Admissions counselors eye applicant Facebook accounts
If you’re applying for admission to a school of higher learning, it might be prudent to do a sweep of your Facebook® and other social media accounts. According to Kaplan Test Prep’s survey of admissions counselors, 24 percent of the gatekeepers to postsecondary education report that they have checked out an applicant’s Facebook account. This is up substantially from the 2008 survey results, the first year social media was addressed in the annual survey, when only 10 percent of admissions officers reported having checked an applicant’s Facebook or other social media account.
This year, 12 percent of those who reported having checked a prospect’s social media account say the information found in the search negatively affected the student’s application for admission. The reasons cited were vulgarity, plagiarism, and photos depicting alcoholism or “illegal activities.”
Officials at Kaplan Test Prep say there is typically a motivating factor that prompts admissions counselors to scout out a particular applicant’s Facebook or other social media account.
“There’s definitely a growing acceptance by college admissions officers in the practice of checking applicants’ digital footprints, but for context, these checks are not routine and tend to happen because of a specific trigger in a particular situation, like an anonymous tip or a posting on an online forum,” said Kaplan Test Prep’s Vice President of Research Jeff Olson. “That said, college applicants need to be particularly mindful of what they post, and may even want to search online to make sure their digital footprint is clean.”
The survey also found that 20 percent of the admissions counselors polled have Googled an applicant’s name to find out more information on the interested party. Even still, overall social media is being used moreso as a tool for recruitment than one for snooping on the personal lives of college applicants. Eighty-five percent of the admissions officers say they use Facebook to connect with potential students, while 66 percent say they have used YouTube™ for the same purpose.
“The growing role of social media in the college admissions process poses potential pitfalls, but also many plusses for applicants,” said Olson. “For example, a college’s official admissions page on Facebook allows it to reach prospective students in an environment in which teens are comfortable or expert. They can take virtual campus tours, learn about academic programs and find out important admissions statistics like the average SAT or ACT scores for accepted students.”
Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.
YouTube is a trademark of Google Inc.
