How Does Social Media Affect Colleges

Social Networking and College Marilyn McGrath, director of admissions from Harvard says “admissions counselors at her college don’t check social networking sites on a regular basis, but if they note anything in a student’s application that raises a possible red flag, they will” (Cartwright). With the rising popularity of social networking, colleges are now starting to look at students’ profiles during recruitment and before accepting them. The most important information that schools are looking for are posts or comments that contain content that conflicts with the school’s beliefs. This may be helpful to filter out dangerous prospective scholars, though some perceive this as a violation of privacy. Since the internet is such an essential role

For instance, “Colleges look for content on social media that could be considered offensive or raise concern about the student,” (Cartwright). This is important in making sure that dangerous people do not enter the college. For instance, the National Association for College Admission Counseling notes, “More than half (53 percent) of colleges monitor social media for “buzz” about their institution” (NACAC). They are looking to find the image that is being reflected on their school, and making sure that they are shown in a positive light. Therefore, Joyce Smith, NACAC CEO believes that the key to keeping up with young people in modern times is to use the internet (NACAC). This is accurate, since the majority of teens have a presence on social networking sites, they can easily find potential colleges. Using the internet as a resource to enhance and understand a school’s image online is an effective way to discover potential

To begin, one article states that “...jokes, opinions, and criticisms might have been kept private even a decade ago; today, however, the increasing use of social media, however, allowed them to spread across the Internet” (Currie). At one time, a student could hide offensive behavior, but now with prevalent internet exposure, college kids have simple ways to share these ideas publicly. In spite of this, an article called Social Networking states, “...only 3% of students surveyed believed the content of their social media presence could hurt their prospects of admission” (Social Networking). This shows that very few young adults are aware of how their online footprint will affect them in the real world. Moreover, colleges are looking for homophobic, racist, or any other offensive comments that the school does not agree with. Although these comments may be irrelevant to the student’s academic performance, these ideas could create trouble amongst other pupils and staff in the school. Colleges and universities skim through a student’s online profile to find dangerous, provocative or offensive behavior that could damage the school’s