The Internet revolution of social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook has created and built upon more than a virtual link to new and old friends. It has also increasingly become a medium through which one is judged by college admissions officers, as well as employers.
Scott Crawford, Director of the Schroeder Center for Career Development, believes the new information gathering method to be an extremely relevant development for students, who he said should be cautious and creative.
It is not necessarily the fact that underage drinking or other party shenanigans matter to the colleges or employers. Crawford candidly admitted that college students in his time did the same things as college students now. Rather, it has more to do with the candidate’s judgment in placing pictures or information of said events onto the Internet.
“Students must realize that whatever they post on the web is fair game,” Crawford said.
“Most employers and grad schools feel that if you are in search mode, it is your job to make sure what they may find out about you is positive.”
Many employers and grad school do look at candidate’s Facebook and also Google candidates as well According to CareerBuilder.com, 26 percent of all employers use the Internet to research candidates, and 63 percent of these employers have chosen not to hire candidates based on their discoveries.
Crawford recently spoke with Greg Jania, a Wabash alum who chose not to hire a candidate for what was on his Facebook. The candidate was rejected “strictly because of his main Facebook picture, which featured him dressed in a really bizarre outfit,” Crawford said.
Many students believe ethics come into play at this point. It’s one thing not to hire a candidate for obvious underage drinking or drug use, but quite another to extend these practices to personal choices, for instance a student’s political, religious, or sexual preferences.
“I believe that it is a very sticky situation,” said freshman Kristijonas “Chris” Paltanavicius. “On the one hand, I think Facebook could be used to determine the integrity of the person
they are hiring. On the other hand, it is very difficult to separate personal preferences of the employers and their decision making. I think it is wrong for a strongly opinionated employer to make a decision based on, maybe, someone’s views, but it is tricky not to.”
But the news is not all bad. Some students are also able to utilize the web in a positive manner, benefiting their future careers and impressing employers or grad schools. Crawford had several tips on how to turn Internet personas 180 degrees from a liability to an asset.
1. Start posting positive information on blogs and websites using your given name.
2. Re-create your Facebook page as a job/grad school search tool. Detail your positive points implicitly through your quotes, groups, or pictures.
3. Join LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com), which is a widely used career networking tool; a sort of Facebook for professionals.
4. Students are also able to change privacy settings on Facebook, keeping a profile hidden unless the viewer has been added to a friend list.
The Internet has gradually become an irreplaceable tool for gathering information, sharing opinions, and even creating or building friendships. Perhaps now it has inevitably invaded the employer-employee or admissions- student relationship.