With the Career Fair only a few days away, it is exactly the right time to talk about social media etiquette. How do you keep your social media sites personal, but professional at the same time? Here are a few foolproof tips:
Facebook has become a social media giant – everyone and their mother’s brother’s daughter’s friend’s boyfriend seems to have an account, so it can be hard to filter what is shown on your page and what is hidden. The bottom line: your friends may want to see/hear about that great party you went to this weekend, but potential employers do not. If you are looking to get a great internship or job, keep your page mature and professional; have Facebook alert you when someone has tagged you in a photo so you can either approve it or decline it, and keep profanities off of your page.
The same rule of profanities applies to your tweets as does posting pictures that could compromise your future or present employment: don’t do it. It is a little easier to keep your Twitter private, and because you can have multiple accounts it may be worth it to create a professional account on top of your personal account just in case an employer asks to follow you.
This is a great tool to show a potential employer events you have hosted or attended, or things you are taking part in within your community. Of course, you will be posting pictures of food and your friends, just make sure they are all pictures you wouldn’t mind sharing with your boss or the head of a company.
Blogging
Although a blog can be a great way to build a writing portfolio for future employment, be sure what you are writing about is appropriate. If it is a personal blog where you reveal your deepest, darkest secrets or vent about your current jerk-of-a-boss, be sure it is private like every other social media site. Things posted to the internet stay there forever and can come back to haunt you; watch how brutally honest you are!
Be sure to clean up any questionable social media outlets before applying to a position or handing out a resume, as Facebook and other mediums are now the first things employers check when reviewing an application in order to get a feel for an applicant before meeting them. Be sure what you are putting out there is how you want to represent yourself.
Happy job/internship hunting and see you on Wednesday at the Career Fair!