ON CAMPUS
campusreview.com.au
may include deleting inappropriate photos or posts, friends, certain
groups, or the account altogether.
2
Brand e-you
Realising your passion: connecting to your purpose
University students typically explore new opportunities and
face new challenges daily. These encounters can lead students
to ask themselves: What am I passionate about? What do I enjoy?
What steps do I need to take to achieve my goal? These questions
help students self-reflect, and that allows them to connect to their
purpose and cultivate their brand. Often, addressing these key factors
enables students to make choices that result in pursuing pathways
that make them happy, and ultimately realising that it’s not always
about the amount of money they make, but the sense of fulfilment
and satisfaction in what they have chosen to do. Therefore, it is
critical for university students to develop direction. With guidance
from academic advisers and mentors early in their university careers,
students can avoid delays in accomplishing their academic goals,
earning a degree, and pursuing their passion.
3
Four tips for educators to help students
cultivate their personal brand online.
By Melissa Cheese and Diamante Logan
I
n today’s technologically advanced society, many students
have built a digital personal brand prior to applying to university.
Growing up with unlimited access to technology has allowed our
newest generation to not only benefit from self-directed learning
but also establish a social network and remain digitally and globally
connected by staying attached to their phones. Building this network
by using platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook has
become the norm for many students and has now advanced into a
business tool that allows them to display their professional brand and
entrepreneurial spirit beyond services such as LinkedIn.
The following are tips that educators can use as a guide to help
students cultivate their digital personal brand to prepare them for a
professional future beyond higher education.
1
Understand ‘the brand’
As new students try to adapt to university and create a balance
between building social capital and exploring different majors, the
focal point of their digital personal brand should begin to shift to
reflect their passion, personality and new skills. At this stage in their
educational careers, students who have grown up in a digital age
need to learn how to use technology beyond the norm, which is
social networking and generating the most ‘likes’.
Learning how to establish a digital platform to market themselves
on a professional level is essential. Sharing who they are and
what they have to offer employers, and/or showcasing personal
opportunities for their businesses, can lead to visibility and building
a network that leads to professional success. Personal branding is
an evolving process that varies from one student to the next based
on personal interest and life experiences. Hence, students need to
understand that throughout their educational journey they may be
required to tweak their personal brand from time to time, which
26
Self-confidence: be comfortable with who you are
Students also need to recognise and understand their strengths
and weaknesses. Being comfortable in your own skin can be
stimulating for some students and arduous for others. However,
when a weakness in their eyes is transformed into a strength with
a little insight from experienced professionals, it can increase
their confidence and overall performance.
For this reason, students should be encouraged to seek feedback
from the career centres at their institutions, as well as academic
advisers, instructors and experts in the field, so they can reap
the benefits of their efforts in the long run. Once a student can
identify their strengths and weaknesses, they should also learn
how to emphasise the soft skills they have mastered (e.g. work
ethic, communication, problem solving and interpersonal skills),
as well as the experiences acquired in professional opportunities
(e.g. internships, study abroad and research) on their digital platforms,
which can potentially increase their chances to excel.
4
Knowing your audience may require change
Staying true to yourself is crucial. While identifying and embracing
your passion is a necessity, maintaining a certain level of humility and
knowing when modifications are necessary is just as important. Many
future professional opportunities will implore students to consider
their audience. As a student’s audience fluctuates from social to
professional depending on the market they want to attract, making
adjustments to digital platforms may be required. Consequently,
students will need to decide whether to separate personal social
media platforms from professional ones, and/or reduce the number
of social media accounts, because maintaining various accounts can
be demanding and tedious.
Finally, speaking to university students about academic choices is
fundamental. At the same time, engaging them in discussions about
their future careers by addressing their digital platform experiences
is also vital to preparing them for success. The result will be students
who gain a better understanding of the digital space that occupies so
much of their time, and the ability to instinctively make modifications
that can later lead to professional success. ■
Melissa Cheese is an assistant professor of reading at
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. Diamante Logan is
an assistant buyer for Tommy Hilfiger.