This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Bryant chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.
Faster than we know it, our professional lives are approaching. Within four years our careers will be starting and if you do not want to be left behind, we at Her Campus suggest making a LinkedIn account. In other words, your professional, business-oriented Facebook. You may think LinkedIn’s only for adults, but we can assure you that is not the case. Even high schoolers are on LinkedIn! When we first started LinkedIn, we had no idea what information to put since we thought only professional content would suffice. After a lot of
research and revising, we have found ninw steps that will take your LinkedIn account from novice to expert, even as a college student.
Step 1: Post a picture.
Profiles with pictures get twice as many views as those who don’t have a picture. If you don’t have a professional headshot, just put on a nice shirt and take a picture with a plain backdrop, or use a senior picture from high school.
Step 2: Your Headline
Your headline is very personal and if you do not have a serious job, we recommend putting in what you are most proud of. This may follow along the lines of something like “Student at Bryant University,” “Finance Major and Aspiring Financial Analyst,” or “Lifeguard at HealthTrax.” we recommend looking at other student’s profiles for ideas, which is a universal rule for all steps.
Step 3: Make your summary clear and concise.
Include the school you are attending and your career aspirations and interests. You don’t need to include a full bio in this section, just a little bit about your professional life and qualifications.
Step 4: Experience
Put every position you’ve held, and we mean everything. Skills you’ve picked up from various part-time jobs may seem useless to you but could say a lot to your future employer. If any of these jobs have allowed you to create published/used work or information, put that as well. Make sure your job descriptions sound professional.
Step 5: Education
For high school you would put your diploma, but make sure you include if you were in any honor societies, sports, and clubs. With regards to your college career, do not be shy. Be sure to include majors, minors, study abroad opportunities, GPA, honors, the whole nine yards.
Step 6: Current Extracurriculars and All Volunteer Experience
Who doesn’t love well-rounded people? We already know from getting into college that our extra-curricular/volunteer activities make all the difference. We don’t need to explain this one.
Step 7: Honors & Awards
From that character distinction award you got in high school to the scholarship you received from your college all go here. Don’t be afraid to brag a little here.
Step 8: Skills and Expertise
Add at least five skills you feel you possess. People who view your profile can “endorse” you for these skills in order to give you a little more credibility.
Step 9: Courses
Under courses you do not need to add every single course you’ve taken in college thus far, in fact we discourage you from it. Add the classes that are exclusively for your major and teach potential employers a little bit about your skill set. LinkedIn Offers many more options in regards to the information you want to include about yourself. Such options include any certifications or patents you have, publications, interests, causes you care about, and more. The steps above are of particular interest to employers and are the most looked at, but feel free to completely fill out your profile, the more the better!
So what are you waiting for? Start connecting, and get LinkedIn!