Moving to college signifies a clean slate for freshmen. It’s a time to make new friends, take new classes and move a few steps closer to transitioning into the real world.

And that doesn’t only apply on campus. It includes the wide world of social media.

One of the most important changes for college students, said William Ward, is the chance to clean digital skeletons out of their social media closets.

“Making your profiles professional isn’t something you can wait to do as a senior,” said Ward, a marketing professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. “It’s something students should actively think about as soon as they’re at school, if not earlier.”

It’s something that crossed first-year graduate student Isaac Budmen’s mind during his freshman year. He signed up for his first Twitter handle and felt like he was sharing too much content on the site.

His penchant for posting led him to a self-professed obsession with how people interact online. He met two other students through Twitter and kick-started a project called Little Tinker, which tries to tie together social media with the physical world.

As engrossed in social media as Budmen is, he said there are platforms he doesn’t think are useful for students. A big fan of Foursquare, he said he thinks Google+ is wasteful, lacks the potential of the search engine’s clout, and puts too much emphasis on personal networking.

But having a Facebook or Twitter profile isn’t just for socializing with friends anymore. Social media, Ward said, now play integral roles in job and internship searches. He said that employers often look at the inflection students have on the “Big Four” media — Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+.

“If you’re not using them well, it doesn’t look good,” Ward said. “But if you’re not using them at all, it can look even worse.”

Syracuse University students have already made digital strides to keep SU’s campus connected. Kate Brodock, executive director of digital and social media for Information Technology Services, has led #44Social, SU’s student social media initiative. Eleven underclassmen manage SU’s Twitter and Facebook accounts under Brodock’s watch.

“Part of their role on campus is peer-to-peer education of all things social,” Brodock said.

Other student groups also rely on Twitter and Facebook. When a Syracuse concert date leaked on electronic dance music DJ Calvin Harris’ website in July, University Union officials reminded students that their social media platforms were the only places where the official announcement would be made.

Following the right people is important, Ward said. Students should try to connect with the smartest people in their fields to leave a good and lasting impression.

“Google is the new resume,” he said. “You’re judged by the company you keep.”

Kelly Lux, social media strategist and community manager for the School of Information Studies, started as a Twitter neophyte in 2009, but now advocates to students she works with to sign up for the site.

“It looked like a foreign language at first,” she said. “And I didn’t do anything with it for several months.  But everybody should have a Twitter, just like everybody should have a LinkedIn profile.”

But one of the finer points of social media and blogging is becoming a lost art, Ward said. He cited that according to the Society of Digital Agencies survey in 2012, blogging is one of the most sought-after skills in college students.

“Twitter and Facebook have become shorter forms of blogging, but it’s still a really useful tool to know how to use,” he said.

Ward also stressed the importance of being a jack-of-all-trades in the digital world. He said students should try new platforms of social media to practice their communication skills.

Budmen had similar advice for freshmen. He said the best way for new students to get their feet wet in the enormous social media pool is to be open for communication with almost anyone and everyone.

“Whoever said, ‘Privacy is like virginity, you should keep it as long as you can’ was bulls**t,” Budmen said. “Keep your accounts open and talk to as many people as you can.”

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Published on August 21, 2012 at 11:08 pm

Contact Erik: [email protected] | @therealvandyman