To Tweet or Not to Tweet?
"Throughout the presentation, she apparently posted disparaging comments on Twitter about her fellow attendees, repeatedly using a common expletive.
"Perhaps she hadn’t realized that colleges keep track of their social media mentions," reported Dean Meikeljohn in "They Loved Your GPA Then They Saw Your Tweets."
And you thought only employers would track such things?
Think about it, if you owned a company or were the Dean of a college wouldn't you want to know what people are saying about your product, company, or college? Of course, you would. Would-be employers or colleges don't just Google perspective employees or students, they keep track of their web reputation as well.
"'We would have wondered about the judgment of someone who spends their time on their mobile phone and makes such awful remarks,' Mr. Meiklejohn, the dean Bowdoin said.
"As certain high school seniors work meticulously this month to finish their early applications to colleges, some may not realize that comments they casually make online could negatively affect their prospects. In fact, new research from Kaplan Test Prep, the service owned by the Washington Post Company, suggests that online scrutiny of college hopefuls is growing.
"Of 381 college admissions officers who answered a Kaplan telephone questionnaire this year, 31 percent said they had visited an applicant’s Facebook or other personal social media page to learn more about them — a five-percentage-point increase from last year. More crucially for those trying to get into college, 30 percent of the admissions officers said they had discovered information online that had negatively affected an applicant’s prospects."
30 percent didn't make it to the school of their choice because of some DUMB comment, picture, tweet, or tag that they had posted online.
"Gary L. Ross, Colgate’s a dean of admission at Colgate once called a student, to whom the college had already offered acceptance, to check whether an alcohol-related incident that was reported online was indeed true. (It was, and Colgate rescinded the offer of admission.)"
Really? Does someone really have to tell you not to post that picture of you chugging a bottle of Jack Daniels online? It has become so bad that high schools are now giving high school students tutoring on how to spiff up their internet presence.
"Guidance counselors are tutoring students in scrubbing their digital identities. At Brookline High School in Massachusetts, juniors are taught to delete alcohol-related posts or photographs and to create socially acceptable email addresses. One junior’s original email address was “bleedingjesus,” said Lenny Libenzon, the school’s guidance department chairman. That changed.
"'They imagine admissions officers are old professors,' he said. 'But we tell them a lot of admissions officers are very young and technology-savvy.'" It's not just a bunch of old guys with elbow patches on their jacket smoking a pipe and reading hand written personal essays. Professors deal with technology every day.
I once had a student whose email address was "yourfacebites". It was really annoying to keep getting emails directed at my face, in fact, so annoying I sent an email to the student saying I'm not answering your queries unless you change your address.
How about you, do you think you need to scrub your internet identity before applying to the University of California, Berkeley or that prospective company where you are just dying to work?
Reading that "30 percent of the admissions officers said they had discovered information online that had negatively affected an applicant’s prospects" is really intimidating to someone who has grown up connected to social networks. I've had friendster, myspace, tumblr and facebook accounts (most of which I don't use anymore) and I really hope that 14 year-old me doesn't keep me from transferring out of community college. I understand that colleges (and employers) want to utilize technology to manage their students (or employees) but when you're scrutinizing someone who is a young adult, it seems to me like dumb pictures and posts shouldn't come as a surprise. I'd be more skeptical of those profiles that are "clean".
ReplyDeleteReputation is important, right? Whether it's at school, among friends, in the workplace, and I see no reason why online should be any different. The main reason why there is a disconnect between many peoples' ideas of online identities vs appearances in person is that many people treat social networking as a phenomenon isolated to just the younger generations. The truth is that the ubiquity of facebook, twitter, instagram and the likes works strongly against privacy. The online forum is the MOST public one in the world right now - almost anyone with an internet connection can access some of the information you post, but people think it is one of the most private, limited to just "friends" or "followers".
ReplyDeleteHow do you keep your online identity clean? It's simple! Leave the fun and the parties AT the parties. Got a ticket for running a light? The whole world doesn't need to know about it. Post the good, positive, encouraging, leave the negative, crazy, illegal for in-person.
No I don't think I have to scrub my internet identity before applying to jobs or a university because I know not to post any bad pictures of myself, or write dumb tweets on Twitter or dumb statuses on Facebook. I normally just post about quotes or song lyrics and music videos from bands I like. And of course my friends do tag me in photos but before they post it, I make sure it isn't a bad photo of me.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting how everyone seems to be checking in on the profiles that people make before they consider accepting their application. Back in middle school when I was first introduced to Facebook, I thought it was just going to be a passing phase. I personally have never been big on uploading my personal info onto a social website, but as time goes by it seems that more and more people are. It s scary to think that one thoughtless post could mean the difference between a job or college acceptance, but I suppose it teaches you what you should broadcast about yourself and what you should keep private.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I don't think that it is fair that employers and colleges judge you by what you say or do that is put on the internet. With twitter its basically just stating what you're thinking in that one moment, when the next day you could think otherwise. I tend to tweet about school, about how i hate waking up in the morning just to go to it and how I (jokingly) want to drop out. I know I wont do it. I mean I'm still in school, It's just in that moment, I hated it. I'm sure that everyone has had a moment like that where they were thinking about hating work or school and would do anything just to get out of it.
ReplyDeleteIn general, I think that it's important to keep your profile appropriate for anyone to see. People should know that Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks are completely public site, no matter how strong your privacy settings are. I'm always careful about what I post on Facebook - the only things I really post are recent accomplishments, or a funny status. I would never post something that would deteriorate my reputation. When I was in high school, there would be cases of expulsion due to embarrassing tweets regarding teachers. While it is scary that teachers are reading our social networking sites, at the same time, students should know better.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a little silly that people haven't realized that everything they do or say is being recorded and can be brought to the attention of others. All it takes is a push of a couple of buttons on Google search. It really isn't that difficult. Everyone should know by now not to post pictures of themselves or others getting drunk or high and tweeting away their life with rants about their classes. What is the point in posting these pictures and tweeting anyways? To laugh at each other? Lets see if they're still laughing when they get rejected from a school because of what they posted. When it comes to colleges, you have to get serious and erase whatever that was inappropriate and make yourself an appropriate email with your name. I, personally, don't think I need to scrub my internet identity before applying to anywhere because nothing pops up when you type my name into Google search. Plus, I don't even have a Twitter.
ReplyDeleteI feel as though employers checking interview's candidate's facebooks is and invasion of privacy. I think that it is dumb if you already have a first impression of someone and you know it it not going to change and they are not going to get hired, why have them get dressed up and ready for an interview if you know that it is going to be all for nothing.I feel as though people who do this are only seeking something negative to say about a person. It can be compared to going to see a movie, but reading critic reviews before hand. You are going to spend the whole movie either having low expectations or defending it the whole time instead enjoying the movie.
ReplyDeleteAs social media is on the rise, employers and admissions officers utilize these resources to get a glimpse of your life. Schools and jobs going onto your social media accounts seem like it's an invasion of privacy, but I do understand where they are coming from. They want to maintain an image and they don't want trouble caused in their campus.
