Online Presence: Are You Giving Yourself a Chance? | The Student Pocket Guide
by Amy Rule
When looking for work during university, managing your online presence is crucial. More often than not, companies will search for you on social media sites when considering your job application as 99.9% of us have online accounts. Whether that be Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, it’s important that you make yourself look as professional as possible. That doesn’t mean that you have to stop using them completely or post things like “I love hard work” – it can be as simple as changing your settings…
1. On Facebook, you should change your privacy settings so that when searched for, you appear as only a profile picture with your name, unless the person is your friend. This means that any potential employers won’t be able to see those dodgey photos your mates have tagged you in. Unless of course one of those pictures is your profile picture – then it would be pointless.
2. If you can’t help but tweet about things potential employers probably wouldn’t want to read, then think about changing your privacy settings on here too. This means that your tweets can’t be read without someone requesting to follow you.
3. If you can manage your twitter feed without making it private and know what kind of job you want to get into, you can tweet companies within that sector asking for help and advice on how to get into it yourself. It not only shows you are conscientious and serious about working, but also that your social media isn’t just to chat about last night’s events. Twitter is also a great way to search for job vacancies. Try searching #jobs with your chosen field and location, for example, #media #york.
4. Blogging isn’t for everyone, but it is a brilliant way of getting yourself out there. You could write about anything and everything, and it’s great to put on your CV as either a hobby, or for some people, a career. A good idea would be to start a blog related to the subject of your degree or potential field of work you want to get into.
5. Consider creating a LinkedIn account. So many industry professionals have LinkedIn accounts, and having one yourself could help you out a lot. You can see what past work experience certain people have, so if you want to get into that industry too, it can give you an idea how to get there. Also, it’s like an online CV. You can include your work experience, where you went to college and what you achieved, and also the kind of things you’re good at. Use it to show off in a professional manner.
Following these simple steps and taking similar precautions will help to make finding that job a lot easier. If you have any suggestions, tweet @TheSPG! Good luck!
