The "Why Start College Planning Early?" Series
#3 of 6
"Ensuring
a Positive Social Media Image"
News Flash: Last year hundreds of applicants were rejected
by a college because of their Instagram or Facebook posts! Many more got much less
scholarship money than they could have because their Social Media Image was
damaging...But smart applicants can avoid this very easily: Clean up your
Internet Image!
Colleges look at Social Media to understand who a student is
and if they are a fit or not for their unique community. If you are a student
athlete that is being considered for a large scholarship, admissions staff can
find you easily on any Social Media platform and look at years of pictures and
posts. If they see anything they don't like, do you think they will call you
and ask about it? No...they will go to the next candidate in the pile and keep
looking.
What does your Social Media say about you? Does your college
resume and application contradict your FB and Twitter stream? Are you a great
student on paper and on your Twitter feed or are they contradictory? Do your daily
videos and pictures show a lot of partying on the weekends and skipped school days
on the beach? Do you have pictures of you holding a Red Solo Cup? Everyone
knows what that means and if you are under age, it's not helping your image!
Or do you use Social Media as a promotional tool to convince
colleges to accept you? We are not saying that you should stage pictures in
front of a church or homeless shelter or in the library to pretend you are a
good person...And we are not saying that you can't show fun times or crazy
adventures...Colleges like applicants that are well-rounded, mature and
adventurous so show them your best sides! Your Social Media Image is you
and it may need to cleaned up!
~ ~ ~ ~
Some General Do's for Social Media:
· * Make sure you tag the college often...They can
see if you include the College Name in your posts
· * Like the College Social pages, add them
to your incoming feeds, follow the college Social Media Site, re-tweet their
posts and add your own positive comments
· * School Clubs: Post pics and vids from
competitions and meetings.
·
* Community Activism: Post from the food pantry showing co-workers. If cleaning a local park on weekends, make a FB event and invite all. Making care packages for soldiers or flood victims? Selfie that!
* Community Activism: Post from the food pantry showing co-workers. If cleaning a local park on weekends, make a FB event and invite all. Making care packages for soldiers or flood victims? Selfie that!
·
* Sports: Live FB feed from meets / games with peers (Parents can help video from the stands)
* Sports: Live FB feed from meets / games with peers (Parents can help video from the stands)
·
* Hobbies: If it fits with your desired major, post away! If not leave it out.
* Hobbies: If it fits with your desired major, post away! If not leave it out.
o
Good Example: If you are a big gamer or
Cos-Player or like computers and are going into art, theater, design or
graphics etc., then post plenty of events, projects and group photos at
festivals or conventions. Show how much you love it...colleges want passion in
their students!
o
Bad Example: Hoping to get into a top Nursing
Program? Don't post party pics on Facebook from 3AM. Hoping to score a big
scholarship for accounting at an Ivy School? Don't flood Instagram with only
Some smart "College Planning-Friendly" posts for
your Social Media Feeds:
·
Visiting a College
o
Pictures in front of the College Sign wearing a
school hoodie
o
Selfies with the tour guide or Dept Head in a
classroom
o
Use comments like:
§
"I love (Tag College Name)! I love their
engineering program and their dorms are so nice"
§
"Met some great people at (Tag College
Name)...I want to go here so bad!"
§
"Fingers crossed that I get into (Tag
College Name)! This would be a great fit for me!"
o
Even if you visit multiple colleges, still post
about each one...be unique in your comments. The college admissions staff will
likely see your multiple visits as a sign you are serious about college and
even consider more financial aid to sway your view of them.
·
Sports Teams
o
Sports show teamwork, dedication, personal
achievement and focus: Post often showing progress and the fun you are having
o
Win 11th or 4th or even 1st place? Post it with
your award!
o
Videos of you competing can be casual or
professional: If you are hoping for sports scholarship, then post
higher-quality, edited content
o
Selfies with the team on and off the field
o
Use comments like:
§
"(Tag College Name) has a pretty good
sports program...can't wait to go there to show my skills"
§
"I definitely will go to all the games at
(Tag College Name)...Looking forward to going in the fall"
·
Work Time
o
If you have a job, college admissions staff will
view you as a young adult that is organized, reliable, hard-working and
responsible. Posting from work will help your image
o
Have customers post positive testimonials about
you, tagging your name so it shows up on your feeds. Twitter is great for viral
messages
o
Pictures of the staff with you in the middle are
great memories and if you comment about how much fun you are having while
working hard, that is even better
o
Use comments like:
§
"Working late tonight...Making money so I can
go to (Tag College Name)"
§
"Here I am at work with my favorite
customers...I hope I can get a job on campus at (Tag College Name) like
this!"
You get the idea...put yourself in the shoes of a College
Admissions Director and ask yourself: "Will my Social Media help me get
into college or not?" If Yes, bravo...keep it positive and you will do
fine. But if it is No, you may want to delete some sketchy posts or maybe even
delete your entire existing account and start fresh.
Hope this helps!
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The College Planning Group
Canton MA 800-985-8569
Canton MA 800-985-8569