ReplyDeleteAs for emails, "AZNBOIICRAZI" is not going to cut it anymore. This is the first things employers see and do you really want to be known as "AZNBOIICRAZI"? It's time to grow up and choose something a little more professional, maybe your full name.
I personally feel that if you make the careless mistake to bash the school of your dreams or the job that you are applying for, you deserve what you get. It's mind-blowing to read that 30 percent didn't make it into the school they wanted because of something they posted online. Since lots of companies and schools check your background and social media sites, it is just common sense to not put anything that could harm your chances. In a way, I do feel that it's wrong for these companies to look you up. Me, just like many others, can distinguish the difference between work and play. Whatever I post on my social media accounts does not reflect who I am in the work-place or as a student. I feel like if they don't accept me for who I am and they are going to pass judgement then i probably wouldn't want to work for a place like that. School is a little different because it's more exclusive. If i had to delete a few pictures and comments just to get in, and it's my dream school, then I would do it. I think it's wrong for them to look for a flaw just so they don't accept you, but that's just the way it is these days.
ReplyDeleteI think in today's world under the pretext of technological advances and the prevalence of social media. Online identities are just as real as real-life identities. The virtual identities are crucial in creating first impressions especially when people meet online and they are primarily used to judge a person's personalities or characteristic. More importantly, checking out one's online identities through twitter or facebook has become a growing trend in business and academic world as they provide information that is not seen in their applicants' resumes. It is a good way to dig up the "dark side" or dirty laundry of those applicants. So before applying for a university or company, it is wise to scrub internet identity for the fear that it would be peoples' undoing preventing them from something they have worked so long to get.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned in the previous article, "Potential Employers DO Google You," it is not a surprise that employers research potential employees through social media.Now to here that college admissions are doing the same as well is scary, yet not all that surprising. If employers are doing it, who's to say colleges won't? Choosing the more mature students for a college is just as important as choosing the best candidate for a job position.Colleges, employers...everyone wants to see that you can take yourself seriously, including social media. Another great reason to have a LinkedIn account set up!
ReplyDeleteI suppose that it's a wise way for the employers to check interviewees' personal information on Internet through those kind of websites, like Facebook and Twitter. As we all know, interviewees must have prepared a lot before their interview, so that they could show their best to the interviewers. However, I think that only one interview is not enough for the interviewers to judge whether the interviewee is proper for their company, because he could pretend himself to be a perfect person during the whole interview, but he could not pretend to be a great employee for all the time. In contrast, his personal information from the Internet will definitely reflect his real life. Therefore, I think it's a good way for the interviewers to do some research from the Internet before they do the interview.
ReplyDeletei think it is important to know that colleges are tracking our social media mentions, because there are many people think that they do not have to take the consequences of what they do and say online. However, i do not think school teachers or guidance counselors should tutor or influence too much on students' social media mentions, since social life is a personal thing. For me, i do not think i need to scrub my internet identity before applying, because i am aware of what i do and say on the internet and know not to post DUMB pictures and comments.
ReplyDeleteWe can understand that professor want to understand their student deeply. However, how deep a professor need to get? Tweet is a mirror to reflect students` social life. Students may see Tweet as their diary. professor see Tweet as a media to express their opinion. Expressing negative emotion in Tweet means different effect to professor and students. It is a way to express emotion for students. However, for professor, it mans a lot. Thus, whether does professor check students` Tweet is important to build the first expression of students in their professor`s mind. In my opinion, I think professor need to understand how important Tweet for a student. In other words, professor need to understand why student post their complain or negative emotion in Tweet, which is just an express. It is like one couple they argue with each other, they express their complain to others. It is not a big problems. After education students may change their attitude to the society. Maybe they change their way to express their emotion in an appropriate way.
ReplyDeleteI first signed up for twitter in 2011 and since then I have managed to tweet out over 26,000 tweets. Most of them are tweets to celebrities, conversations with friends, song lyrics or my reaction to a TV show im watching. I'm sure there are a handout of tweets that I probably shouldn't have tweeted in the first place. Most recently I tweeted about how I hated ticketmaster for charging my card three times for a set of tickets. Just this past week I went through my instagram and facebook and deleted a few pictures that probably shouldn't be up. i had my first email address at age 10 and it was orangegirl1@blah blah blah. I didn't pick it out my mom did. Since I didn't use email I didn't really care. Then when I was a junior in high school I traded in orangegirl1 for biebergirl09 which wasn't really an improvement. Then a year later I decided to make a grown up email and changed it to angiegomez_ and that has been my email for the past few years. giving out my first two emails always made me feel embarrassed. I felt like people would be laughing at me on the inside. but then again I know im not the only one whos has an embarrassing email address at some point . Now do I think its fair that employers and colleges go through your social media accounts? No. I could be a straight a student all through the week but when it comes to Friday and Saturday nights i'd like to go out and have a few drinks. But that doesn't reflect my school work. And its not fair I could be an amazing students but get rejected from a college because there was a picture of my with a drink in my hand somewhere on the internet. But hey life isn't fair.
ReplyDeleteWow that is crazy!! I would not expect colleges to go on your social media pages in order to learn more about you an the type of person you are. I thought that only happened when you were looking for a job or in the process of a job application. I have a twitter, and yes I would need to scrub some of the stuff off my page in order to make it "school friendly" even though you'd never find me "chugging a jack Daniel" bottle on the internet. First impressions are everything I see and you will surely find out more about a person on their social medial pages because there are no limitations to what you can say or post. I know it would be easier to delete them in order to avoid situations like this but on the contrary that are actually interesting when you're doing it correctly.
ReplyDeleteI do think it's fair for schools to check out student's profiles on the internet. The main reason I believe that this is acceptable is because you are the one that puts this information to the public and if you are willing to do so, why can't they look at what kind of student you really are? You have no idea who reads or looks at what you put online and you take that risk and if you put stuff on your profiles that are negative about you, you should already know that it can be a possibility! Wouldn't you want embarrasing and crazy pictures gone and out of sight when you get older? Do you think that future companies that are looking to hire you don't look at your Facebook, Instagram, etc.? If you don't want certain people to see stuff, don't post it! It will save you a lot of embarrassment and you won't have the chance of not getting accepted into a school.
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ReplyDeleteI don't think I'd have to scrub my internet identity before i would apply to Berkley or for a job, I personally don't like putting my whole life online and I don't ever put up things about my personal life. I have a twitter and an instagram, on twitter I don't ever tweet about my personal life or what I am doing. My tweets are mostly just about shows I'm watching, the music I like, and things that happened to me that I found funny and stuff like that. Other than that I don't really ever tweet about what I am doing. My instagram is private but I also don't ever put any pictures that would be considered "bad". I do have family that follows me on their too so I'd never even consider putting anything like that up.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that it is fair for any schools to look into profiles that students put up online. There is no reason why a students personal life should determine whether or not they are eligible to attend a good college or not. In many cases, what a person puts online on their profile is just what they choose to do in their free time, time that should not be used to judge the capability of that person being a good student. Employers could have a small reason as to looking at the personal lives of others. A good company would want to be represented with positive attitude at all times. Still, we, as free people, should have the right to even that small amount of privacy.
