Tuhel

Students, are they on or off the ball?

Guest Blog post by LOUISE BROWN

When TUHEL.COM asked me to write a piece for their blog I was delighted and honoured, after all I am only a student who has no exact theory or tactic when it comes to my blog posts. I began the stages of my usual brainstorm processes which are in my case WORRY, PANIC, RESEARCH, and CALM. The final result being:’ Louise at ease’.

I spent an hour noting possible topics for discussion (Yes that is correct I am a list girl). Then it came to me, write about what you know!

• I am a student
• I use social media (who doesn’t?)
• I need work experience/job

On my search I found the following headline on recruiter ‘Students find social media ineffective for job searches’

According to a report: ‘Eight in ten students do not find social media useful when looking for a job’

When I read this I felt ashamed but not shocked as the majority of my peers still believe Twitter is for folk who want to stalk celebrities. As a media and communication student this got me thinking about the education system and whether they are doing their bit in terms of social media. I know at my educational establishment the lecturers still use e-mail to communicate with us. If you ask me this is rather outdated and needs to be changed.

To be fair to my educational establishment they did try and create a course blog, I think myself and one other student joined the group which is sad as we are COMMUNICATION students. I thought it would be insightful to look at how social media has changed the future for graduates and how it has given them the opportunity to be creative with their CV. Although the question is, are students putting social media to good use and are they even aware of the many advantages social media has to offer?

The traditional three step process of your average job hunt as I like to put it is:

• Search
• Send
• Sizzle

It could be argued that the above stages no longer apply due to the growth of social mediaa. For example employers can head hunt potential employees through social networking site Twitter. The sizzle stage no longer applies as you make that instant online connection.

It is obvious that there is a role reversal here; no longer does the job hunt consist of you applying. It now means employers are aware of you before you even consider working for them and getting paid with modern tools like https://www.thepaystubs.com/1098-form-generator.  This is fantastic news for students; however as the statistic highlights above students are unaware of the online benefits.

As I type this very moment I am presenting myself with a possible job opportunity or connection. This is a FACT, as I would not even be typing this blog if it were not for Twitter and TUHEL.COM finding me online.

My advice to anyone reading this whether you are job hunting/making connections is that you must be on the ball, be willing to compromise and stay up to date.

On that note I leave you with this link to Graeme Anthony’s C.V.I.V, perhaps even some of my peers at university will take a leaf out of Graeme’s book and be willing to step into the future.

About Louise Brown
Currently studying Media and Communication level 3 at Glasgow Caledonian University. If i were to describe myself as a product of some sort then i would choose ‘glue’. The reason i say this is because i feel i am the person who holds everything together and ensures things are done properly and on time. It is my glue like personality that fuels me and made me gain interest in the advertising industry. I enjoy advertising/public relations/marketing…

As this is my first guest blog post I welcome any comments and feedback you have.