They will know you started early.
Facebook and Myspace are windows into the private lives of those who choose to subscribe to these very popular social-networking websites. But these windows are merly tinted, at best. In a recent article by John Hechinger in the Wall Street Journal, his research of 500 top colleges revealed that “10% of admissions officers acknowledged looking at social-networking sites to evaluate applicants [and] of those colleges making use of the online information, 38% said that what they saw “negatively affected” their views of the applicant [while] only a quarter of the schools checking the sites said their views were improved.” This leads us to the inherent problem- where is the line between personal and public information? On the internet there is no line. Isn’t technology great?!?
Certainly you do not want colleges to pry into your personal life, but how detailed of a picture does a college application really paint? Well its no Sistine Chapel, that’s for sure. Where could college admissions officers possibly go to see what a prospective student is really like you may ask? You guessed it, their facebook/myspace profile. There are options to make your profile private, meaning only your friends can view it; however this is not as commonly used as one may think.
Admissions officers viewing Facebook/Myspace profiles of college applicants is “already provoking debate among admissions officers [because of the] lack of rules [surrounding this practice]. Some maintain that applicants’ online data are public information that schools should vet to help protect the integrity of the institutions. Others say they are uncomfortable flipping through teenage Facebook pages.”
How to protect your online image:
- Avoid any borderline inappropriate pics such as alcohol (and yes solo cups denote alcohol), drugs, guns, half-naked etc. No, that picture of you wearing a plug and your hot friend wearing an outlet is not ok. College admission personnel won’t be turned on (get it, turned on, like a plug and electricity and stuff, ok fine never mind).
- Don’t list drinking, partying, or sex as your favorite activities.
- Groups! Don’t join groups like “Guns don’t kill people, I kill people“… that will definitely throw up a red flag. You could just be a fan of Mr. Larson or you could receive Guns and Ammo, how will they know which it is?
These are just a few suggestions for monitoring your facebook and myspace profiles. Remember, employers are doing the same thing when it comes to potential employees. So just remember before that big interview, you should probably remove that picture of you making the lude hand gesture at the lions that last time you went to the zoo. They don’t even have thumbs to retaliate for god sakes, poor lions.
What other things can we do to manage our “online selves”?
(Photo courtesy of www.dkimages.com)
October 5th, 2008 at 6:53 am
Haha, nice post, and something to be aware of. I know of students who have been offered admissions and subsequently withdrawn due to postings made online. Before you worry about all this stuff though, you should get an early start on helping yourself get into a good college.
-GIH
October 6th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Whose privacy settings are set so loosely nowadays that they allow every facebook user access to their profile? Sure, there are ways to get the dirt, but its just as easy to cover your tracks with a simple click on “only my friends” can see this.
October 8th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
Ha ha, easy solution… apply to a crappy college… as long as they get their tuition check, they wont care what you do. College is overrated anyways (thats not sarcasm).