ReplyDeleteThis is not the first time I have heard of something like this happening. My mother was the first to inform me that employers do go out and check if your social media websites are appropriate or not. When I first started applying to jobs she told me to make sure I deleted anything that would halt my chances of getting a job. However, I did not realize that colleges are doing the same thing. I don't think high school students would think of this on their own, so it's good that some high schools are informing their students of this. It can be unfair though since websites like Facebook allows people to tag others in their photos. There has been plenty of times when a photo surfaced on Facebook that I did not wish to be posted. In that case, students should make sure to change their profile settings on their websites and make sure to keep them free of inappropriate photos.
ReplyDeleteI do not have a twitter account, and I am pretty sure I never will. One, I think it is kind of stupid. I really don't care what Kim Kardashian ate for breakfast today. Lastly, I am not witty enough to come up with clever 140 character phrases. I do have a Facebook though, and Facebook is always evolving. Facebook does have a "status" update, and I occasionally write something on there. I am usually ranting about some stupid referee call in a sports game, in which I do sometimes use profanity. I have to be very careful though I do not say anything negative about the San Jose Sharks, because I work for SAP Center (where the Sharks play). I can understand college application officers who search their prospective students, because one day they may represent that school and if chosen without insight, you might have a bad situation on your hands in the future.
ReplyDeleteI already knew that employers, as well as schools check out student profiles on the internet. It is your willingly choice to gather your information to the public to see. You basically lose your rights once you agree on the social media pages when it says that if you agree if you continue. Everything gets saved through the social media pages whether its a picture, tweet, status, age, and full name. You have to be very careful as well, there could also be a different person taking your pictures and using them as if they were you. Employers as well as School officials do have the right to search you and see what your about. Future companies especially government jobs look at everything, about you, literally everything. I can say that you shouldn't post your entire life, especially embarrassing things that happen to you because karma will strike back. Even if your profile is private, there is still ways people can see your social media pages even without having a profile themselves. You can avoid lots of embarrassments and problems if you avoid posting crazy pictures or blogs especially negative ones. You can brag all you want about life through pictures and tweets or statuses, but think about it is it really worth saying negative comments or having negative pictures? Students should know better about social media and learn that employers do search for you, and it does affect your well-being.
ReplyDelete"They loved your GPA, then they saw your tweets". This sentence explains how different people accepting your applications can find negative things about you on social networking sites, which may change or impact application status. It is crazy how colleges, employers, and the people behind making important decisions can alter their mindset from seeing one simple tweet or facebook status. As I was reading, one fact really stood out to me."30 percent of the admissions officers said they had discovered information online that had negatively affected an applicant’s prospects". This quote made an imprint in my mind, and I will now watch my tweets and things I put onto the internet more closely. A single status won't stop me from my dreams.
ReplyDeleteI never really thought about how colleges may look into your social networking when being evaluated for acceptance into them. When I was applying to schools I didn't really think about what was on my social networking because I really only had Facebook. I wasn't big about posting pictures and statuses very often. I especially don't put inappropriate things on Facebook because I have a lot of family members as friends and they would not be happy about me having them on the internet for everyone to see. On the other hand, I do sometimes post somewhat inappropriate things on my twitter, because I only allow friends to follow me. I admit that I sometimes talk about my school or job on twitter, maybe complaining about a service I'm not happy with. For example, I might criticize my school, because sometimes I might be unsatisfied with how the financial aid office responds to my questions of concerns. But I never usually post or tag my school directly because I don't want them knowing that I am writing about them and looking further into my account. Also, it is sometimes difficult to prevent this because social networks now automatically connect where you are to your post. For example, I could post something on FaceBook or twitter and it will say, at CSU East Bay, or at my job and then people may be able to see it. Other than things like that, I don't really post about any drugs, alcohol or partying because I know it may be a bad characteristic in the eyes of a future employer. I'm always very amazed by the pictures that people post on social networks because I see young girls in revealing clothes, doing inappropriate things and it seems that they want to be seen and remembered in these ways. Also, when it comes to email addresses, I only had one non-professional email address that a friend made for me when I was in probably seventh grade. I always felt embarrassed about giving out that email because it was a childhood nickname, so I later created a more professional email and still only use the old one when signing up for any junk that is unimportant and I don't want blowing up my real email. As I am getting older I now know the importance of maintaining a professional and appropriate presence on social networking because today it is so easy for your information to be spread and leaked to people who you are trying to prevent seeing it through privacy settings.
ReplyDeleteYes I believe it ok for employers and colleges to look at your personal information before offering you a job or admission to their college. For one you put that information out on the World Wide Web for anyone to see. Secondly, your prospective employers or colleges have the right to protect themselves from anything that they would inappropriate. As for me personally when I learned that employers look at your facebook page and other social media a few years ago I took down and untagged myself from any pictures that would give someone the wrong impression of me. As for email addressed yes it is ok to have a fun email address like “yourfacebites” as long as you also have a professional one as well. My advice to anyone applying to a college or to a job they are serious about is make sure your social media is clean to the point that your grandmother can look at it and not have any complaints.
ReplyDeleteI am on the fence with this article. Personally, I find it ridiculous that I would have to clean my social medias in fear of not getting accepted or hired by a school or job. Social medias are a place where you can express yourself and share thoughts or feelings you wouldn't normally. It is the one place where you don't have to be your usual boring professional self, so to have that taken away would ruin the fun of having them. At the same time though, I do see why it is important to look professional online as well. Getting into schools or getting hired for a job has become very competitive in recent years. It only makes sense to consider social medias as a factor because it can give a better understanding as to who you will be hiring or accepting. overall I feel as if this topic is very debatable on both sides and personally even though I wouldn't want to clean my social medias, I would.
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ReplyDeleteYes, I feel people need to scrub their internet identity before applying for anything. Scrubbing your internet identity is necessary because just as easily as you can find yourself on the internet so can the person in charge of accepting one of your applications, whether it’s a college, an internship, a job, or just somewhere to live. When I was say a sophomore in high school around the time I start thinking about job, I typed my name into google to see what popped up. I did this because I wanted to make sure nothing negative had relations with my name, and anything found inappropriate I made sure to change whatever it was that linked it to google. For example, for my Facebook I changed my email address so my name wasn’t a part of it, as well as my user name, because I’ve been having a Facebook account for a while now and anything I posted that might have been inappropriate for the work business was too old for me to go all the way down my timeline to delete. Same goes for my Twitter account I changed my email and blocked my account because most of my followers are old school mate who tweet things that aren’t always work appropriate, and I wouldn’t want a college or job to base my acceptance off of my social life which tends to be differ from my professional life.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was younger, I had a few questionable things on MySpace. Of course the time for MySpace is long gone. Since then, I have taken the liberty of deleting the account. I had two Facebooks, and I deleted both because I did not think that it was useful or worthwhile, and it was more drama than I cared for. So many people try to start things in social-networking sites that they would never dare do in person, and I just think that it's just pointless to me. Most the people that tried to friend me I haven't talked to in years or never even liked, and it all just seems so fake! Since then, I have not made any blog or anything like that. I think that many people use them to try to make themselves seem more interesting, and I guess I'm alright with not being so. There's nothing out there that I regret, so I do not think I have anything to worry about. I guess when it comes down to it, I am what you see, and I would hate for my own Facebook page to have slander against me.
