Up until this fall, I felt too intimidated to make a LinkedIn account. I always compared my work experience to my peers and felt confused by the platform. However, since school started, I’ve been working with my Her Campus professional mentor, the lovely Chelsea Candelario, to build up my career confidence. She has taught me that even if you are a college student who’s just dipping your toes into networking, there are still lots of techniques that you can use to make your profile stand out. As per Chelsea’s expert suggestions, here are five simple ways to set yourself up for job-search success on LinkedIn:
- Emphasize Achievements other than work experience
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If an absence of work experience is what’s holding your LinkedIn profile back, don’t worry. You have plenty of valid alternatives for populating your page! One option is to play up your volunteer involvement. Just because you weren’t paid, doesn’t mean an experience wasn’t a meaningful part of your career trajectory. Another great option is to elaborate on your education. Have you won any awards or received any honors at school? Highlight those! Have you taken any notable courses or completed any impressive class projects? Highlight those as well! For example, if you made an amazing slideshow for a final in your Economics class, insert a link to the presentation to wow employers.
- Take advantage of LinkedIn groups
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LinkedIn is all about building connections that will serve you later down the road in your career. When you’re in college, figuring out how to start gathering your pool of acquaintances and references can feel like a mammoth challenge. If you need a simple place to get started, you can always check out some pre-existing LinkedIn groups. Just search on the platform for your school or any student organizations that you’re a member of, and you’re sure to find some thriving groups that you can quickly add yourself to. This way, you can make the most of the relationships which you’ve already built and stay connected with like-minded young professionals.
- Show off Through Skill Assessments
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Don’t miss out on the power of completing a few LinkedIn Skill Assessments. These assessments offer you the opportunity to prove your knowledge and capabilities to employers, basically backing up the points on your resume. LinkedIn offers three types of assessments (technical, business and design), so you can cater your assessment list to your dream career. I often notice that employers specify on job postings that they prefer applicants with certain abilities, like Microsoft Excel. By scoring well on the corresponding Microsoft Excel Skill Assessment, you would be able to clearly demonstrate why you are the right person for the job. Take a minute to think of what useful skills you want to advertise and plan out a time to take these quick tests.
- Remember to keep your profile active
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It can be easy to overlook the obvious fact that LinkedIn is a social media site, not just a digital collection of resumes. Take advantage of the platform by maintaining an active profile even when you’re not in the midst of a job hunt. This could mean adding a step of updating and checking your LinkedIn account into your morning routine. Or, you can cultivate the habit of interacting with other users’ content by commenting on different pages and sharing material relevant to your career aspirations. For example, if you encounter a cool article about your field of interest, don’t hesitate to share it on LinkedIn, so that possible employers have evidence of your passions.
- Double-check that you’re Hitting the basics
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If you truly just want to boost your profile as easily as possible, here’s a quick checklist to make sure that you are filling out some important (yet often forgettable!) features on your LinkedIn page. Firstly, ensure that you have set up a personalized URL. This will help your page appear more tidy and professional. Secondly, update your location, industry, and contact info. Prospective employers might not spend the time fully reading all of your material, so make sure that their first glance gives them an accurate representation of who you are. And thirdly, when relevant, incorporate media samples into your profile. Back up the projects and skills that you want to show off with handy attachments to your best images, documents, and presentations. This is one of the key features which can differentiate your LinkedIn page from your old-school, paper resume.
I’ve always felt self-conscious when it comes to constructing my professional presence online, but these clear steps gave me reassuring direction. Take the time this week to review your own LinkedIn profile and implement a few of these tips. You’re sure to find your profile looking sharper and more robust. And who knows, the extra ten minutes of work just might land you your next college internship!