Hampden-SydneyCollege• Office of Career Development

What Is It?

For all of the time that we spend on sites like Facebook today, it’s not the only social networking site out there. And gasp….it is possible to network online and get ahead in your career. How can you do that? By getting “LinkedIn”!

LinkedIn is a professional social networking site that allows you to display your professional accomplishments, network with people you actually know through school, work, or elsewhere, and build your reputation. In today’s job market, you can use LinkedIn to provide Google with information you actually want employers to see when they search for your name!

LinkedIn offers you the opportunity to create a profile, and put a picture on it of yourself. But the content of the profile is going to be drastically different.

How Do I Get Started?

First, visit and sign up for an account. Be sure to use a professional and appropriate e-mail address, since it will appear on your profile.

Then you’ll be asked to get started completing your profile. This is where you’ll want to take some time, because what you put here determines how easily you can be found by other people. You can import an existing resume or create new content. The most important part is that you do fill out as much as you can. Need help? Check out

Don’t forget to include Hampden-Sydney College, any other colleges you may have attended, and your extracurricular involvement. When you enter that information, LinkedIn automatically makes suggestions of people that you can connect with who went to the same school. So that can be especially helpful for you to discover alumni, especially alumni who live far away.

And remember, the picture you put on LinkedIn should be vastly different than any picture you put on Facebook. Keep it professional, and make sure it’s a good, clear photo of you.

But There’s 42 Million People Out there! What Do I Do Now?

Don’t get too overwhelmed! LinkedIn can be powerful if you use it correctly. Here are the top 10 tips for using LinkedIn from

  1. Complete your profile fully. According to LinkedIn, you are 40 times more likely to receive opportunities if your profile is complete.
  2. Build your network. Focus on friends and colleagues who know you well. There’s no prize for accumulating the most connections. Your connections should be people who’d be willing to credibly and enthusiastically introduce you to people in their network.
  3. Join Targeted Industry & Professional Groups. Why? There will be people there who are doing what you want to do. Related-join your school group on LinkedIn.
  4. Search LinkedIn Jobs. When you search jobs by company or job title, you can see which of your connections are at that company or know the person who posted the job.
  5. Search for Connections at Targeted Companies.
  6. Make the Right Ask. Once you’ve identified people through LinkedIn that can be helpful, it’s important that you make the right ask. Visit for more information.
  7. Let People Know You’re Looking. Everyone is a potential job lead, but they can’t help if they don’t know you’re looking. Use the update field to indicate that you are looking for a job.
  1. Showcase your Expertise through LinkedIn Answers. In LinkedIn Answers you can ask and answer questions on specific business topics. Others who view your answers and are impressed with your insight can reach out to you directly. You can also receive recognition for strong answers, which adds to your credibility and visibility.

What Not To Do

  1. Don’t be “that annoying and desparate student”: Don’t send connection requests to people you don’t know, and don’t automatically beg for jobs from people you just connected to.
  2. Remember that this is professional social networking: LinkedIn isn’t really the place to discuss your hobbies or update your status to discuss how great the weekend was.
  3. Not explore the other features LinkedIn has to offer: There are a number of ways to engage with LinkedIn, and they also help you to get “found” by the right people in your target industry or field. But many people don’t take advantage of these free and easy methods of personal promotion. Examples of these would be using the answers feature, becoming active in groups, and establishing a custom URL and public profile. See more in the next column.

Other Cool Stuff To Do On LinkedIn

  1. Do some company research: Most companies have a profile, and they have a wealth of information about the company. They tell you who was recently hired, whose profiles are most popular, and where employees used to work. Very helpful to you as you consider industries and companies that you might want to work or intern for.
  2. Import some contacts: You can upload your Outlook address book, your Gmail contacts, contacts from wherever! It’s an easy way to find people. You can also connect with Ms. Neidert and Col. Snead on LinkedIn.
  3. Answer some questions: LinkedIn has a cool question and answer function, which allows you to share you opinion with just about anyone. You get recognized for the best answers, and it’s another way for you to make connections with people. There are lots of potential topics.
  4. Make your profile public: When you’ve done everything to complete your profile, you can make it a powerful ally in your job or internship search. Just make it public! How can you do that? Click on the “public profile” link when you’re looking at the editable version of your profile. You can customize the URL of your public profile, which I would suggest you do. You can also choose which parts of your profile are viewable to the general public, which does mean anyone who can search Google!

If You Have Any Questions, You Know Where To Find Us:

2nd Floor of Bagby Hall

X6106

@hsccareers on Twitter

Hampden-SydneyCollege• Office of Career Development