<p>I never had tools like LinkedIn available to me during my college days. In fact, the web was only a few years old :) Anyway, while many students burn away the hours on Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn may actually provide the most real value. Not only can it help you locate work after graduation, but it is a growing community of companies and professionals and can be a great learning tool. Have you used LinkedIn yourself?</p>
<p>I’ve been on LinkedIn for a few years. Haven’t found it very useful, but I also am much more careful about what I put on LinkedIn than on my resume because everything I work (even just mentioning the general area) on could be considered a trade secret. I have had two “recruiters” contact me, but they were very spam-y sounding: “Hello gthopeful, I am contacting you on behalf of X company and very impressed by your experience in Y. Here are a list of companies at X dealing with Y: [insert jobs ranging from technician level to senior scientist]”.</p>
<p>I think it’s an OK way to keep in touch with professional contacts, though.</p>
<p>I like LinkedIn a lot (free, basic access is all you need). If anything, it is fun to creep on classmates to see what they are up to. But also, it is a great way to keep in touch with professional acquaintances and also get in touch with alums at your university that might be able to give you advice, tell you about their job/career path or even give you potential job leads. And more recently, there are even plenty of jobs you can apply to/search for on linkedin itself.</p>
<p>I’m a professional business person - I do not find it useful at all. I am constantly bombarded with requests from sales people to be “linked” … nothing useful yet.</p>
<p>It’s usefulness varies. If you are a recent college grad trying to network your way into a job, it can be very useful to contact alumni of your school in order to set up informational interviews. Furthermore, if you are a recent college grad or still in college, and are in a STEM major, it can be a very useful resource. I know one friend who got his job through a recruiter sending him a message on LinkedIn. I know another friend of mine who got an internship at a startup firm through LinkedIn.</p>
<p>LinkedIn is an amazing tool. Terenc is correct that it’s usefulness varies, but what do you have to lose? It is free and easy. Unless you want to pay for the premium membership.
I reference my LinkedIn page on my resume, when I interviewed at my current Big 4 employer one of the interviewers looked up and read my LinkedIn profile before the interview.
It is one of several tools to establish a professional presence and your network.</p>
<p>^True, but that doesn’t mean LinkedIn is not useful. LinkedIn is just another service out there. The more the merrier, as far as networking is concerned. And LinkedIn is probably more accessible.</p>
<p>As stated above, LinkedIn is free. I’ve found it very useful and most of the people I’ve talked to who don’t like it aren’t using it correctly (that is, they aren’t using it actively). Yes, you put your experience and connect to people you know; yes, you join relevant groups.</p>
<p>But that’s only the beginning. The more active you are in groups, the more contacts you meet. As a student, you’re also able to connect with large numbers of professional you wouldn’t be able to engage well otherwise (100+ business cards, not knowing if someone’s swapped positions). You can research potential jobs and companies–see alumni from your college who hold positions at companies you’re interested in. As an anecdote, I just met a former member of my small college social club who’s running for public office in my state.</p>
<p>Also, you learn about the professional background of friends and other contacts. I got an internship offer for a federal government agency and I was able to search my network and contact people I knew who had worked at that agency or lived in the area for suggestions on logistics. Honestly, I’ve found LinkedIn to be an invaluable tool. If nothing else, make a high-quality profile and add your friends and professional contacts. Having a professional online presence is always good.</p>
<p>I have no desire to use a social networking site. The real question should be, “Will refusing to use LinkedIn hurt your chances of getting a job after college?” I’ve seen a resume helper website suggest that if you don’t have a LinkedIn account you appear “fake” or less interested than other candidates.</p>
<p>Can someone please explain to me what LinkedIn is & what its purpose is? I know It’s some sort of social website for networking but unclear of what else the site provides. Would an entering college freshman like me, interested in majoring in Computer Science have any business on LinkedIn & could I benefit from it? </p>
<p>Yes. Sign up now. I know 2 CS students who got jobs through Linkedin (one was a poor student who I consider lucky enough that recruiters are out there looking for CS grads, the other got a job at a startup through the site).</p>
<p>I do like the idea of LinkedIn, and I’m seriously considering using it in the near future.
I’m not too sure how much usefulness I could find in it as a Nursing major, but I plan on making full use of my two favorite hobbies: video game concept/story writer and writing in general, and finding some way to use LinkedIn to turn those hobbies into possible career interests.</p>
<p>I’m also planning on studying abroad and building an international interest that I could possibly elaborate more on, career-wise.</p>
<p>I think LinkedIn is worth it, though. Especially for college students.
I know an Accountant major that used LinkedIn to manage himself an internship at BKD with a CPA Advisor.</p>