Social media platforms are designed to help people network and lend users the opportunity to create their personal brand. Your personal brand conveys everything you choose to post and should always reflect who you are and what you represent.
The freedom to create your online perception can either benefit or hurt you. A professional profile can help you reap opportunities when employers conduct a background check, but too often our profiles are left unattended and need to be cleaned up. Professors, parents and peers alike advise that if your profile isn’t “puppies and rainbows” or not appropriate for grandma then your content is tainting your personal brand. Follow these steps to get your social media profiles on the right track: 1. Take Out the Trash So you already know your profiles are a bit….questionable. Now it’s time for some spring cleaning. Go through each of your profiles and delete content that may not be favorably viewed by employers. Photos of you partying and drinking last weekend or during a break need to be deleted. It may take a while to sift through all of your posts and other content, but it’s entirely worth the effort. When future opportunities for interviews or networking arise you will be able to go in confidently knowing your profiles are pristine. 2. Change Your Privacy Settings All social networks have privacy settings that allow you to control what your followers and the public can view. On my Facebook profile for instance, I don’t allow people to see my tagged photos and I can approve photos of myself that other people upload and tag me in. My name on Facebook is not my full, legal name. In addition, I have two Twitter profiles: one that is professional and public and one that is private and not attached to a working professional email address. 3. Add Content That Markets Yourself We’re drilled to delete bad content, but once that’s done it’s time replenish your profile with positive content. Post items that relate to your career interests and show what’s going on in the industry you see yourself entering. For example, I want to work in public relations and advertising, so on my LinkedIn profile I recently shared an article covering a campaign on working mothers. My sister, who studies finance, last posted an article on share buybacks to her LinkedIn network. Sharing industry-related content shows you’re updated on current trends, have a passion for a particular field, and want to help your overall industry evolve. You can share content related to your desired profession on any platform, but it’s best suited for LinkedIn because it’s more suited for business professionals. If you don’t follow these steps, you’re at risk for harmful consequences Recently, mega social media influencer Claudia Oshry, otherwise known as Girl With No Job (GWNJ), was destined to create an empire. She had her own live show and tons of sponsorships. Sadly, her fame spiraled downward when past offensive tweets were uncovered in a Daily Beast article. Oshry apologized and lamented that the previous tweets didn’t align with her views anymore but the damage was already done. She had plenty of time to clean up her profile, a strategy that would have kept her more immaculate in the public eye. Unfortunately for Oshry she has lost sponsorships and her live show, both of which she worked tirelessly to build. So whether you’re looking to be the next social media celebrity, land your top entry level job or internship, or anything in between, make sure to filter your social media profiles to reflect your personal brand and career aspirations. We don’t want or need to see everything.
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Fashion design major Alexandra Evans '19 used the Marist Center for Career Services and the Alumni Career Network to land her dream internship after transferring to Marist as a junior. Read her full story right now on our website.
In many of my blog posts I have emphasized the importance of developing a well-crafted resume and left the cover letter on the back burner. However, the cover letter can create distinctions between you and an equally qualified candidate that go beyond the resume.
