Move over, Facebook.
The Gator Nation Network, known as GNN, is a professional networking site for UF students, alumni and friends.
Although GNN was started in 2005, the UF Alumni Association recently stepped up its marketing efforts - especially to current students -beginning with a Gators luggage giveaway earlier this month.
Katie Marquis, director of membership and marketing for the association, said almost 30,000 people are registered on GNN, making it the second-largest school-networking site-second only to the University of Michigan.
In some aspects, GNN is similar to Facebook. Users can add friends, send messages and join groups, and the site keeps track of birthdays, too.
But Marquis emphasized that professional networking, not socializing, is the primary purpose of GNN.
Justin Rees, a UF graduate student who joined GNN when it first started, said the site became more helpful as he got older.
When Rees started looking for jobs in September, he found the group for New York Gators on GNN and e-mailed one of the members.
Within five hours, the member e-mailed Rees with his phone number and told him to call right away.
Although they had never met, Rees said they spoke for an hour and a half.
"That just kind of blew me away," Rees said.
Lauren O?Hara, a UF early childhood and special education senior who is also in charge of the UF Student Alumni Association, also joined GNN when the site first became available, but she said she doesn?t use it that often.
However, she said if she moves after graduation it could be helpful, since there are groups for every city.
Although she doesn?t use the site much, O?Hara said she encourages students to join because of the benefits after graduation.
"When you graduate, you have access to over 200,000 alumni and all of them are so nice and just want to be your friends because you went there," she said. "That Gator Nation Network is the perfect way to be connected."
