How to make a connection with academics on Linkedin that they would accept? I read that some academics would avoid accepting students (undergraduate or graduate) or other researchers requests on Linkedin. So what are the cases that could be acceptable for academics to add people on Linkedin and avoid any embarrassments?


After completing their course?
After working on a joint research?
After attending a workshop, seminar, talk?
After meeting them at a conference?
After sending them an email about mutual work, papers, etc.?
I consider LinkedIn to be pretty low-stakes interaction, so I merely want to avoid being linked to spammers and frauds.  My own policy, then, is that I will accept LinkedIn invitations from anybody who I actually know who they are, either by a) having had a non-trivial interaction with them (including by phone or electronically) or b) indirect interactions such as reading their papers.

Other people may have more stringent policies, but in my opinion, it's reasonable to request a connection with anybody you have a relationship with: the worst that will happen is that they will ignore it.