MySpace, Facebook and College Admissions: One of These Things Doesn’t Belong
While it’s unlikely that admissions officers are going to research every applicant’s Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Twitter accounts, what you post online could make a difference during the admissions process.
In a September 18, 2008 Wall Street Journal article entitled “College Applicants, Beware: Your Facebook Page is Showing,” John Hechinger cites a research study by Kaplan in which 10% of admissions officers admitted to looking at applicants’ social networking sites during the review process. Of those 10 percent, 38% thought less of the candidates afterwards, Hechinger reports.
While these numbers may not be overwhelmingly high, the article goes on to explain cases where a questionable Facebook post could make a difference: mainly in tight decisions between two candidates for admission spots or scholarships.
In those instances, the number of candidates is small enough that an admissions officer does have time to review Facebook status updates and photos. And based on his or her impression of that particular candidate, they may either get the thumbs up or thumbs down.
The morale of the story? Give yourself every possible advantage during the admissions process. You don’t have to take down your Facebook page or completely revamp your MySpace page before you start sending out applications, but you might want to clean things up with a few simple changes.
If your profile or blog entries contain iffy material, set your account to private. Even if you’re not posting anything outrageous, check who can make posts to your page (and make sure they’re appropriate). How about your default profile picture and name? Even if your account is set to private, these still surface when your name is searched for. Consider toning them down if need be. Also, double check which groups you belong to and make sure they’re suitable.
