As college students in 2026, most of us are not only familiar with the professional networking app LinkedIn, but likely have an active profile. I vividly remember the day I created my account, last fall after my COM 100 recitation. One of the girls sitting near me was talking about how excited she was to announce her summer internship on LinkedIn, and what pictures she was going to include in the post.
I remember immediately feeling like I needed to make an account, and I had a strange sense of urgency. I had barely started my college experience, and I was already feeling behind.
The ironic thing about me starting my presence on LinkedIn was that I didn’t even have anything to post. Being a freshman in my first semester, I had not done any internships, been elected positions in any clubs, or even received the grades from my first semester. I was stuck on the term “networking” without truly knowing what it meant.
Now, as a sophomore who has been a proud LinkedIn user for over a year, I have made several observations on how college students utilize the platform. In today’s day and age, young people are so used to sharing every detail of their life on social media. It makes sense that Gen Z college students would jump at the opportunity to share their career highlights on a platform. Announcing internships and opportunities on LinkedIn is almost expected of college kids.
The question here is, where do we draw the line between genuine networking, or simply posting for validation?
I have noticed that it is common for my peers to start off their posts with saying “I am excited to announce” or “I am honored” when referring to the new opportunity. Personally, I have mixed feelings on this one. The first thoughts that come to mind when I see this type of post is that maybe this person is genuinely trying to thank the company for selecting them. This type of gratitude is appropriate, but does it need to be shared publicly?
While I understand that these posts are necessary, I think having unlimited access to seeing what all of your peers are doing can be unhealthy. I know I have felt pressure to achieve more after just spending a few minutes scrolling through LinkedIn. It is almost like posting about your accomplishment takes out the intrinsic satisfaction of achieving a goal, and makes it about validation for others.
Despite its flaws, I do believe that LinkedIn is a useful platform, and can be used to help people to network and find opportunities. While some use the app for validation, many users are posting for visibility. LinkedIn has allowed me to find internship opportunities and connect with alumni, which I would not have been able to do otherwise.
At the end of the day, LinkedIn is a tool, and can be used with whatever intentions you bring into it. While measuring your success in connections and likes is unhealthy, posting about your achievements can be used to put yourself out there, and let the world know what you are capable of.
I encourage all college students not to compare their accomplishments to others on social media. It is important to remember that we are all young and on our own journeys as we build our careers and achieve our goals.