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Fix Your Facebook Profile for Job Searching

By U.S. News & World Report

LinkedIn isn’t the only social network for job searching. If you are like most people, you spend more time on Facebook than LinkedIn, so why not fix your Facebook profile to get it job-search ready?

Use your “Intro” section wisely. Your intro is an important personal branding opportunity and viewable to anyone looking at your profile. This section is the first thing someone will see when viewing your Facebook profile. Use your intro like you use your LinkedIn headline. Feature your desired occupation or a list of skills. You only have 100 characters, so choose them wisely.

[See: 10 Ways Social Media Can Help You Land a Job.]

Don’t dismiss your “About” section. Consider this section like the summary on LinkedIn or your resume. This section appears as a tab under your cover photo and allows more space to write about yourself. This section is your opportunity to highlight skills in demand, industry experience and characteristics that make you unique.

Update your work history and education. Facebook recently announced a change to more-prominently display extended employment and education history on your profile. Each job you list in this section will appear under your intro. This is where you should note your work history, however, if you decide to keep this information under wraps, you can change the settings to hide your work history from the public.

Know your privacy settings. Facebook has a reputation for changing privacy settings. If you haven’t looked at your settings in a while, it would be wise to do so. You can change privacy settings for “Who can see my stuff?” “Who can contact me?” and “Who can look me up?” If you do not want people to be able to search for you by email or phone number, adjust those settings. You can also prevent your profile from showing up in search engine results by removing that criteria.

Also be sure to verify your profile displays the way you want. You can preview your Facebook profile as others see it. Look for the three dots just below your cover image and select “View As…” and choose either “Public” or the name of a specific friend.

[See: 10 Ways to Perfect Your Personal Brand.]

Know who can see what you are posting. Another setting you should pay attention to is the setting on your status updates. Are you sharing your posts publicly or just with friends? If your status update has a globe next to the date, this means you have shared it publicly and everyone can see it. If you do not want certain posts to be public, you can change your settings by clicking on the inverted triangle and changing the post to “Friends.”

Stay professional at all times. Avoid using profanity, sharing provocative or inappropriate photos or speaking negatively about your current or past employer. Anything you share on social media can become public so it is best to filter what you share, post or comment on.

Search Facebook groups for jobs. Facebook isn’t a job board, but you can use the groups feature to find people posting jobs in your field and geographic area. Use the search function within Facebook and enter your city and the word “jobs” to find groups that share job leads.

Meet new people and interact. To get the most from Facebook, participate in group discussions dedicated to your industry or occupation. You can also “like” a company’s page and join its career group to interact with employees managing the account.

Find company insiders. Have you tried searching Facebook for people who work at a company you are interested in? In the Facebook search bar, start typing “people who work at X company.” The search results will show people listing the company in their work history. While Facebook does give you the opportunity to send a message to this person, you would be better off finding a mutual friend and asking for an email introduction.

[See: 8 Things That Are More Productive Than Staring at a Job Board.]

Reconnect with your college. Don’t forget to connect with your college classmates. Be sure you’ve added your college information if you want others to know what school you attended. Look for your school’s alumni groups on Facebook as well.

Facebook may be the advantage you need. Socially savvy job seekers have an advantage over those who are not using social media to meet new people and search for a job. Invest time in marketing your skills and experience and nurture your connections across all networks to uncover leads to a new job.

More from U.S. News

The Best 100 Jobs of 2016

10 Ways You’re Inadvertently Broadcasting Your Job Search

8 Tacky Job Search Faux Pas

Fix Your Facebook Profile for Job Searching originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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