Friends may not be the only people looking at Facebook pages, as employers and campus officials also use the social networking site.
University administrators said that while they do not typically seek out students’ personal information online, they can and have, and students should be judicious about what they post.
“What you put out there can be seen by lots and lots of people and not just your friends,” Tommy Griffin, director of undergraduate admissions, said.
Personal information found online has affected some in their admission to N.C. State, according to Griffin.
While they do not search for each applicant on the Internet, Griffin said, if something gets their attention, like criminal charges or an applicant’s name appearing in the media, they may look into Facebook or a search engine.
In one instance last year, Admissions received an anonymous tip about an applicant, and after receiving more information and researching on the Internet, they denied admission to the individual.
In a different situation, Griffin said they used Facebook, but it did not have an influence.
Griffin said, in these rare situations, they will “probably contact the student, depending on what level it rose to,” to allow students to defend online information.
Other universities, including the University of South Carolina, have created Facebook accounts for their admissions offices, and while NCSU has not done this, he said they have looked into it.
Capt. Jon Barnwell of Campus Police said Facebook allows them to learn more about upcoming events, including how many people could attend and whether it is necessary to pass information on to the Raleigh Police Department.
And while Barnwell said Campus Police regularly check Facebook for events, the Office of Student Conduct uses it in rare situations, according to Director Paul Cousins.
“One of the great fallacies [is that] we have time to cruise Facebook,” Cousins said.
Student Conduct is not out to be the “beer police,” but if a student is engaged in violence or thought to be emotionally distressed, they may use Facebook as one of many resources to learn more about that student.
Social networking sites’ users should also be aware of future employers looking at their profiles, according to Carol Schroeder, director of the University Career Center.
“Employers are using it more than ever,” she said.
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, over 11 percent of employers use social networking sites when considering job applicants, and of those who used the sites, 60 percent said it influenced their decisions. While not all employers do this, “Google makes it too easy not to look into it,” Schroeder said. “It doesn’t matter how many [employers look] as long as one does.”
Students need to be concerned about what they post, whether employers see it or not, Cousins said.
“Other people are going to make assumptions based on postings,” he said.
According to Schroeder, once a student takes information off the Internet, it doesn’t mean it is gone.
“Photographs can live forever,” Schroeder said. “You need to think carefully about what information you put out for the world to see.”
