Attendees will receive an overview of social media outlets as used by high school personnel (to assist students in career and college exploration) and Higher Ed personnel (to reach perspective students). Strategic online-based research (by counseling staff and students) can lead to a more realistic under-standing of prospective industries and universities and increase enrollment, retention, and scholar-ships. Learn how to harness the power of social networking, in an effective and business-like manner, to increase student success and accountability while making your job easier and reaping the benefits! Objectives: (1) Discuss various social media outlets (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc.), (2) Overview of how universi-ties are leveraging current social media outlets, (3) Overview of social media use by career/industry networks, (4) Learn how to evaluate different media outlets as to their benefit to YOUR students and YOUR workload (a.k.a.—Connecting students with university personnel and industry professionals so you can do the REST of your job!), (5) Discuss strategic social media use for college and career exploration (getting beyond the face of university marketing; understanding what the professions are all about, from the professionals themselves), (6) Discover how early and student-initiated career and college investigation creates a sense of ownership and responsibility within students as to their post-graduation plans, (7) Explore how early social media connectivity with higher ed community leads to college admissions, satisfaction, reten-tion, and success, and (8) Discuss social media etiquette and legal issues for guidance personnel and students.

1. Using Social Media to
Assist Students with Career Planning
and Connect Students with
University and Industry Professionals

2. Introductions
• Has served as faculty advisor for multiple student
Ashley Sineath organizations including Council of Student
• Senior in Interior Design Leaders
• Research assistant within the program • Orientation Faculty Mentor and student
• Secretary for the Winthrop Council of leadership selection committees
Student Leaders • ACAD (freshman success seminar) instructor
• Interned for Queens University Campus • 6 years experience working closely with incoming
Planning and Services students and parents assisting them with
• President and Recruitment Chairman of academic advising, college community
Alpha Delta Pi Sorority. assimilation, and exploration of career options.
_____________________________________ • Active participant with the Boy Scouts Career
Explorer’s Program.
Jennifer Blanchard Belk • Current research efforts include:
• Assistant Professor of Interior Design and • 3D modeling of college campuses
Academic Advisor at Winthrop University • Social Media Use in Higher Ed,
• NCIDQ Certified Designer • Narrative Writing & Empathy Development
• LEED Accredited Professional • Chair of the University College Faculty
(Sustainable Design) Conference (representing segments of the
• Masters of Art Education from VCU. university such as Honors Programs,
• Has served on admissions, scholarship, Academic Success Center, Gen Ed
and specialization committees. Program, Career Development, International
Center, etc.).

3. Goals and Content

4. Why is career exploration so important?
The number one reason students drop out of college is a lack of
career focus. Even if they do stay in college, students who lack
focus end up spending more time and money to earn a degree.
With advance planning, your child can enter college well informed
and focused on a career goal (ACRN, 2006)
If students have a clearer idea of their career goals, they will more
likely to engage in academic tasks (Blustein 2002)
Exploration helps students make more post-secondary plans that
are both realistic in nature and clearly related to their career
goals (Davis, 2006)

5. What are the issues with the state of student career exploration?
Young people have high ambitions, expecting to be highly
educated and have professional careers, yet research has found
that many do not develop coherent plans for achieving their
goals.
(Hughes & Merchur Karp, 2004)
Students should not only be using the title of the position with
the students but explaining what their job entails
(Kerr, 2003)
Students have a lack of active investigation into what the career
or educational path actually entails
(Davis, 2006)

6. The U.S. does lead the world in
one important statistic:
The U.S. has the highest
college dropout rate in the
industrialized world.
(ACRN 2006)

7. The Educational, Social, and Economic Value of Informed and
Considered Career Decisions
America’s Career Resource Network Association (ACRNA) urges consideration of the extensive body of evidence of the
educational, social, and economic value of career information and services that foster informed and considered career
decisions.
A. Educational Outcomes
i. Improved educational achievement
ii. Improved preparation and participation in postsecondary education
iii. Better articulation among levels of education and between education and work
iv. Shorter time to graduation
v. Higher graduation and retention rates
B. Social Benefits
i. Benefits to family, peers, and community
ii. Higher levels of worker satisfaction and career retention
iii. Shorter path to primary labor market for young workers
iv. Lower incidence of work-related stress and depression
v. Reduced likelihood of work-related violence
C. Economic Consequences
i. Higher incomes and increased tax revenues
ii. Lower rates and shorter periods of unemployment
iii. Lower costs of worker turnover
iv. Lower health care costs
v. Lower incarceration and criminal justice costs
vi. Increased worker productivity

