If you're job hunting--and especially if y'all're a new grad who is job hunting--you need to brand sure all your social media is cleaned up and ready for prime time, but peculiarly Facebook. Why? Because you may have a weird Tumblr name or a cutesy Twitter handle, just Facebook is based on existent names. That makes it super easy for recruiters and hiring managers to search and find.

Your Facebook Profile Matters More than Mine Does.

As my children similar to remind me, I'grand one-time. I finished graduate schoolhouse in December 1999 and take worked ever since. I have a solid work record. I have groovy references. And, since for the past eight years I've worked as a writer, I accept a huge portfolio that is hands attainable.

You? You accept a shiny new degree, an internship or two, and iii summers at Burger Male monarch. These are all great. But, they are as well pretty much identical to the person who marched before you and the person who marched afterwards y'all at graduation. This means there isn't much to differentiate the average new grad's resume from whatsoever other new grad's resume. Checking you lot out to see how you portray yourself online gives recruiters extra insight into you--good or bad.

And then, here are 3 things y'all need to accept care of.

1. Lock downwardly your profile.

Your contour should be prepare to simply friends. I shouldn't be able to look up your proper noun and find out annihilation most you other than your name and profile picture show, and maybe a reference to where you lot went to school. I shouldn't be able to meet your posts or your friends.

Why hide your friends? Because some of your friends are dumber than a box of hair. While they shouldn't reflect on you, they might, so why take that adventure?

2. Cull your profile picture show advisedly.

This isn't LinkedIn, then you don't have to look professional person in your pictures. You just demand to look like yous're a responsible adult. You can exist with your true cat. You can exist with your boyfriend. Y'all tin even have your profile moving picture be a picture of your true cat. That's fine.

What's non fine is a picture of you drinking, a political meme (regardless of the side of the aisle you're on), or a motion picture where you're trying to look sexy or shocking. Yeah, I know, if you're graduating from college y'all're probably over 21 and a legal drinker. Humor me. Yeah, your political beliefs are super important and you want everyone to know what you lot call up. Accept it down. Unless you're applying to partisan organizations, people don't want to hire someone who will talk politics all the time. And as for sexy or shocking? If you need me to explain this one, please go visit your 7th-grade chief and ask her why.

3. Untag yourself.

If your friends are super responsible people, y'all don't take to worry almost tagging, only what if they aren't? Or what if they are trying to be funny? What if? If you don't want it to appear on your timeline and possibly in forepart of a recruiter'south face, untag yourself. Call up if y'all're tagged in a public mail service, everyone tin can encounter it and come across that it'south you.

Is all this extreme? Sure. Should recruiters and hiring managers care near your Facebook page? No. Practice they? Some absolutely do. So brand certain that yous care well-nigh how you lot appear equally well, or yous reduce the number of companies that might be interested in interviewing you.