Building a LinkedIn Profile

Learn to Market Yourself Effectively

LinkedIn is the social networking platform for your professional self. On it, people share their work experience and qualifications. Employers use it to hire and also define their services. Your profile is kind of like an online resume. You can use LinkedIn to stay in touch with people, learn about internships, and network with potential companies!

Start by signing up. It’s fast and free at LinkedIn.com. Be sure to use an email and password that you won’t forget!

What do I add to my LinkedIn profile?

There is a lot you can add to your profile to showcase your professional skills and abilities:

Education- Note where you’re going to school and what you’re studying.
Work Experience- Share where you worked and list your responsibilities similarly to how you would list them on a resume.
Extracurricular Activities- You can even include non-work activities, such as volunteering, honors & awards, or groups you belong to. You’ll find those in the Additional Profile Sections you could add. The more detail you include the more potential employers can learn about you.
Skills- Let people know what you’re good at! You can even take quick Skills Assessments to earn badges, that show potential employers that you know your stuff.
Potential- You may not have worked your dream job yet, but you can let people know what it would be. Even if you’re not sure yet, you can share which industries you’re exploring.
Endorsements & Recommendations- As you work with classmates, professors, and in your first few jobs, connect with those people on LinkedIn and ask them to endorse a specific skill or strength they’ve seen in you or to write a short recommendation about what it was like to work with you.

How to use LinkedIn

Build your LinkedIn Network

First, connect with people you know. While you may not have a huge professional network yet, think about professionals you have interacted with or know personally. Teachers, coaches, program advisors, adults from your neighborhood or religious organization could all be a part of your LinkedIn network. You can connect with friends too.

Expand your network

To connect beyond the people you already know in person, search for Groups and join them. What kind of Groups could you find?

Groups associated with the job fields you’re interested in
Groups based on hobbies or interests
Groups for current students or alumni at your school

While you’re at it. search for the industry leaders you admire and follow them. Then follow the companies you’d love to work for. You’ll be setting up your newsfeed to be full of valuable information – like internship opportunities from your dream company.

Engage

LinkedIn is just like any other social platform you are on – if you interact with people, they will get to know you. Comment publicly on posts that you relate to and follow people from different industries. Just be sure to keep it professional. If it isn’t something you would say to a teacher or boss, don’t say it on LinkedIn.

And remember…

The most important thing to share with the world is YOU. Your story is powerful. Your journey is important. Your goals, dreams and hopes are going to make this world a better place, so don’t be afraid to put yourself out there!

Learn to Market Yourself Effectively

What do I add to my LinkedIn profile?