Is your social media stopping you from getting a job?

At university, social media is often a race to get the most shares, likes and retweets. However, photos of you drinking the student bar dry don't exactly present the image you want prospective employers to have of you.

While most platforms offer tight security settings for your own profiles, you should also monitor the content you’re posting or commenting on publicly. 

Employers and the web

If you join us as a recruitment consultant, we’ll never advise you to check out your candidates online, but this doesn’t mean employers don’t. Many hiring managers actually conduct their initial search for new staff online, looking for CVs and portfolios and then a more detailed search on professional networks like LinkedIn. 

With that in mind, it’s very possible that potential employers could turn to the internet to research their candidates. In this instance, you have limited control over what’s unearthed from a quick Google search for your name.

Value alignment

Finding a candidate with the right attitude and personality who is a good match with the company’s values is crucial. So if an employer is checking you out online and observes offensive behaviour, while this might not represent you truly, it could put them off.

Of course, your social media usage in your own time is up to you. It‘s your freedom of speech and personal choice – but it’s still wise to keep a few golden rules in mind while doing so, especially if you’re embarking on a job search.

Tips for a good online presence

Secure your profiles

With private/social profiles, it’s wise to activate your full security settings to ensure that only personal acquaintances can access your information.

Reserve professional networks, such as LinkedIn, for career-related posting

As this is a professional networking tool, it’s best to keep your personal, more casual updates, tweets and comments separate.

Be selective with photos 

Think carefully about which photos you choose to post online and monitor the ones that others post of you. Although it may seem unfair for an employer to judge you on a photo, the images that pop up online could have an impact on their perception of you.

Avoid foul language, lewd remarks or insults in a public online domain

Employers don’t usually want to associate themselves with someone who has built a reputation as a troublemaker in online spaces.

Be cautious of who you accept as a friend/follower/contact

You can’t control what your friends and connections post about online, but you can control your connection to them. 

Simply put, it’s advisable to be aware of your online image. Equally, employers need to take a balanced, sensible and respectful approach to researching candidates online, as these networks are after all, by their very definition – social.