Networking sites should not play a role in job hirings

It’s no secret that most college students are on Facebook, and a good number of us devote more time to Facebooking than we do to our studies. And why shouldn’t we? You can chat, view people’s pictures and even use the inexplicable “poke,” in addition to an innumerable amount of other applications and features.

Monday’s Kernel reported that some companies use Facebook as a means to advertise and get feedback from students, something that is easily justifiable. However, some companies take Facebook and other networking sites a little further and incorporate them into their hiring processes.

The article went on to say that 22 percent of employers check networking sites during the hiring process, according to a 2008 survey by CareerBuilder.  This means there is almost a one-in-four chance that the company you desire to work for will utilize Web sites like Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, Bebo or any of the other social networks you participate in for finding background information.

That’s a scary thought for some of us because our pictures, favorite quotes, statuses and walls are now open for an employer’s interpretation in an effort to determine whether or not we are qualified for our jobs. But privacy does play big role in the discussion of this issue— examining social networks infringes upon the personal lives of an individual. While profiles may be public, they are not generally something we think will be viewed by our potential employers. To students, these networks are displays of individuality, not a display of their work ability, and overly censoring the content loses that individuality.

Censoring your profile a little bit probably couldn’t hurt, as social networks are set up to provide a glimpse into you as person. There is no need to broadcast your entire life on the Internet. It is one thing to have a picture of you and your buddies out having a drink, but think twice about those pictures of you upside down with your buddies holding your legs up while you do a keg stand.

It is hardly fair for perspective employers to use social networking sites to make any type of determination on one’s merit and work ethic. Some people like to work hard and party harder, but should that disqualify them from a job? Many of the individuals conducting these intrusive background checks have, themselves, been college students and done some of the things we do now. If Facebook were around during our parents’ and grandparents’ heyday, most likely the same types of activities we are judged for would grace the pages of the Internet.

People like to be social and share who they are. It is why we take pictures of important events, spend time hanging out and getting to know each other and spend time talking to each other. Facebook and the other various social networks are an online way to continue the social aspect of the human personality and should not be used as anything but that.

Still, a little modesty never hurt anyone.