Note: This is a guest post by Neeraj Gupta. The author’s views are entirely his own and may not reflect the views of Deepanshu Gahlaut’s Blog.
LinkedIn, edConnectr, Edmodo, Facebook, Instagram, Slideshare, Academia.edu, TeacherTube and more. So many social media learning websites, and so little time!
Actually, in this insanely busy world that we live in, students are finding some time to spend on these websites and afterward, are creating an online presence for themselves. But, what most of them don’t consider, is that every time they post online, they are building an impression on others that NEVER goes away.
This post will talk about twelve specific reasons students need to clean social media presence.
Admission Departments Agree to Read Tweets and Respond
I’m quite active on Twitter and have personally received tweets from college admission departments stating that they actually spend some time to read the tweets of prospective students to know the kind of person that student is.
Squander posts like, “Got wasted last night and it was awesome!” will not help you impressing anyone, specifically the admission officers who might look at your social media posts to make their judgment between a few qualified applicants.
Anyone Can View Pinterest Pins
If you search for “Financial Aid” on Pinterest, you can easily find students with boards filled with beautiful pictures of clothing, accessories, shoes, and other special things that they will apparently buy with their college financial aid money.
Where are the pictures of college textbooks and great shots of the university? Anyone in the position of offering those students money for school would have to wonder if another student might use the money as it was intended, instead of on extra non-school based luxuries.
Tweeting Scholarship Wins and Loses
It is seen every single day on Twitter, “I sure hope I win this college scholarship!” It’s also been revealed that scholarship judges sometimes read the tweets and profiles of prospective winners, especially if they need to make the difficult choice between two highly qualified applicants.
Using Twitter to tweet about how hard you worked on a scholarship application or essay and how excited you are to attend college would be a much better way to leave a positive impression on any judge (or admissions rep) that might be reading your tweets.
Facebook Photo Tagging Maybe a Tad Too Revealing
We never know what strangers, or even our FB friends, will think is a funny post and by tagging us, lead negatively to our online reputation. Thus, make sure that you have configured settings with NOT allowing tagging mode.
Remember, Social Media Friends Might Not Even Be Friendly
The social media revolution also changed the term, friend. Let’s think deeper, would any of your online friend lend you money, help you when your bike breaks down, or visit you at home when you are sick?
NO.
But many students are very keen to accept friend requests from people they have met just once. This means that these new friends don’t really know anything about you and they don’t think about posting something related to you. Be clear about mixing up the context of friends or acquaintances.
Ignore Everything Online That You Don’t Wish to See on the Front Page of the Newspaper
Your social media post, comment, or tweet is visible to the world, so why risk your online reputation by posting anything that might come back to haunt you?
Instead of abusing these platforms, use it in a positive way by publishing about volunteer experiences, how hard you worked in cultural activities, and any other facts that you want to spread that are true, motivating, uplifting and make you more likable.
Does It Pass the Grandma Test?
I love this strategy. It always works. Before hitting Post or Send button, think, would it be fine for my Grandma or Grandpa to read after knowing that it was actually me who did write it.
If not, take a pause. Any kernel of doubt in your mind about your posting will shine through this test. We’re there on social media to impress others and build connections, not to degrade other guys.
The Delete Button is Only Two Dimensional
You may think that by clicking “delete” your words might be gone, but that isn’t true. No matter how quickly you click it, someone could have read what you wrote, copied your words, and paste them somewhere else. Once out there in cyber-space, always out there.
Your Future Recruiters are Out There, Somewhere
Students can embrace social media and recruitment websites via building strong connections that might result in the job opportunity or an internship.
A contribution to online discussions and forums related to their specific career niches, their opinion or projects can get noticed by various employers seeking good candidates. Managing your web presence clean and impressive may land you the dream job in the future. Priceless!
What You Say on Social Media Sites Should Reflect The REAL You
If you won’t say it face to face, don’t type it, post it, or tweet it. You are YOU, no matter how much you may desire to be someone else. The internet is an excellent way to gain knowledge and make connections. Find positive people and learn from them!
Your Current Actions Will Pay Off Later
An 8th grader’s social media activities may not be worried about admission procedures, scholarship intentions, and future recruiters. This is where their parents should come ahead and spread awareness of how social websites can have an impact on their future.
From the ground roots, kids need to understand the magnificent power of social media and Web.
Go to Google and Search Yourself
Keeping track of what’s already out there about you is easy. Just set-up a Google Alert with the input as your name. This makes Google send you an email whenever your name comes up under their search results.
Optionally, use quotes around your name to cut down on the number of results you will be sent. Remember, this service is absolutely free, so you can trigger as much search queries as you want.
Building and keeping a clean and positive online presence is becoming more and more important for students as they apply for college scholarships, internships, and jobs. Checking a student’s Facebook page or Twitter profile may seem like an invasion of privacy, but if you choose to interact via social media, you also choose to put yourself out there for the world to see.
Security settings can only offer so much protection and, it is up to students and their parents to stress the importance of why it is critical to keep social media reputations clean.
Featured Image Credit: Pixabay (CC0 License)
Author Bio
Neeraj Gupta is the creative guy from Smile Tutor agency who loves to share his thoughts with readers. In his free time, he enjoys writing fictions as well as reading others’ work. He wants to publish a novel one day.
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