ReplyDeleteTechnology is a very powerful tool and could expose private information about you that you might not want people to know about. In high school, a classmate of mine had to suffer some consequences for exposing inappropriate things about herself. It ended up going around the whole entire school. I think it is really important to keep in mind what you post about yourself on the internet because it can greatly affect one's school and/or career opportunities. I'm pretty sure that my internet identity is clear of any inappropriate postings. I deactivated my Twitter account recently, and I barely post anything on Facebook or any social network for that matter. Plus, each time I post I make sure it is something that won't hurt me in the future. I wouldn't want to jeopardize my success over something stupid.
ReplyDeleteI find it very troubling that schools look at your social networks. However, it did bring this whole idea to my attention. I don't think that it's right but I will definately try to make my social networks more proffessional. Currently, I say whatever comes to the top of my head and I post it to my networking sites. I basically have no filter when it comes to my Twitter or my Instagram account. Now that I have read this article, I will no longer post pictures of the reckless events that me and my friends do on the weekends. In addition, I won't say things that may be inappropriate on my websites either. The thought of employers and school deans looking at my social networks did cross my mind but I never really thought that anyone cared enough to take the time to look. I think that this idea could turn into a good one becuase some individuals may be representing themselves the wrong way on their social media sites. It is very important that high school students learn how to take care of their social media reputations because high school students sometimes don't make the wisest decisions when putting information on their websites. I think that drug and alcohol use or innapropriate language should be something that we save for private conversations. However, I do think that privacy rights should be questionable when it comes to this concept as well.
ReplyDeleteI certainly think that it is important to make yourself look well on social media. Places like facebook and twitter show the things you associate yourself with. I don't think a company or college would like someone associates themselves with constant drug and alcohol consumption. That is why i think it is important to look up some things on your profile that might make you look bad. I know I personally look at people's profile and it is a way of getting to knowing them without actually knowing them. Social media gives us the first impression of people. However, if a student or job applicant has great grades and an awesome resume, i don't think they should base their judgment on their profiles, because that just show the type of work ethic they have.
ReplyDeleteI think the most common misconception for the students, especially in high school, who are active participants in social media, is that employers, or even college professors, do not look at their pages on Twitter, Facebook or even Tumblr. How could they? America thrives on the idea that our civil rights protect us. However, what should be noted are the sly contracts of agreements that we are to electronically sign before we are able to be a part of the social media. To be honest, nobody really takes the time to read the contract because it contains a hefty amount of pages to read. As a result, the contract can ask us to sign our life away and we would be clueless.
ReplyDeleteAlong the same lines, students are quite clueless when it comes to using the internet because they have not fully read the possibilities of what could happen based on their posts. The best type of advice I would give to these students it to search their names up firsthand. If anything inappropriate pops up, they should take the time to delete it. I, personally, took the time to search up my own name and was in disbelief at how many links to my name popped up. My profile in Formspring, Youtube, Photobucket, Pintrest and Facebook popped up. It was surprising because there were some accounts that I have not opened in years, yet it is still available for the world to see. It took time to delete my old files because of forgotten passwords, but I can now rest easy knowing that if a future employer was to Google my name I would be at a clean slate. You should too.
I definitely think people should watch out for the stuff they post on the internet. Is it really that incomprehensible to people that deans, professors and future employers may look at the stuff you post on the internet? I would think it was obvious. Technology is changing and it especially changes in education. Of course they'd look at the profiles and content of their possible students and employers. And if you have pictures of stupid and or illegal activity why would they give that person the job anyway? If those people are being irresponsible on their own time than of course these deans, professors and employers would think that they'd be irresponsible in class or in their employment. People need to wake up and realize that they can be judged for whatever they post online, even something as simple as a username could set people back.
ReplyDeleteI think it is so sad that something that is so easy to control could cause people to lose something they have been working so hard for. But it's true that when all you have to go off of is a resume or application essay, looking at someone's profile can teach you a lot of them. Luckily, I have never really gotten into posting a lot of pictures online and the ones I do are rated G. I got into that habit because I have a lot of family on as "friends", so I have no other option. Keeping a clean profile online helps people look more educated and professional.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe the internet fully represents who you are in reality. The thing about anything online is that you chose what is seen, that is, you are who you want to be, only online though. It is not uncommon for students to post things or make comments online for pure attention. They are putting on an internet facade. If an individual had any questionable pictures or posts on social media sites, they may want to consider purging some of this. Unfortunately, judgements are made in many types of ways, so if you are a different person online than you are in the real world, you have to consider how any respectable business or university would think when viewing anything you make public. It is made for the public to view, plain and simple.
ReplyDeleteI believe you should watch what you say on the internet for two reasons. One, you never know who is going to be looking at what you post and the second would be the whole world doesn't need to know what you are thinking, unless it is something positive. Although all the time your internet life isn''t always a true depiction on who you really are, only you yourself know that. Not the person reading what you wrote.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that I need to be worried about what is on my Facebook. The only reason I still have one in the first place is to keep in contact with my family in Wyoming, and therefore, I already do a great job of monitoring what I am tagged in and what people post on my profile. Although I do believe it is very important, for everyone who has a Facebook or any other social media network account, that they thoroughly inspect their own page and make sure there is nothing that could potentially hurt them as a future employee or employer. It takes very little effort and time and it could possibly save one's future.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a god way to keep students on track with what they post online. I know some of my friends dont care what they post onine, but they are aslo not in school. If youre trying to go to a certain school then theres no reason to be down talking the school you want to go to. But then again schools shouldnt hold that against people, most people act really different in person than online. Its sad but thats how pople are. Teens just need to be careful on what they post, it might be funny at the time but in the long run it can really hurt you.
ReplyDeleteThis should be a wake up call for high school students. It doesn't make sense to talk down on a certain school when your trying to get into it. I believe students really express how they feel through the internet, but do not realize that it could be a risk. This should be an eye opener for others. Students should think before they write something on the net.
ReplyDeleteI personally don't have anything to worry about on any of my social media. I am split on what I think about employers and schools look at. The social media we are on is something more personal and I don't think that others should be looking through it. I also don't think that our social media should affect or put at risk what we can or can't get into in regards of schooling or getting hired for a job. We, the students or workers, don't go through our bosses or teachers media so I don't feel that it is right for them to do. On the other hand, our social media does tell a lot about us, so it is a good idea to see more about who we really are before we get hired somewhere or before we get placed in school. I think social media overall though does have too much of an impact on what we are able to do.
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly a "think before you write." As a current student I myself am very aware of everything I post right now, especially after learning that each university keeps tabs on how many times their names are mentioned on social media. Not only that, but this past weekend in fact my parents became part of the social media circle, through Facebook, yikes! Time to be super careful! But besides the fact, it is important to be very smart when posting anything online, it stays there forever, and could potentially harm us in our future.
