What digital platforms are students currently using to develop their professional network?
Students are currently using a multitude of different platforms to develop their professional network such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Although LinkedIn is the most notable platform for professional networking, Twitter and Facebook offer opportunities to build more casual relationships which can really benefit you professionally as well. Any positive connections you make in this world, from casual to professional, will increase the size of your social network as a whole which will positively affect your professional network.
What can you (as a student) consider expanding your professional learning network?
For students, any connection you make at school is expanding your professional network. Everyone who is actively at University is a good person to have in your network. These are the types of people who are hardworking and are striving for many different types of success in life and having connections from these types of groups is very beneficial. This can be students, professors, guest speakers, TA’s and the list goes on.
In your network, how can you create a digital identity/reputation?
Your digital identity is shaped by the way you interact with your followers and anyone else who can view your posts, comments and actions online. To create a positive digital identity, you must add value to the online community around you. This includes posting meaningful content that your followers can utilize, providing constructive and positive comments on other user’s posts, and not engaging in negative or hateful commentary. By doing the opposite of these things, you would find yourself building a negative digital identity which, in my opinion, is very unhealthy and will carry over into your non-digital identity.
Consider what a local employer would do if you applied for a job with them – can they search the content, is it of benefit to the career path, does it hinder the opportunity of employment?
One thing about social media that has changed the game in the job searching sector, is that employers can see what types of activities and commentary that prospective employees are engaging in. If an individual has a bad reputation online, chances are that person might not be the fit for a searching employer who is trying to build a positive culture at his/her business. On the flip side, if an employer sees that the individual is interacting actively and positively on LinkedIn, they will see an asset for their business.
I agree with you that when employers search on social media, they will definitely favor positive career development and excellent digital reputation. The digital identity is equivalent to people’s business cards, and the activity track can show people’s network habits. Social networks have become closely related to real life, so maintaining a good digital identity is very important.