Back in July, we wrote an article on how college admissions officers are now checking on applicants through social media. You know that a huge part of your life as a high school student focuses on the social media, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, and Instagram. And, in a new recent report, college admissions officers are looking into applicants profiles more than ever.
As a matter of fact, according to a recent article in the Valley News, 27% of college admissions officers have admitted to Googling potential students while 26% of college admissions officers have checked applicants’ Facebook profiles.
According to The Journal of College Admissions, most colleges prefer looking at Facebook profiles. Of the top 100 colleges ranked by the US News and World Report, 92 of these colleges are active on Facebook, 88 are active on Twitter, and 79 on YouTube.
So, what are colleges hoping to find? They want to find more personal information about you that will give them insight into who you are through Facebook posts and Twitter streams. And, for example, if you happen to post something that may be considered racist, colleges believe that you would continue to do that while you are enrolled at their institution, casting them in a bad light.
College admission officers suggest that you focus on “grooming” your accounts so you give them a real look into how you are, and will be, a benefit to the college. In addition, you can even review a colleges’ social media presence as a way of you deciding if you really want to attend that college.
And, instead of “camouflaging” yourself, college admissions officers want you to use your social media accounts to post accomplishments that make you proud to be who you are. For example, if you are an artist, use Instagram or Facebook to post images of your artwork. If you possibly write for the school newspaper, line your work you have done to your Twitter account.
Most importantly, you should think about how you would be perceived if you were a college admissions officer looking at your social media accounts. This will definitely allow the people that make that important decision of your future to see why you deserve to be admitted.
If you have any questions about anything related to applying to college, please give us a call as we offer a plethora of services to help you get into the college of your dreams.