ReplyDeleteI believe it's important for students to watch what they post for many reasons. If you don't care what other people think about you, that's fine. But for your possible employers to see you as someone that's not professional can cause a problem that will follow you forever. It makes no sense to tell someone that the school they run is your dream school then go on a social network that you let everyone you know see, to talk bad about it. That doesn't make you look like a person who is genuine all the time. But if you aren't the type to talk bad about the professional area of your life, your social networks show what kind of person you are. It shows if you are someone who likes to whine or someone who likes to start problems with other people.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it would not be too difficult for me when it comes to applying to programs or jobs, because I do not have any social media accounts. Not because I am worried about a future job that might see, but because those types of social media related programs interest me. I do not believe in having something that many people have, because then one is portrayed as "just another applicant". You are able to put whatever you want on to the web but understand that if the time presents itself you will be judged.
ReplyDeleteCleaning up your social networking site is very important nowadays. High school students are entering the "real world" and need to be aware that with their actions comes consequences. I dislike having social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, however I have an account to keep up with friends and family. Since I prefer my life private, I made my networking sites as private as I could. Only posting up information that I want others to know. Applying for jobs also requires a professional email and attitude so future employers can see if you are a possible candidate. It only takes a few minutes to set your profile on private. Just to be safe, people should keep photos,posts,videos, etc. that are questionable to themselves. Think twice before posting online because once it's up, it will never go down
ReplyDeleteI don't need to scrub any of my social media sites and it makes me sad when there are people that do. I understand that we now have the technology to instantly share pictures and statuses with our friends, but I feel like people have taken it way too far. If you feel the need to post embarrassing/racist pictures of people that you don't know, or let everyone know that you might be going down the path of alcoholism at the age of 18 then you have the some serious attention problems. It's great that the picture might be funny to you, or you're having fun during the weekends. But every time you're posting something that might be offensive to ANYONE, you need to really take into consideration the consequences it might have. Are all the "Likes" really worth it losing the respect from your friends or possible employers?
ReplyDeleteGrowing up I have learned that your social identity really affects who you are. Whether you lie to make your self look cool, or the actions you are doing are really you, it still affects your life. I feel bad for the people that have to scrub off or clean up their social media site when they don't get their dream job or get into their dream school. I feel like it is completely their own fault. If you were an employer or dean at a admissions office would you accept someone with a bad reputation online? I certainly would not. People should think twice before posting something on the internet. Even though your profile may be set to private that does not mean it is clean, An employer can ask you to log into your Face Book page right in front of them. Then what? I like social media sites, they are entertaining and help you keep in contact with friends and family, but these sites should be used only for good, not to post bad partying pictures or revealing pictures of one. The internet is at the tip of our own fingers. It is up to us, what we choose to put up on the internet and say on the internet. Some people take advantage of it and take their own social media too far by posting negative things such as horrible comments, bad pictures and statuses. People really need to take a step back and take control of their social media sites because it really does have an affect on your life.
ReplyDeleteNowadays you should be careful of what you post online. If you want to get into a good college or get hired at a job, you don't want them to be able to see embarrassing pictures or horrible comments that you put online. A good way to keep people from looking at your stuff is by setting your profile on private. Setting it on private will allow you to have you job life and then have your life outside of work. Also, by not posting dumb stuff online and hope no one sees it. But I personally won't change my profile page and take off anything because my page is who I am and I am not dumb enough to post pictures or comments I wouldn't want a dean or boss to see. If you have a profile online be smart with it and let it present you in a good way.
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ReplyDeleteBack in my sophomore year, my English teacher mentioned how students should watch what they post, blog, and tweet because many of those social media interactions, unless they were already deleted, will stay with us permanently. I already knew what he was talking about and figured that it is pretty much common sense; if your Facebook profile isn't on private, anyone can see it if they search up your name and knew what you look like. He also mentioned some things that were surprising and sounded even illegal, like how job companies can go as far as hiring a technology specialist and somehow go through your profile and seeing your messages and even your deleted posts. The one thing that surprised me most was when he told a story of one of his former students: she was applying for a big name university and they made a background check on her. They found out that she had sent an inappropriate picture of herself by text. He then said that they found out because they checked the background of her cell phone number and saw every little thing she text. So, comparing this article to his lecture, the article wasn't even needed because of the impact of the lecture had on me. To this day, I'm not sure if the things he said were true, or if it was a white lie that one would tell children to help them become a better person, but if it was a lie, I wouldn't even be mad, because I've never posted, blog, or tweet anything inappropriate, and with the help of that lecture, I still haven't.
ReplyDeleteSo, if I were to "scrub" whatever seems inappropriate for the job I'm applying for, I would use no profanity, make my email/username for everything look appropriate, and avoid posting a lot (not just avoid posting "bad" pictures or tweets).
This article I’ve selected to read about i thought personally was quite interesting. We were constantly taught in high school that companies looking to hire individuals would in fact, investigate your social media accounts/profiles. Which is understandable especially now in our generations and future generations to come at this rate. I think individuals seeking to go to college or join the workforce should defiantly "clean up" their social media profiles upon applying to any school or firm. Competition especially now is getting fierce, companies are looking to employe mature and professorial individuals.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually quite shocked at this article, I never really thought about a college looking at my Facebook or other social networking sites. When I applied to cal state east bay I didn't even think about them looking at my social networking sites. Also for the girl to be tweeting negative things about the college she was at, wasn't a good idea. Did she really think they wouldn't see those negative tweets? I was always taught by my parents and elders to watch what I post online because it could eventually come back to you and have a bad effect on you. It's also a good thing to have a professional email because if you emailing a future employer you don't want your email to be kittylover12 or babyboo and they won't hire you because it's very unprofessional. I know if I was looking for a someone to hire and I saw that email I would most definitely look right past it.I would also most likely look at their social media pages and if I saw them drinking alcohol underage or smoking an illegal substance I would most definitely not hire that person.
ReplyDeleteNow a days it is so easy to get caught up in social media and not think of the consequences that may come with it latter on. for me I've always been very mindful of the things I say when im on Twitter or Facebook or the pictures I post on Instagram, but then again its something I don't have to think about because im not doing or saying anything that I shouldn't be saying or doing. and if I was thought of my mom being upset with me always comes into act so I immediately turn away from anything that could portray a negative image of me. The sad thing is I feel this is happening more now in the younger generation than my generation and those older than me. Simply because the internet access is everywhere. So if your going to have negative things to say about a college you've been accepted to, or are in the process of being accepted, id keep them to yourself if I were you, or don't apply to that school.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that my social networking sites would be appropriate for any college or job that I would want to apply to. My Facebook is mostly private but either way I wouldn't post anything that could get me in trouble because of the fact that I have my siblings and older relatives that keep track of me especially now that I'm out here for college. Today mostly every college has their own hashtag for Twitter, Instagram and now even Facebook has started to use them. My Instagram is a different story because I don't have any relatives following me there so I feel free to post anything I want but I'm sure to NOT use the school's hashtag (#csueb). I noticed that at the beginning of the year people would post pictures of them drinking or smoking in their dorms with the tag #csueb. Now I think they are more aware that the school keeps track of the hashtag because no one seems to use it anymore or they've just made their accounts private. For the most part I think it is good that colleges and employers look at these things because it is important to make sure the college and the company keep a good reputation and not have it ruined by a few dumb people.
