CheckingOut LinkedIn

For my PLP goal #4 I set up my LinkedIn page and did a little exploring. Since I am in a teaching position where I envision myself staying for years to come, I haven't been too interested in LinkedIn in the past. However, networking is always a good idea and can be used to facilitate endeavors other than employment. I found that LinkedIn can be a great resource for research collaboration, contact with other scholars who have similar interests, follow academic interests or professional groups, contact with past students and professors, etc. It looks like, according to zoomsphere.com at least, higher education is representing a bigger slice of the LinkedIn pie than even information technology!

So I ventured in and set up a profile. I mostly set up my profile by following the prompts. When I got stuck, I turned to YouTube.  Here's the link for a Quick Start video for setting up a basic profile. LinkedIn Tutorial by Anson Alexander  He's a fast talker, but covers a lot of ground!

After some trial and error, this is the profile I came up with: Maryanne Sandberg LinkedIn  I think it still needs some work, but it's a start. 

Of course, I then started thinking about how I could use LinkedIn with students. And this is where it got interesting for me. Lastly, I found the LinkedIn resource site for Higher Ed professionals that gives a video presentations, as well as tip sheets for students, webcasts, tools for alumni, a student job portal, and discussion groups: LinkedIn Higher Education  Here's just one of the videos posted: 

I also found a great blog called Intero advisory that I followed and will be exploring in the future: Teaching LinkedIn in the Classroom and Beyond The blogger presents a compelling argument for educators to encourage students to build their own LinkedIn profiles as a means of establishing and sustaining a growing professional identity and network. The blogger goes on to give links to professors who are leading the way in introducing LinkedIn in the classroom. Of course, as an educator, that means I should be modeling this behavior for my students, so I guess I will be continuing with LinkedIn. 

Maryanne