Should Universities and Colleges Care About Their Students Social Media Posts? ABSOLUTELY!
In today’s digital age, social media platforms are an integral part of our daily lives, especially for students. As a means of keeping up with family members back home, connecting & making new friends, chatting with group members or planning events, social media is the main tool of communication that students use. However, everything students post online is a direct reflection of how others view them and ultimately forms their personal brand. This student’s online brand is ALSO a direct reflection of the college or university that the student is attending whether that be for the better or worse.
Here are a 3 reasons why universities and colleges should be concerned about their students’ social media posts:
- Reputation: The reputation of upper educational institutions can be affected by their students behavior, both on and off social media. If a student has a negative, hateful or harmful social media post that gets the attention of the media, this could reflect negatively on the entire university. Most universities are screening potential students or applicants’ social media pages before they accept them to enroll in their university.
- Professionalism: While students are at their universities, in classes and preparing for their future careers, their social media presence and digital footprint is something that shouldn’t go unnoticed. A student’s social media can have a large impact on professional prospects in their careers. Before employers are even reading their resume or scheduling their first interview, they are googling that candidate to see what their online presence looks like. Universities and Colleges should well-equip their students with social media tools that help teach their students the importance of having a positive digital footprint that reflects well on themselves and their institution.
- Compliance: Educational institutions are subject to certain laws and regulations, that require them to take action if they become aware of certain types of behavior. Social media posts can provide evidence of misconduct that requires action from the institution.
Overall, Universities and colleges should be interested in learning more about HOW they can educate their students on social media because they have a responsibility to ensure the well-being of their students and their educational institutions.
Learn more about how you can get your college or university enrolled in the first Nationally Accredited Social Media Literacy and Wellness Course by emailing education@lifebrand.life or help your students create a meaningful online presence with our social media cleaning technology at www.lifebrand.life.