 With the growth of social media, more and  more people are relying on this online application as their daily communication tool than ever before. I used to be one of those people who post, share, and comment on online social world. yet, ever since i step into City Tech, I tended to stop using social media not only because I lose the interest of posting selfies and update daily statue, but because I though it would be waste of time commenting, posting, and reading other posts. As I read through the article Colleges Pay to Protect Students from Toxic Google Results, I noticed that social media such as Facebook and Twitter are not only affecting one’s online identity in a negative way, it could boost up one’s reputation in a positive way when the future employer is looking for candidates.
In the article Colleges Pay to Protect Students from Toxic Google Results, the author stated that “few realize they should spend just as much time highlighting the good news about themselves on the web.” I agree to what she says because I have a Facebook account, when I just start using it, I would spent hours  just to scroll up and down to check others news feed. Thinking backward, I realized that people doesn’t really cares about the contents of the post. some posted negative attitudes toward their life, some upload pictures of him/her getting hyper and drunk, and some also upload violence contents. these are all factors that could negatively impact our future career, so instead of posting unhealthy contents, we should spent some time branding our self into a good shape.
I also came across another article that I found it interesting is Employers scour Web for details on applicants.  I found it interesting because before I read these article, I was never inform that employer do actually google their potential candidates before they make decision. I assume the reason why they do so is because it is some sore of background checking before they hire anybody. As I went through the article, it make sense to me that if I am the one who’s posting  a picture of mine getting drunk or smoking hookah, and one day my employer sees it, I’m pretty sure he would  dump my  resume to the trash the moment he sees my innocent pictures.
Another article that I though it would be helpful for undergraduate is Recruiting, Reinvented: How Companies Are Using Social Media In The Hiring Process. In the article, the interviewee answers some questions about the process of how employer search for candidates and what most employers are looking forward to when it comes to recruiting. In addition, the article mentioned about “privacy rights and employers crossing ethical and legal boundaries”, as well as suggestions to job seekers. the interview reveals that there are some employer request password of candidates social media account.  In my point of view, I think it is ethical for the employer to do a background inspection, but I don’t think it is ethic for them to ask the password of either Facebook or Twitter account because it’s part of our privacy and our privacy are protected according to constitution. So I think this shouldn’t be happen unless it’s just a general information gathering of a candidate.
when I google myself online, the only thing that’s related to me is  Google+ account. As I mentioned before, I used to have Facebook and Myspace, but I deactivate all of them couple years ago. therefore, I’m sure that those employers can barely find anything about me other than Google+.
In conclusion, I think it is very important for all undergraduates to spend more time on branding themself and keep their profile in a decent shape when it comes to finding a job. and also to very careful of what contents is appropriate  to be shown to public.
Colleges Pay to Protect Students from Toxic Google Results
Employers scour Web for details on applicants
Recruiting, Reinvented: How Companies Are Using Social Media In The Hiring Process