ReplyDeleteAlthough my particular social media outlets are fairly clean I still scrub them often. I have even learned that on Facebook when someone posted something personal that has a negative connotation their entire Facebook community and external community becomes an uproar of opinions and facts found online. I am in the process of bringing myself to delete my Facebook or at least make it a very bland profile. It has more than once become an issue of security because often times I do not know what other people who are not friends/followers see on my profile. Plus the more time I spend on Facebook the more I realize that a lot of the people I know externally are either very annoying or just very insulting to not only me but others. Recently I had a friend post an extremely frustrating comment about the LBGT community that was so completely ignorant and rude that I removed him from my friends list. And we are very close externally but he has posted similar homophobic/antigay propaganda that really just infuriates me as well as many others. Not to mention is he ever wanted to be hired by a person of or a company that supports LGBT community he would loose several points n the hiring system or be completely over looked. If he wished to go to a more urban college his new classmate Facebook friends would see his posts and be greatly upset with them as well. This instance goes in part with the First Amendment. Yes, as a citizen you are entitled to your opinion but you are not at all protected from the consequences that your opinions create.
ReplyDeleteThis topic also deals with professionalism in the workplace, school, and even in the public. In my senior year of high school my teacher told me to create a professional email because my current one was a childhood nickname and did not include my last or first name. And my spanish teacher was fired when the administration looked at his profile and saw him drinking at a party with students.
Overall, what you post is very critical and should be well thought out before doing so.
I found this article very interesting to read but I will have to say that it was a bit annoying to find out that colleges or places of employees do background checks like that. I do understand that they would like to know what kind of person they are hiring or accepting into their school but really what does someone's personal life outside of school and work have to do with you? I learned about a such thing called "code switching" or like people act different around their friends than they would around their mom. And honestly I feel like this goes the same way, I'm not saying that people should do outrageous things like post pictures on their social networks of them doing bad things but it's really their life and their own choice like why would you take an acceptance from a kid who worked their ass off grade wise, got the recommendations and everything is good but the only thing is they went to a party and did some underage thinking?! I really think that is stupid, but again people under 21 should not be drinking. Now I know for future reference not to do anything illegal or bad so that I lose opportunities.
ReplyDeleteI personally don't have to clean out my Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram because I have nothing to hide. But as I was reading this article, I found it rather interesting how colleges and companies are actually starting to look for their future students or employees on the internet. It makes sense that they do because why would they want someone who seems like they could be an excellent student but in reality is a party animal or does stupid things outside. It makes the dean question themselves if whether or not they should have them attend the school or work. There could be pictures that should be slipped by but it's only to a certain extent that they should be doing things. If you're under 21, then it's a bit more strict because you really can't be posting anything illegal or something that could get you in trouble.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting because it showed how many people can see what people post up. To be honest, I didn't know faculty can keep an update on people's social life. with so many students in college, I didn't expect having the time to check on student's social life. I personally don't have anything to clean for any of my social media. I know the best place to see and know who you are is Facebook. when people are getting hired, the boos will look the person that they hired or are hiring and see what they did or what kid of person you are. you can seek the bad things that person has done and fire them. so it is important to be careful for what you have to post or if you already have so inappropriate things, delete them.
ReplyDeleteSome people use social media as a means of having a private journal which would be considered inappropriate to say the least. I personally have nothing to hide on my facebook as I don't use it very often and if I do, its to be in contact with specific people, not to post my life story and what I've eaten fro breakfast. I would not worry if an employer or a university felt the need to look at my facebook page. I can understand how that would be an invasion of privacy for some people. But why should they have anything to hide on a public website? I don't necessarily support companies or schools viewing anyones social media profile, but I am not against it either. Some people are acting as a different person on their profiles when in fact that isn't who he/she really is.Some people are lonely and feel the need to do things for attention on these sites, but that does not mean this person is a bad influence or doesn't deserve a good job opportunity. I would just inform everyone that your profiles are never private and to keep it on the normal side. There is no need to be professional on your personal facebook. A person can easily create a personal profile and have two.
ReplyDeleteWhen I look at my Facebook profile, I don't think that I would have to clean it up but just to be safe I probably would do so. Better to be safe than sorry. I have it set on private, so majority of my profile can only be seen by people who I accept. The posts on my profile aren't inappropriate to me but I think a college or company might classify some pictures of drinking inappropriate. It was crazy reading that 30% of students didn't get accepted into the college of their choice because of what they had posted. But it also doesn't surprise me because kids post some really dumb stuff not knowing who can see these things. I think if you get denied because of what you have posted, it is definitely your fault and it could have easily been prevented. If you leave yourself vulnerable, you are going to pay the consequences, whether it is not getting into your dream college or getting the job you wanted. If someone wanted something bad enough, they would not keep posts that would jeopardize their chances of obtaining that goal.
ReplyDeleteNo, I have prepped every social networking and social media profile of mine so that it can only impress someone regardless of their age or social background. I believe tweeting is a distraction to academics and life in general so I do not tweet. But for those that do tweet, I have to wonder if this micromanagement of applicants' social media accounts negatively affecting the growth of youth. Part of growing up is making mistakes and with social media becoming a bigger part of most youths' lives; how are youth suppose to grow into productive adults if they have never had the chance to make the mistakes they needed to earlier in their lives to mature. These college admissions officers need to stop "policing" these children or they will never learn the advantages of personal expression and the creativity which it develops.
ReplyDeleteSocial media nowadays is becoming more popular, yet students especially aren't being careful of what they post. I personally think students should clean their social media sites. If you are trying to land an elite job or go to a university, you need to present yourself in an adult manner. Employers want only the best to be working in their company, and it's a reflection on them if they have an employee who goes out every night and posts inappropriate images and tweets of what happened. People don't realize that they are potentially jeopardizing their chances of that dream job because an employer will not hire someone that seems incapable of being a hard worker based on what they post online. My family owns their own company and my dad is very adiment on the employees that he hires. He does his own background checks on his employees and one includes searching the online to see if something comes up. If he sees a potential employee's face pop up on google with innapropriate images alongside it, then it's more than likely he won't hire them. I completely agree with this because I have to work in my family's company and if I know one of the secretaries goes out every night after work and gets drunk, I'm more than likely going to look down on them when I see them at work. Social media is out there for everyone to see, and students should keep it private and to themselves in order to preserve their own self image.
ReplyDeleteNo, I feel like people should not have to clean up their Facebooks and/or twitter. It also depends on who you are, for example, I believe if someone was to look at my social networks, they would not find anything that would affect my chances of working with them. Although, in some cases, the places you apply at might not like the things you talk about like for example: sports, politics, religion and sometimes the place you live. But, I feel like schools and companies should not base someone's personality off of their social networks because most people use social networks just to connect and interact with their friends or meet new people. These networks should not reflect on who you really are and what your intentions are.
ReplyDeleteWith technology being such an important aspects in our lives now we need to be cautious of the consequences. Although it has its perks and has made our industrial society more advanced, it can get us into trouble. Even if we make our social network pages private, there is ways around that where everyone can see your pages. Professors, employers,and parents are all included in the people that can browse through your posts. I believe that we are responsible for what we share and, like in everything else we do, there are consequences.
