for you? 15 minutes,
any week that suits you. If timing is bad, no
problem at all.

Thank you,
Kenji

• Prepare 3 written questions — specific, not "tell me about your career"
• Research them first (15 min) so you don't ask what's public
• Respect the clock: you asked for 15, take 15
• Ask for one door, not a job: "Is there someone else I should talk to?"
• Thank within 24 hours — one specific thing you learned
• Report back in 4–8 weeks. Almost nobody does. Be the one who does.

• Direct cultures: the skeleton works as-is.
• Formal cultures: open formally, name who referred you, use titles.
• Relationship-first cultures: spend your ask on "can you introduce me?"

• Mass messages — one spotted mass message burns the contact forever
• "Pick your brain" — no specific ask, no reply
• Uninvited resume — that's an application, not a conversation
• A third follow-up — twice is persistence, three times is pressure
• Asking for a job directly — ask for information and doors; jobs follow

• Get the attendee list — usually available if you ask
• Pick 3–5 people to meet. Three real conversations beat thirty handshakes.
• Research each one (15 min): what they do, what changed, why you care
• Write one opening question per person — never "so what do you do?"
• Practice your 15-second self-introduction out loud
• Contact 1–2 of them beforehand — now you're expected, not random

• Arrive early — small crowds are easier in every culture
• Find the people you contacted beforehand first
• One good question, then listen — the best networkers talk 30% of the time
• Ask how they'd like you to follow up
• Take notes immediately after each conversation — memory fails by evening, every time
• Within 48h: follow up on every real conversation, do what you promised
• No reply? One more try after 2 weeks, then let go

4 weeks out:

• One sentence of purpose: "This event exists so that ___." Can't fill it? Don't host it.
• Go as small as the purpose allows — dinner for 8 beats a reception for 80
• Ask for volunteers, don't assign: WHAT, WHY, roles needed, reply by [date]
• Set date, place, cost. People commit to specifics, never to "sometime soon."

2 weeks out:

• Invite personally — group posts fill a few seats; personal invitations fill the room
• Speaker invite? Use the outreach skeleton
• Confirm the venue directly: space, noise, food, accessibility
• Ask about food and accessibility needs in the RSVP — asking late says "afterthought"

1 week out:

• Reconfirm everyone — some will drop out, so invite extra
• One-page plan: who opens, what happens when, who closes
• Plan how people will connect: "What are you working on, and what do you need?" — one minute each

Day of:

• Arrive 30 min early, test everything that can fail
• Your real job is introductions: "You two should talk." Ten good ones = success.
• Watch for people standing alone. Bring them in. This is the whole job.
• Close on time: thank people, name the next step and next host

• Thank helpers and attendees — name role-takers publicly
• Send the contact list to those who opted in
• Write 3 lines for the next host: what worked, what to change, real cost and turnout
• Announce the next one while energy is high. Rotate the host.

Those notes are the institution — they're how events outlive each cohort.

• The six arrival blockers show up in every cohort
• Most people come for the people; about a third for career; a few to change fields
• Housing sorts out in weeks; direction takes over a month; health takes longest
• Energy follows the seasons — design for the rhythm, not for a flat line
• Peer support clearly improves outcomes. Build it on purpose.

• One-size-fits-all support that ignores your path (noise)
• Whole-cohort standups in Winter (isolation)
• Settings and toggles nobody uses (friction)
• Named restaurants and providers (they go stale)
• Rigid timelines that ignore each person's pace (stress)
• Public scoreboards that shame people (toxicity)

• Coordinator: intake, fixing the six blockers by day 4, shifting gears each season
• Mentors (2–3): clarity calls, monthly check-ins, path advice
• Peer groups: weekly standups — run by students, not staff
• Departing cohort: Summer hand-off, next-year mentorship

A coordinator plus two or three mentors can run this for a 40-person cohort.

This structure draws on four decades of cohort experience and long-standing research: seasonal group dynamics (Beer 1979), social networks (Granovetter 1973; Burt 1992), first-generation students (Engle & Tinto 2008), student wellbeing (Stallman 2010), and international student experience (Andrade & Evans 2009).