Social media serves people in different ways. Some use it for fun and communication, others — to promote their businesses and create the desired image. You are likely to have an account on at least one social media site. And as a student, you should know that your social media profile can be an informative source for college recruiters. Find out how social networks help college recruiting nowadays.
College recruitment refers to any activity aimed at finding and encouraging promising candidates to enroll in some institution, course, or program. Basically, it is exactly what HR managers do for a company when they need to find a suitable person for a particular position. They use various means during the entire process, and social networks are one of these tools. No wonder that social media and college recruiting go hand-in-hand as well.
Today, social networks are the face of a student. Sure, your profile is not everything — an introductory essay also matters. Thus, you can get professional help with writing a report to have flawless and error-free work. Do not forget about the package of documents that also require proofreading. You can be more prepared and calm regarding your candidacy by doing this.
What does your profile tell a recruiter?
It may seem strange that some college representatives can surf through your Facebook or Twitter accounts. Yet, a person’s profile can tell a lot: your preferences in politics, hobbies, extracurricular activities, whether you like sport, etc. Some people post photos, literally, every day. Eventually, it looks as if you are reading one’s diary.
Comments also can give some information about a candidate. For instance, whether you like to have extensive and argumentative commentaries or prefer to leave emojis under the posts simply. Besides reading someone’s comments, you can tell whether a person can formulate and develop a cohesive thought. Not to mention literacy in general.
How social media can help recruitment
College recruiting can use social media differently. However, there are some general recommendations for getting the best out of social networks. These are as follows:
Define the most popular networks among the students from your target group. Recruiters have an image of the perfect candidate they need. Based on this information and knowing the most popular platforms, it is much easier to reach out to the right person. For example, if you are recruiting for a course related to art, you can try to find students’ profiles on Behance or Instagram, and so on.
- Active social accounts. Today, all modern institutions know that working on their digital presence is crucial. And students, in their turn, would like to see active posting on the profile. Some points to mention in your posts include diverse events, success stories of the participants, news and awards, benefits, study opportunities, and bright representatives if talking about a higher education institution, for example.
- More photos, videos, and informative posts. It’s good to create a social media that presents a broad perspective on what you can offer students. Your candidates should be able to find all the necessary information there. It would be better to add some entertainment content so that the young generation won’t get bored while scrolling your profile.
- Show the campus life. If you are heading to some new place, you want to know what to expect. Students appreciate it when there are some photos and videos about campus life. If talking about campus, do not forget to mention its location, available activities, perhaps some sightseeing nearby, and amenities.
- Tell about the institution’s mission and values. More and more people pay special attention to the institution’s core values. It’s not an empty sound. People need to know what drives you and what comprises your culture to understand whether these resonate with their own values. Thus, make sure to align everything in the profile with the defined values and mission.
- Get inspiration from social networks of other institutions. The best way to realize whether you’re doing it well is to compare the profiles from time to time. You can borrow some ideas, but keep in mind that originality distinguishes people and adds chances to find candidates. Recruiters can view the social media profiles of both direct competitors and those who are not.
All in all, there are many variants of social media use for college recruiting. Consider the institution’s profile as your vital project. Your top goal is to create a page that attracts and interests students. The profile should make them want to continue reading the posts. Luckily, nowadays, there are many tools you can apply to achieve this goal, and social networks might be among the most powerful ones.