ReplyDeleteI personally don't think we need to "scrub" your internet identity before applying to college or work. I think we should simply not even have a bad reputation on the internet to begin with. I'm not against social networks, I actually like using social networks a lot. However, we must always keep in mind who is able to view our social networks. I wouldn't post something that I don't want my great-grandmother to see. So, we shouldn't post anything that we don't want our future employer or college to know about or see. I don't blame them for judging us by the way we look on the internet. I'm sure everyone else who can see are judging us the same way. In conclusion, we should just keep a good reputation on the internet no matter what or who is watching it.
ReplyDeleteI think people should definitely fix their own individual identity on the internet because that could be the reason why a person does not get into a school or get their dream job. Your online profile could be totally different than your in person personality which could be bad. There are certain things on the internet that are ok to post while others could be offensive to other people. For example if a person posts "That party was awesome last night" and they were suppose to be at work they could get fired. Leaving information about you on the internet can come back and bite you in the end, so be careful about what you post online and sometimes fix our profile to improve the chance of getting a job or whatever you want.
ReplyDeleteThis article i found quite interesting for the reason being that I am myself a user of this particular social media website so i'm able to relate back to it. in addition being a college student it is shocking to hear that deans of prestigious schools deny admission to students due to their tweets online.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe you need to scrub your internet identity before applying to a school or a particular job because your aptitude for learning or performing well at a job is not predicated by what you do in your free time. If you're smart and get good grades, you should be able to get into the school you want. As for jobs, if you are qualified and are capable of doing a job well, what you do when you leave work should be separate than work life. It's one thing if you hate where you go to school, work, or the people there. If someone posts about how all these people are terrible or how horrible the place is, of course the employer or school has the right to rescind or reject that person. If you don't want to be there, you don't have to be. However, partying with friends, just like any teenager or young adult does, and having those pictures posted on a social media site, should not hinder their school or work life. What people do on their on own time should not be held accountable for a job or acceptance to a school. Hiding who you are online does not change who you are offline.
ReplyDeleteI don't think you should have been posting anything that should be "scrubbed off" your online profile to begin with. People often underestimate the amount of damage something negative posted online can cause within minutes of being out there. The article talked about how universities and companies keep track of their social mentions, so in a real world sense if you said something inappropriate towards them they will know even if you delete it chances are there's no point it's been seen. Personally I think twitter should be exempt from the issue simply because I know for me and a lot of other users it's a way to vent, usually no one remembers what they tweet so making someone go trough an archive of 15,000 plus tweets just to make sure they didn't say one thing against let's say Stanford before submitting an application is a little irrational.
ReplyDeleteSocial media has definitely expanded into not only older generations but to the younger generation. With this being said the younger generation really do not keep in mind what they are posting and are not as cautious as to what they say. So as for this article where students are being advised to "scrub" their online identities is a good idea. I say this because most teenagers do not care for what they post.Though I will argue that not all teenagers post scandalous pictures and posts. It really depends on the person who is applying as to if they want to scrub their identity. If they have nothing to hide then don't , but if they have some scandalous post it's a better idea for the company or school not to see that. Unless of course you really want to show them who you "truly" are. Also , showing who you truly are is not bad at all , who knows what the company likes , " honesty is the best policy". So in conclusion , I believe that is truly up to us to post what we feel like showing online. Whether we do or don't we should keep in mind of what we post when it comes to applying to official places.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe we need to polish our social media website before we apply to a university or a job but we should keep them appropriate at all times. The possibility of an employer or an admissions director looking at your personal information once you apply continues to increase as social media becomes more popular. If they are considering applicants I'm sure they want to know what kind of people are going to be at their job or roaming the campus, and they certainly wouldn't want to take a chance at approving a candidate that glorifies being an alcoholic. Yes ones social life may not reflect their personal performance on the job or at an institution, but if the job has multiple applicants to take into consideration and only a few positions available, chances are they will take the candidate who has their updated curriculum vita or resume posted on instagram as opposed to somebody berating everybody that leaves a comment on their post. The bottom line is you don't want to give any body a reason not to except you especially if it is based on something that took 30 seconds to put up or take down (a post.)
ReplyDeleteIt’s unfortunate that people are unaware of the bad message and reputation they send once they click the “upload” button sharing a photo of “Last Night Turn-Ups”. A few months ago I personally deleted my Twitter account. I felt it was a really huge distraction. It became so out of control that I had my priorities mixed up and I was unable to focus on my homework assignments. It also kept me caught up in daily drama. I still have an active Facebook and Instagram account but I’m very cautious on the things I upload or post. The majority of my Facebook friends are family members. My Instagram is set public so anyone is capable of finding me.Because my Instagram is not set on private I have followers of all ages, anywhere between 12 to 35 years old. I do not feel the need to inform any of my followers or friends on either account “how drunk I was last night” or “how much I hate my job”. I share what I feel is appropriate as if my mom or supervisor was standing right over me.Everyone is using the internet so it’s pretty important to know that anyone can get access to your profile on any social network.
ReplyDeleteI believe "scrubbing" your social media and/or social networks is necessary for admission into a University or career field. Many times young people in particular do not think about how their actions will effect their success in the long run. Especially as an adult it is important to consider what type of image one would like to portray to others. In today's time, with various technology being invented on the daily, it is easy for one to share their personal life with the rest of the world. However, when what is being shared is detrimental to one's success, I believe it is unnecessary for anyone to post such things. This concept also has much to do with lack of maturity. Although various high schools teach their students to "scrub" or polish their social networks, it is up to the student to make sure they are promoting themselves in a respectful manner. In the world we live in today, internet identity is very important. It goes beyond one's gpa and involvement. Some students and employees do not take into consideration that what they are posting online is hindering their success and acceptance. People must ask themselves if it is really worth risking their success. I would say, it's just not worth it.
ReplyDeleteI think that when it comes to one getting there dream job then yes they should “scrub” there internet identity because that is there work and they need to be professional. However when it comes to students getting admitted into colleges I believe that they should not be able to able to check that students social media post and judge them on it. Realistically 18 year old seniors in high school will not think twice about what they post on social media accounts, and thats normal because thats the last thing on there minds there busy with filling out college applications. It is not fair that colleges are looking through social media pages and judging whether or not that student should be accepted based on what is on there Instagram or Facebook. What students post does not fully represent who that person is or how they are as a student. For example I knew many students who are very bright and hardworking in school , got accepted to UCLA, USC, Stanford, etc. Yet they go out to parties, drink illegally, and post about there wild night on social media. They are good students and do not deserve to not get admitted into college because of what they do outside of school. In general people who need to “scrub” there internet identities are people working and in the professional world, students should not be judged on what they post on social media.
