Social Networking – Just Be Smart About It

These days you can’t turn on the TV or read an article online without running across a story on the new uses of social-networks like Facebook and LinkedIn. Employers are now getting savvy in the social-networking arena and are using these sites to gather information on potential candidates that they could not get from the conventional resume or face-to-face interview. This topic was being discussed as early as 2005, when Jessica Mintz wrote an article, Social-Networking Sites Catch the Eye of Employers, on Wall Street Journal Online. A candidate can put all their efforts into creating an impressive resume and putting up a professional appearance at an interview, but if they have information out on the web about their weekend keg parties and shenanigans, employers might see that and cross them off their list.

“Someone will come in [for an in-person interview], be all buttoned-up and seem very proper, but you know you just saw their profile, and on it, their friends were talking about how they were wild and crazy and party seven nights a week,” she says. For Ms. Prieto, that’s fine. “I want to know what your real personality is like,” she says. However, bad grammar or typos, even on candidates’ friends’ pages, give her second thoughts.”

Now, in 2007 with more and more talk about the harm of social-networks, students are becoming more conscience of what they post on sites like Facebook and MySpace. If you are a student who uses one of the social-networks you should tune into the season premier of Minnesota Public Radio “In The Loop Show”. The show is mentioned on www.collegerecruiter.com and in entitled “Your Exposed Life”.

‚ÄúThe show airs this Sunday at 6pm CT on MPR. If these issues are of concern to you, and they should be to everyone, then you should listen. You’ll be entertained and learn a lot. For those outside of the MPR listening area, listen on-line. If you want to see the studio audience, guests, host, head over to Flickr.‚Äù (www.collegerecruiter.com )

Tune into the show, it is bound to have some useful information on how to protect your personal information out there on the web. How do you feel about employers being able to do “background’ checks on you through your social-network? Do you think it is fair? Does it make you want to not use those sites?
Article courtesy of RehabCare Student blog. RehabCare provides college recruiting for Physical Therapists, Physical Therapists Assistance, Occupational Therapists, Occupational Therapy Assistants and Speech Language Pathologists.