Personal online content can cost you a job
As the unemployment rate rises to about ten percent, the job market is becoming more competitive. University of Colorado students seeking employment after graduation should keep in mind that it's not just resumes that employers are reviewing.
Popular Websites such as Facebook, Myspace, YouTube and Twitter let anyone post pictures, videos and personal thoughts. For CU students getting ready to graduate, many might want to ask if their online exploits could compromise their ability to get a job.
CU senior Sam Koerbel said, "There's a lot of pictures on Facebook, and while they may not seem incriminating to me, they could definitely hinder the chances of me getting a job if a future employer looked me up on Facebook, or a different website and found some hits of YouTube videos of me."
According to msnbc.com, Ohio Burger King worker Timothy Tackett took a bubble bath in the restaurant's kitchen sink, and then posted the video to his MySpace account. The video attracted the attention of health officials who notified the restaurant. Tackett and the co-workers involved were fired. Now that Tackett is a YouTube star, he may have problems finding future employment. This story is one among many that shows what happens when personal online postings get you fired.
CU's Career Services Office says some students have been rejected from jobs because a potential employer found something they didn't like online. To avoid mishaps such as this, Career Services recommends googling yourself and reviewing the results with a parent or other confidant. Pictures and other content that may seem harmless to college students can be interpreted as inappropriate by potential employers. Although sites such as Facebook have privacy settings, Career Services suggests making sure all online content posted about yourself is suitable.
"I'm definitely going back over everything that I have on my Facebook and things that are posted on the internet of me and making sure that from a potential employer's perspective, they're not looking at it and saying, 'Oh, this doesn't look like the kind of guy I want to hire.'" said Koerbel. "I want things to be up there that are supporting my cause of who I am and what I stand for."
If you're tempted to take a bubble bath in the company sink, think again. In today's competitive job market it's smart to make sure your online profile looks just as good as your resume.