6 Ways to Use Social Media to Get Accepted to College(And what to avoid so you don’t get rejected)

Dean Tsouvalas  

StudentAdvisor.com May 3, 2012

Agenda•Introductions•Define Social Media•6 Ways to Use Social Media to get Accepted•Schools using Social Media to connect to Students & parents•What to avoid on Social Media so you don’t get rejected•Questions

Who We AreDean Tsouvalas is a former award-winning TV Producer of 20/20 and PrimetimeLive, Educator, and Social Media Technologist.  

StudentAdvisor.com, a Washington Post Company, is the leading “all things college” resource for students of all ages to find the colleges that best fit their goals and needs. StudentAdvisor.com offers free access to trusted college conversations, college reviews, college comparison and match tools, planning guides, a social network of verified advisors and more. 

StudentAdvisor.com is a proud member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC).

Social Media is revolutionizing  the way students engage with colleges.

For the past 2 yrs the SA team has been tracking colleges social media engagement.

This this is the only scientifically sound ranking – it is not an opinion list.

What is Social Media

3 BILLION.The number of YouTube videos viewed per day.

175 MILLIONThe average number of “tweets” per day on Twitter.

Attracts 1,090 visitors per minute

Social Media is a FUN Way to Learn About Different Colleges!

UMass DartmouthSocial Media & College Admissions Study

• Sixty-one percent of the respondents in 2007-2008 reported they used at least one form of social media. 

• One year later, 85% of college admissions offices were using at least one form of social media. 

• In 2009-2010 that number rose to 95% and • In the latest study, 100% of colleges and

universities studied are using some form of social media. 

Follow colleges on social media to:

• Learn about campus life• Read up on current events at the school• Ask questions directly to admissions counselors

• Take “virtual tours”• Discover what makes each college unique• Figure out if it’s the right “fit” 

1. Get to know the School on Facebook• “Like” the official Facebook

page• Learn about the

conversations that matter• See the events on campus• Parents keep up to date

with calendar

Incorporate this info in the application!!! (Essays and interviews)

Facebook

• Morehouse hosts “Morehouse Mondays,” where admitted students can talk to university staff by posting questions on the Facebook wall.

• Oberlin has a Facebook fan page called “Oberlin Hopefuls” for high school students just thinking of attending.

• Four Saint Mary's College first-year students, felt like they knew each other when they moved into their room at Regina Hall. They actually first met "virtually" on the Saint Mary's Class of 2015 Facebook page and decided to become roommates. 

2. Search for a School on Twitter• Follow your 

prospective school• Find out what issues 

matter – sport scores, campus beautification, research findings

• Learn what issues are important to you

• Learn Hashtags#

Twitter• Emerson College has made 

social media integral to their education and has all of Boston using the #ESM hashtag whenever they want to talk to anyone at Emerson about social media.

• Williams College uses the #Williams2016 hashtag to create a social community of accepted students.

• Macalester congratulates and connects with every student who tweets that they were accepted to their university.

3. Video made the college star Stand out from the crowd – make a video application

• Why you want to go to the school • Extracurricular activities• Additional recommendations

YouTube• Watch a Class• Search for videos on 

student activity groups to learn what they are like

• The Pratt Institute allows anyone, including prospective students, to watch guest lectures and classes

4. Google+, Pintrest, or Flickr Your Way In

Learn about a school orShow off your:• Writing skills• Highlight your volunteerism

• Creative Side• Athletic Talent

The Common Application and Universal College Application both provide a space where students can link to a site!

Pinterest• Marquette uses Pinterest 

to give prospective students a comprehensive picture of what life is like

• Texas A&M suggests school-themed decorations for incoming students’ rooms.

• Arizona State has an entire pinboard dedicated to engaging prospective students.

Google+• Duke uses Google+ to host 

“hangouts,” or video chats, with prospective and accepted students. If you have a question about life at Duke, you can post it in the chat and a real admissions professional will answer live.

• Many colleges, including Yale, Northeastern and University of Michigan use Google e-mail addresses, which means all students and faculty already have accounts on Google+.

Flickr• Vanderbilt gives prospective 

students an idea of what student life is like with their “365” project which posts a different picture of something at Vanderbilt each day.

• Gettysburg College posts photos of their orientation so students can have an idea of what their programs will entail.

5. Discover Student Bloggers• A blog is a fantastic 

platform to learn directly from a student’s point of view.

•  John’s Hopkins has over 25 different student bloggers.  These blogs are not edited by the admissions office.

• OCU is one of the few schools to give parents of students their own blogs. 

Tumblr• University of Chicago has an 

Admissions Tumblr where they post pictures and videos of student life on campus and take questions from prospective applicants. 

• Florida International University answers dozens of anonymous questions via Tumblr from students and prospective students.

• University of Delaware uses Tumblr for student bloggers to connect with prospective students. 

6. It’s Cool to be SquareImpromptu college tours – use Foursquare

• When on a campus tour

• Or if you visit during a break leverage your Smartphone for inside information

Foursquare• Harvard uses Foursquare 

to help visitors see campus. They have tips on every major building and location – and 62 thousand followers!

• University of Oregon uses Foursquare so prospective students can give self-guided tours of campus.

What Students Should know BEFORE interacting with colleges on social media…

1. Don’t ASK to be Googled• Use an appropriate E-mail Address

Would you want admission officers to contact you at sexykitten@example.com? An email account like that begs the admissions officer to Google you.   

• The admissions decision process begins before you even apply.  This is the beginning of branding yourself. You can even create an email account that is only for college applications.

•  Always put your most professional self forward; when in doubt, use an email format such as firstnamelastname@example.com

• Avoid having inappropriate user names: i.e. – BabyDollKitten4

2. Use Social Media RESPONSIBLY

• Students need to understand:  If it’s online ANYONE can find it

• Students should keep ALL posts “Grandma friendly”: Foul language and indecent pictures should be avoided entirely.

3. Privacy Please It’s been said before, but can’t be said enough – if you put it online, anyone can find it

1. On Facebook, visit “privacy settings” by clicking on “account” and set privacy settings at the highest level you’re comfortable.

2. On Twitter, visit the “edit my profile” page (on the “profile page” tab), and make sure that “protect my Tweets” is selected. You’ll have to manually approve anyone that wants to view your Tweets.

3. On YouTube, make any videos that you wouldn’t want everyone to see “private” when you upload them.

Questions

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