After reading the three articles that were assigned this week they all gave glory to social media with the job search process.
Yes, I agree that social media sites such as Linkden can help employers find prospects and evaluate them even before an interview. This is because Linkden's main purpose is to connect job seekers with future employers.
On the downfall, I think there are a lot of negative aspects that come along with social media sites and the job search process.
Personal sites such as Facebook and Twitter could have an adverse effect on your reputation and the way employers view the job seeker. Most people especially college students use Facebook and Twitter for personal reasons and catching up with friends and family. They do not think about future employers looking at their pages. College students do not filter their pictures and information as much as they should because they do not think about the future employers when updating personal sites. This is how social media becomes a damaging aspect of the job search process for the future employee.
My personal and business life are completely different and I do not want prospect employers judging me on what I did my freshman year of college. That is why I took the advice from several different professionals to clean up my Facebook account. I updated my privacy settings and deleted past pictures that may not perceive me in the best light.
Overall, I do believe Linkden is a great social media site and a great way to connect with future employers. I do not think personal sites such as Facebook and Twitter should be judged as harshly as some employers do, because they are used mostly for personal reasons.
I have just started the process of searching for "life after college" since I will be graduating in May, and one of my goals is to go through my Facebook and remove anything that might portray me the wrong way to future employers but I have not done so yet. I completely agree that college students do not take care of to remove the things that might do them harm. I think it is important for employers to check into prospective employees but think you're right in saying they should not judge so harshly when most sites are used for personal purposes in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a freshman in college posting anything and everything on Facebook, I was not thinking about how it could affect my future career. The past year and a half or so, I have become very restrictive about what I put on Facebook. Part of it is that I am older and more mature, but the other part of it is that I do not want potential employers looking at pictures of me doing something I am not 100% proud of. It does seem a little unfair that employers have the ability to see into our private lives and base their opinions of us on our social networking profiles, but that is how it is, that is how it will stay, and there is not a lot we can do about it. A lot of employers have programs that can get through security settings and see things we thought no one could see. Yes, our personal and private lives are separate, but on the internet and in the eyes of professionals they become one and the same. Making smart choices about what you post on the internet does reflect on certain characteristics of our personalities and potential employers place great weight on this whether we like it or not.
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