8. Students with access to career information resources & programs
and who make the connection between their academic coursework
& future goals:

9. Why start so early?
Guidance activities directed at junior high school students
had the largest effect sizes, indicating that guidance efforts may
be most effective with pre-teenage (rather than high school or
college) students (Hughes & Merchur Karp, 2004)
When surveyed, the majority of high school dropouts say they
began to “disconnect” in middle school or earlier.
(Castellano et al., 2002)
Sixth-through-ninth-grade children have demonstrated very little
understanding of how school relates to the real world and
seem to have little to no awareness of the skills and knowledge
needed for success in the future. (Johnson, 2000)

10. Career Development Continuum
Preparing all Youth for Success in College, Career, and Life
Career Awareness Career Exploration Career Preparation
Learn about a wide variety of jobs Explore, research, and plan for Gain education, training, and work
and careers the future experience
Classroom & School Classroom & School School & Workplace
• Web Research • Career Pathways, Courses, & Clubs • Core Academic Preparation
• Guest Speakers • Integrated Curriculum • Career Technical Courses & Programs
• Career Interest Assessment • Classroom Simulations • Career-Related Project-Based Learning
• College & Career Fairs • Career Plan Development • Career Plan Refinement
• Career Contextual Instruction • Career-Focused Projects & Assignments • Work-Ready Certification/Soft Skills
• College Awareness • College Exploration • Occupational Certifications
• Job-Seeking Skills
Workplace Workplace • Work Experience
• Industry Tours & Field Trips • Job Shadowing • Internships
• Career & Job Fairs • Career Mentoring • College Preparation
• Youth in the Workplace • Community Service Projects • Postsecondary Options:
• Informational Interviews •Community College
•4-year College or University
•Trade/Technical School
Families & Neighborhood Families & Neighborhood •Military Service/National Service
• Adult Interaction • Risk Taking •Apprenticeship
• Role Model Observation • Role Playing •Enter Workforce (full or part time)
• Progression of Responsibility •Self-Employment/Entrepreneur
Awareness Exploration Preparation

11. Why should parents be involved?
Parents play key roles in youth’s career decision-making
process. Parents need help recognizing that youth look to them to
provide learning experiences and are greatly influenced by
parental occupational advice.
(Ferry, 2003)
Scientists agree that parents are the single most influential
factor in the career development and choice of their children but
are not adequately informed about how to help.
(Clark, 2000)

12. Many parents could benefit from educational interventions that
expand their knowledge of potential career options that are
available to their children in the area and nationally.
(Ferry, 2003)
Although parents feel they are actively involved in their children’s
career decision making, they also feel that they are uninformed
about the process and unable to provide competent help.
(ACRN, 2006)

15. In what ways do they want to explore careers?
In a 2011 dissertation study (Whitten), 288 high school students
discussed what career exploration help they would like from their
school?
•Field trips to
job of choice
•Speakers
•Observation
opportunities
•Career fairs
•Listen to and
interact with
professionals

16. Why is online networking important for career and college
exploration?
Community asset mapping is part of a more general movement
in the US for people to become more self-reliant and develop
stronger social relationships with each other.
School counselors can no longer function in isolation from the
community in which they work …..using the neighborhood
associations, civic clubs, community centers, colleges and
universities, and business to grow your network.
(Griffin, 2010)
….but how can I easily grow my network and use it to benefit
my students???? …. Utilize Social Networking!!!

17. Legal and ethical issues for guidance personnel and parents

18. What is the difference between using Social Networks for
Personal Networking and Professional Networking?

20. Why LinkedIn?
As of June 30,
2012 (the end of
the second
quarter),
professionals
are signing up to
join LinkedIn at
a rate of
approximately
two new
members per
second
.

21. LinkedIn Facts - As of August 2, 2012, LinkedIn operates the world’s largest
professional network on the Internet with more than 175 million members in over
200 countries and territories. Members did nearly 4.2 billion professionally-oriented
searches in 2011 and are on pace to surpass 5.3 billion in 2012.
Worldwide Membership As of the school year ending May 2012, there are
over 20 million students and recent college graduates on LinkedIn. They are
LinkedIn's fastest-growing demographic.

