By Tomoka Izumi
Do you know that social media have a big influence on your life decisions? Now that social media are part of the life of young people, they have a big impact when they make major decisions in your life, such as going to college or getting a job.
Social media refer to blogs, social networking services such as Facebook and Twitter, video sharing sites such as YouTube, messaging apps such as LINE and other media in which users transmit and share information. Social media are characterized by the various mechanisms that promote connections among users and allow them to visually understand each other’s relationships. And social media has become an important part of the use of the Internet since the 2000s.
Social media has influence on students when they enter college. Students who want to go to university in the future must first gather information about what kind of university they want to go to. And then using social media can help students. Many universities have an official Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. And there are posts about university events and student life. Then, prospective students can follow such accounts and see the social networking posts to find out what kind of university they are aiming for. Thus, social media can be very helpful for students who want to gather as much information as possible about the schools they are interested in.
Social media can also help students find jobs. Orido and Murata (2012) state that in recent years, the use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter has attracted attention. They also noted that job-seeking students also try to appeal to prospective employers by disseminating information of themselves. In this way, social media are very useful for students not only to know information about companies, but also promoting their own information. And according to Orito and Murata (2012) social media also allow students to exchange information with each other and with alumni and alumnae. It is reassuring to be able to exchange opinions and information with other students who are seeking employment, and it can also improve motivation for job-hunting activities. Also, by talking directly with alumni and alumnae, students may be able to hear information that will help they find a job.
To summarize, using social media in this way has several positive impacts for students seeking for information of colleges employment. How about using social media to help you make big life decisions too.
References
Orito, Y. & Murata, K. (2012). Job hunting using social media and its influence over the construction of digital identity. 2012 Fall National Research and Presentation Conference, 291-294.https://jpn01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstage.jst.go.jp%2Farticle%2Fjasmin%2F2012f%2F0%2F2012f_291%2F_article%2F-char%2Fja&data=05%7C01%7C%7Cbed604f82fe2403d849208db0b656040%7Cf11434e8abcf41f48154a9b2608dcd42%7C0%7C0%7C638116303015753686%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=v%2Bnn50f9ANQhhEt9vh5O5I1F1Ndi4tddi95%2F1Btjuhk%3D&reserved=0
Ministry of Internal affairs and communications. (2017). Changes brought about by the proliferation of social media. https://jpn01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.soumu.go.jp%2Fjohotsusintokei%2Fwhitepaper%2Fja%2Fh27%2Fpdf%2Fn4200000.pdf&data=05%7C01%7C%7Cbed604f82fe2403d849208db0b656040%7Cf11434e8abcf41f48154a9b2608dcd42%7C0%7C0%7C638116303015753686%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ZB%2FY3Ygx%2BYw4qhB0w%2FcksB2RxXJfy7zyGqidR%2F7Er2I%3D&reserved=0