ReplyDeleteI think it’s important to keep an appropriate image of yourself on social media and online. It could make a difference when trying to get an interview for a job. It’s also important to be aware of what you post when you have a professional career. For example, you call in sick, but you’re actually planning on going to a party. You take pictures at the party and post them everywhere, and your boss sees them and you get fired. An employer doesn’t want to hire someone that blows off work to party. You should represent yourself well on social media because you never know who could be looking. I’ve always been taught to keep my social media appropriate in preparation for college and future jobs. I’m also friends with family on sites such as facebook, so I never post anything I wouldn't want family members to see. If you’re ever at a party and you want to take pictures, just make sure there’s no alcohol or red cups in the shot before you post it. There’s nothing wrong with taking pictures at a party, it’s how you represent yourself in the pictures that you want to post. Once it’s on the internet, it’s out there forever. If you delete it, you don’t know for sure if it’s deleted. It's hard for teenagers to represent themselves well on social media because they don't really think about the consequences of a small post. They should be taught early to always be aware of how they are representing themselves because it's really important for the future.
ReplyDeleteI find this article to be quite intriguing. I find it interesting that colleges are going as far checking a prospective students social media account whatever it may be. I personally do not indulge in the use of social media very often, but the fact my school may be looking at social media account is very alarming. I suppose you should have the mind set of keeping your personal life exactly that ... personal, but in the same token something as small as an email account shouldn't be held against you. Lesson of the day don't post or have and type of social media or email that a university, employer may seem as childish or not very mature
ReplyDeleteI think "scrubbing" your internet identity is necessary before applying to your dream college or dream job is important. Some jobs and schools want to have a good reputation and that is why they are strict when choosing their applicants. They do not want their image to be spoiled when parents finds out that their schools is okay or accept party and alcoholic students. This is also the reason why they would check students' social media to help them make the decision of whether they should or should not accept these students. It is for students to keep their social media private. They do not necessarily have to post every single thing to the public. Once it is out in public, it is hard to erase those moments. Even if they try to delete those moments or silly images of themselves online, it might not be deleted. Some of their friends might have kept that moment or image and re-post it on their social media to embarrass that person. High school and college students should be aware of what they post online.
ReplyDeleteI think cleaning up your online 'reputation' is important because so many employers do that now a days and now that colleges are beginning to do so, it is even more important. I remember my first job at Great America, they would check your facebook to see if you are selling the tickets that you get for free for being an employee. I don't think checking people's social networks needs to be done. I don't see how an employee can judge someone who has a picture of themselves chugging a Jack Daniels bottle if they don't know the story behind the picture or the day it happened. I think it's very hypocritical for companies to not employ people or offer them admission to school because they drink or had a fun and crazy night. They were young once too and chances are they also had drunk nights, and said an inappropriate thing or two. Social media is a way to connect with people and a way to vent without making a big deal of the situation but employers and colleges are taking social media way to seriously.
ReplyDeleteEmployers have not just started looking at their employees media life. This technique has helped employers learn who is really working for them. Maybe the reasoning behind it is that show how people act in their own personal life and that can have an impact on how they actually work. However, regarding to the issues of colleges searching applicant's Facebook is a whole different story. Students have worked hard enough just to get into the college the applied for and that should be the universities only concern. If a student had 4.0 and is still having social life, as in partying with friends, is that not maintaining their education? The only exception is if the person is tweeting rude comments about the school, in which that can cause problems.
ReplyDeleteA lot of the time people don't actually believe that employers or colleges will check the social media pages of the applicant. Majority of people will tweet, Facebook or upload a picture without thinking of the consequences, especially students in high school applying to colleges. I know very good students who are at the top of the class but post pictures drinking and a lot of other crazy images and it doesn't look good. Yes, people have a right to post whatever they wish on their social media accounts but to a certain extent. A lot of employers and colleges might have the application in front of them but we all know that everybody put the "best" version of them in the application. However, everything on social media may not be the real version of them. It gives the employer the chance to see how and what the person applying does and if what they portray is good enough for the company or sets the wrong image. I wouldn't have to change anything of any of my social media sites because what I post is a appropriate and not offending to anyone or any company. If i wasn't to get accepted to my dream school because I put up a bad picture then I would be devastated because all my hard work was wasted just because of one picture.
ReplyDeletePersonally, my social media is pretty normal, nothing crazy or would turn off anyone visiting my profile in order to learn about me more. I understand that people should be really careful of what they choose to share through social media because it will effect their future careers if what they post is inappropriate. But I would have to disagree that it should effect their chance of getting into a specific university. After all they are still growing and usually college is the ultimate growing up experience. They might be still in the high school phase but once they are admitted into their university, the social environment and experiences will change their way of thinking, writing and sharing. Most people know not to post anything crazy on social media because somehow it can come back to haunt you but for those who have not learned that yet, should be given the chance to hear it first and be advised. Then if they still keep up with their inappropriate postings then action can be taken by the school.
ReplyDeleteI don’t need to clean up my social media profiles because I know what I put up, I don’t make rude comments or anything of that sort. My friends on the other hand I would say use foul language and have inappropriate social media names. Some people forget that whatever they post on social media may come back and haunt them later on, so I would advise people to watch what they do so it won’t affect them later on in life. I mean its common sense to not say something out of pocket. People think that just because they have a different name on social media that they won’t get caught up and people won’t know who the account belongs to so they don’t care about what they place on the internet. Now a days the social media is filled with improper pictures, mostly of teens drinking and smoking. They think it makes them look cool but they don’t realize if someone older gets a hold of the image of how much trouble they can get into. So just watch what you do on the internet and make sure it’s not something that will haunt you later on in life.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with colleges checking our social media to determine if whether we are a good fit to their school. Our personal life has nothing to do with our school life. What we do outside of school is none of their business. Of course don't post pictures with guns and she that you are doing illegal things that can harm someone. But if you post yourself partying and having a good time that should not be a problem. For example, I had a teacher in my summer bridge program who had a PHD in psychology and he is well known and respected. Even though he is basically a doctor, he still smokes weed at the end of the day. You can't judge someone off the pictures. People are people, no one is perfect, we are only human and we do what pleases us. Colleges should just worry about what we do on campus and not outside of it.
ReplyDeleteImagine if everyone had to check on your social media for little things such as to become your friend, letting you buy coffee, rent a house and even buy a car.Social Media should be a place were you can freely speak your mind and not feel like you can't say what you feel. I believe colleges should not check your social media accounts for admission purposes because it is an invasion of privacy. Throughout time there has only been two items colleges focused on your GPA and Personal Statement which should be enough. High school students already stress to much, imagine adding this to their plate.
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ReplyDeletePersonally, my social media pages are pretty clean and appropriate. Because I'm part of multiple organizations and have family members as friends on my social media, I have no choice on whether or not my page is clean and appropriate. Even if I didn't have the adult supervision on my page, I feel like my page would still be squeaky clean. Even though some people may see going through our social media as a breech of privacy, it's really not. When you're posting things on the internet for your friends to see, this is not being private,these things get out into the public. Employers and colleges don't want to necessarily see the type of person you are, they want to merely see how you present yourself. Now I'm not saying it's bad to post pictures of you at a party, because you should be able to do that, but don't post a picture of you downing a bottle of Hennessy or hitting a blunt. I do however disagree on how this could determine if a student gets into a college. Some people have different ways of expressing themselves and posting on social media is one of the ways people do that.
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