“Undergraduate Student” or just “Student” as title in conference?
I’m attending to present at a conference. Last time I attended, I felt like putting “undergraduate student” on my conference badge made people want to spend less time with me. Not sure why, but I think I might be perceived as a low value target in terms of networking. This time I’m thinking of putting just “student” instead, which I’ve seen many others do. Here’s my thought process (+ for pros, - for cons):
Student:
- Just ambiguous, might make you seem dumb
- People won’t have a bad initial reaction compared to just undergrad
- I can still mention I’m an undergraduate when talking to people
Undergraduate Student:
- acts as an initial filter for opportunities. If someone truly doesn’t want to talk to me just because I’m an undergraduate, it deters them in the first place
- maybe good for faculty looking for PhD candidates or other new students?
- could attract attention, because there’s only a few undergraduates
- People might not want to talk to me, just like what I thought happened the last time
Also, for context if this influences anything, I’m a student volunteer so I won’t be paying the registration fee and wearing volunteer shirts too.
I might be overthinking, but I’d appreciate help on this. Thanks so much!
Posted Dec 7, 2025, 5:04 AM UTC
10