Job recruiters receive tons of cover letters each day and, truth be told, grow bored reading mundane templated summaries that make claims of a candidate possessing certain skills, but lack evidence of self-reflection and growth. If your cover letter repeats bullet points listed on your resume you are likely struggling to move forward in the job search process. When writing your cover letter you may want to consider a non-traditional approach: telling a story. A personal narrative in which each detail moves toward a particular outcome or achievement is your best bet for a captivating cover letter. Digging up your old college admission essays is a great way to get started, as they will help you understand your motivation for pursuing your degree and how that evolved to help you gain more work experiences. From there, talk about a conflict you faced in a previous role, how you overcame that conflict, and the end result. In one of my cover letters I discussed a specific class project for a Communications class involving an outside client and a project I completed during my summer internship at VH1 Save The Music. My story begins with a conflict and a rising action and ends with a resolution. Your cover letter should show the same progression. The final draft of your cover letter should be limited to one page and convey your personality, unique motivations, and overall work style. Depending on how much space you take up, you can include one or two stories in your cover letter. Through storytelling you have the freedom to write a cover letter that is more likely to be read from start to finish and portrays who you are as both a candidate and a person. Crafting your cover letter as your story helps employers understand if you’re a true fit for the company and its culture. It also speaks to how you can adapt and think critically when problems or unexpected situations arise. You have a lot to bring to the table so make your cover letter a prominent document that puts you at or near the top of the applicant pool. NOTE: Our Spring 2018 Career & Internship Fair has been postponed since this post was published. It will be rescheduled for a date and time later in the semester. For job or internship interviews, networking sessions, and many Career Services events such as our upcoming Spring 2018 Career & Internship Fair, students are told to dress in professional business attire. But what constitutes professional business attire isn’t always clear cut. For example, appropriate workplace attire differs from STEM industries to more creative fields. Here is some helpful information on how to decode dress codes. Before you’re hired it’s best to dress in standard professional business attire. This means taking a conservative approach with a well-polished suit, dress pants or slacks, and blazer. You must dress to impress. If your outfit is effective, but not too flashy, you will convey a professional demeanor from the get-go. If you’re attending our Career Fair this Wednesday, March 7, here are some examples of professional business attire women and men should wear: Once you have been hired dress in accordance with your company’s culture. When I was hired for my internship last summer I arrived the first day in standard business professional attire and assessed the attire of my co-workers and the workplace environment. I soon realized that people working with the company dressed very casually: my advisor wore overalls and other workers wore jeans, sundresses, and casual tops. For the remainder of my summer there I also dressed more casual than my first day, but was still able to keep up a professional appearance in my surroundings. My biggest takeaway was to always assess company culture and decide what to wear or avoid wearing from there. I also inquired about the dress policy at my internship prior to my first day. That way I understood how I could fit in with my company’s culture right away. I also showed I was proactive by taking the initiative to ask questions about company or department policies. You’re sitting upright at your dorm room desk, a bag of Cheez-Its lying within arm’s reach. You’re typing away furiously on your laptop, making detailed edits and revisions. You ensure every line, every sentence, and every design element are cohesive and perfect. Finally, you submit your resume to complete your job or internship application. Now you’re overwhelmed by a contradictory combination of sweet relief and unsettling anxiety. Your resume will travel through a clogged cyber channel and you cross your fingers that your listed experiences and skills intrigue the employer or recruiter. Digitally submitting your resume can be regarded as luck of the draw. Candidates often feel their application materials enter into an abyss, either winning or losing them an opportunity to interview or possibly be selected for the position. However, it is possible to create a resume with keywords that highlight your relevant skills and will also stand out in an endless list of documents. That is, if you understand the common skill set employers seek on a resume. The most recent Job Outlook Survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers points out specific attributes that employers view as most marketable and viable in any candidate. When I read the results of this study, I wasn’t surprised. The top seven attributes listed have been emphasized in almost all qualifications I have seen in job posts on LinkedIn. The positions I am applying for vary from public relations to advertising and editorial roles, yet all of these characteristics remain relative to the goals of nearly each company in every field. In addition, the School of Communication & Arts and Center for Career Services at Marist College have drilled these traits into my head the last four years. So now that you know the attributes the employer is looking for, how do you gain these skills? My best advice is to get involved in extra-curricular activities on campus and take on internships. In fact, the NACE survey proves that employers seek candidates with extensive work experience and leadership positions. Survey respondents were asked to the rate the influence of each attribute on a resume with 1 indicating no influence at all and 5 as the benchmark for the highest influence. GPA is always an important factor in employer decision making, but clearly it’s your experiences outside of your courses that mold your attributes that make you a strong candidate for the workforce. By holding a position in your desired industry or working in a leadership position among your peers as a student, recruiters will know that you have the background knowledge, drive, and passion that it takes to transform from an intern into an effective employee.
Plus gaining outside experience is a great opportunity to network with industry professionals who can possibly bring your application out of cyberspace and to the top of the list. |
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