22. LinkedIn and Business
•As of June 30, 2012, LinkedIn
counts executives from all 2011
Fortune 500 companies as
members; its corporate hiring
solutions are used by 85 of the
Fortune 100 companies.
•>2 million companies have
LinkedIn Company Pages.
•LinkedIn members are
sharing insights and knowledge
in more than one million
LinkedIn Groups.

23. Reasons to Use LinkedIn
Strictly sourcing related reasons to use LinkedIn
1. It has a high passive to active member ratio
2. The number of members continues to increase
3. It is referral-friendly
4. Its profiles are easily comparable and searchable
5. Its profiles are accurate
6. It provides recommendations and facilitates introductions
Non-sourcing related reasons for using LinkedIn
1. A powerful talent management research capability
2. It offers many professional learning groups
3. It provides an easy reference snapshot
4. It allows you to poll
5. It is integrated with many other services – Slideshare!
6. It allows InMail for communications
… but are the professionals we need online?

26. 2012 Mobile Forecast
- Higher Ed
•97% of Millenials own a cell-phone
•58% have a smart-phone.
•60% of surveyed higher education
administrators believe mobile is
already basic to how students
experience college
Administrators report mobile being
important at the following stages:
• 92% - Recruitment marketing
• 90% - Informational accessibility for
enrolled students
• 87% - Strengthening community
amongst enrolled
• 83% - Influencing yield/mix/summer
melt in admissions

27. How are universities
leveraging current social
media outlets?
•Sharing Information; Promotion of
student groups and connecting people
•Showcasing Student & Faculty Work
•Platform to Broadcast Events
•Emergency Notification
•Producing, Not Just Promoting
•Creating a Dialogue and
Communicating to Students
•Getting Wired Via Mobile

28. Helping students and parents understand the beneficial uses
of social and professional networking!
Early Connection with university and professional community
leads to college admission, satisfaction, retention & success
Colleges have recognized the enormous potential of connecting with their students through various
social media channels for admissions, community building, and leading edge retention efforts.”
(Inigral Insights, The Social Side of Student Retention:)

29. How Can You Use Professional Networking
for Community Asset Mapping and Resource Harnessing?
Past research shows that individuals are more likely to actively engage in
volunteering for or giving to an organization if that organization is a part of
their social network.
SNSs … are low-cost tools that can promote the creation and maintenance of
strong social network ties by increasing the frequency of communication
with and the emotional closeness to other individuals.
In contrast to e-mail, where information is pushed out to audience members
from a single author, SNSs allow users to actively seek out or pull in
information about individuals with whom they share an offline connection.
(Boyd & Ellison, 2007; Ellison et al., 2007; Lampe, Ellison, & Steinfield,
2006).

30. Professional Networking Success for Counselors

31. Use Professional
Networking to:
•Find Your Speakers
•Find Career Fair Participants
•Set Up Field Trips
•Assist With Mentoring
•Make Community
Collaboration Opportunities
But …are the professionals you need
•Track Graduates and active on professional networking and
Perform Assessment are they willing to assist you?

35. Why College Educators Use Professional Networking

41. How can you help parents get
LinkedIn to their student’s career search!
Social Media and technology is changing the way we do business
and the way we communicate. Professionals are utilizing sites
such as LinkedIn to do candidate research to make hiring
decisions and to market to clients. LinkedIn can also be used to
explore career options and to make connections for mentoring
and shadowing opportunities.
Although LinkedIn is restricted to ages 18 and up, you can assist
your child by exploring networks already available to you! Your
child’s success in deciding on a major and building a career could
be improved by you utilizing a site like LinkedIn to connect with
professionals and peers.

43. With your child’s involvement and guidance, explore the “Skills and Expertise” option
under the “More” tab. LinkedIn uses profile and demographic information to develop
industry and skill resources for your use!
Type in a profession in the search engine and explore :

44. Search and learn about three professional Groups with 100+
current members. If the groups are open
(or you join them if appropriate):

45. Search for professionals in fields your child is interested in. Students may
want to reach out to them to set up informational interviews. As most
professionals display their work emails, students can contact them directly!

46. Apps via LinkedIn:
Any information found can be shared with your child or others!