If you’re a college student today, we don’t even need to ask you if you’re familiar with social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok. You probably even have an account on most of them (and maybe you spend a fair share of time on some of these platforms instead of studying). But have you ever considered using social media to advance your future career prospects? Well, that’s exactly what LinkedIn allows you to do. And sure, you might think LinkedIn is only for people with established careers or for high flying professionals to brag about their six figure salaries, but that’s not true. It’s the ideal platform for students to start networking and can have immense benefits for your blossoming career.
Here are a few reasons why:
You can establish a professional online presence
It’s 2021. The whole world is online. So unless you’re trying to join an industry so old-fashioned that it has no internet presence whatsoever, you need to be online in order to connect with potential employers too. LinkedIn is an easy way to establish an internet presence for yourself. All it takes is a simple Google search and your profile will pop up for those who want to connect with you after a networking event. And unlike your highschool fanfiction account on Tumblr, your LinkedIn profile is a social media account that you do want potential employers to find.
You can add to your resume
If you don’t have a resume, then you’re in the wrong place. How about you go create one and then come back to this article. Because, like it or not, resumes are an essential part of job applications. And you probably have one that you attempted to write once. While that’s great, the introduction of LinkedIn has changed the game a bit. Many employers still do want a PDF copy of your resume, but there are now others who would rather use your LinkedIn profile instead. And even if they do want a more traditional resume, employers will likely still review your LinkedIn profile to get a broader picture of who you are as a candidate. So give yourself an extra competitive edge and showcase your experience, professionalism, and skills on your profile.
You can apply for jobs
If you’re about to graduate soon, it’s time to put out some feelers for future jobs. And it’s not enough to search through listings of top organisations from your boys hostel in Bangalore, and hope that the relevant HR person sees your application. In fact, some employers may require you to send your application in via LinkedIn. Because of this reality, you must ensure you have a quality LinkedIn profile ready to go before that uber-important time comes.
You can research potential employers
The best thing about social media is that it’s a two way street. And these days information is money. So while your employers may use LinkedIn to learn more about you, you can also turn the tables and use it to build your knowledge about them. This often works in your favour since most companies are better at updating their LinkedIn pages than their official websites. It’s not just the organisation as a whole you can check out, you can also look at the backgrounds of those interviewing you. Of course, we’re not suggesting you be creepy about it, but LinkedIn is a good place to see if a company is the right fit for you. Bonus tip – most companies share press releases and other news relevant to them on their pages, which you can use as conversation starters during your interview!
You can connect with college alumni
Finally, LinkedIn is obviously a networking tool, so you can use it to connect with the vast network of people you already have something in common with. That’s right, we mean the alumni from your college. These people are more senior in the work environment and would probably love to give career advice to a student like you. (If you’re really lucky, perhaps you can use such a connection to grab an internship offer!) Ordinarily, it might be difficult to find such alumni or even know who to connect with, but the magic of LinkedIn means they’re only a message away. Of course, this isn’t the only way to connect or network with people in the same field. If you choose to stay in a professionally managed accommodation provider like Stanza Living, you’ll be connected to a lot of young professionals, and aspiring students like you. You can easily swap career pointers, insider tricks, or get advice from a senior, especially when they live in the same residence as you do. Networking is never easier than at your home! So supplement your LinkedIn edge with smart choices like Stanza Living.
Now that you’ve got the basics on the importance of creating a LinkedIn profile for yourself, all that’s left to do is to create one! And don’t worry, we know you can come up with a quality page that will impress recruiters. Here are some of our tips to get you started. Choose a professional photo for your profile rather than a casual one, this is the first glimpse that your future employer is getting of you and you want it to set the right tone. When it comes to filling in your profile information, LinkedIn will provide prompts, but it’s up to you to decide how much you want to share. Focus on your profile introduction, as that has to be the most convincing, all the other details can only supplement it. And most importantly, once your profile is ready, remember to keep it up to date with your college achievements and internship experiences!
Wow! You now know everything you need to create an exceptional LinkedIn profile and how to use it to get the results you want. So what are you waiting for? Our work is done here, you can go out there and start networking!