Indian graduates can stay in touch!

International students careers adviser, Andrew Falconer, recently met with the creator of an exciting new social networking site for Indian students who have studied in the UK.

Graduation often means saying goodbye to cherished friends and heading off on separate paths in different places. For Indian students who graduate this year, an excellent way of keeping in touch with fellow classmates and alumni is by becoming part of Indian Student Network in the UK, or INSTUK. INSTUK is a rapidly growing online social network established in April this year to provide Indian students in the UK

Registering is easy – just log on here  fill in your details and start networking!– past, current and aspiring – a platform to keep in touch, exchange useful information regarding student life in the UK and alert them to recruitment and other opportunities in the UK and India. Since April, INSTUK has registered almost 500 members, and is fast emerging as a vibrant and lively online community. Created by Admission Overseas, a leading UK education consultancy in India, INSTUK is the perfect way for Indian students in the UK to keep in touch and provides them, as well as those planning to come here for higher education in the near future, a great virtual support structure in many ways.

Thailand: From protest to posting

This is a guest post from a current student:

The Thai Student Abroad Movement (TSAM) group on Facebook was launched in October 2008 in response to the police’s violent crackdown on anti-government protesters surrounding parliament. A group of Thai students studying abroad saw the need for the overseas Thai student community to be aware of the political polarisation back home, of both sides of the argument, and to discuss their own points of view in the hope that a resolution or plan of action may be drawn up to end the violence and to promote national reconciliation.

The crisis was actually solved in the short term before this resolution was finalized, but seeing that more than 500 members were recruited, TSAM continued as an academic network where students could discuss current events in Thailand and how their area of studies sheds light on these events or suggests possible solutions to the problems being faced. The TSAM Facebook group has since expanded to include a wordpress blog, which includes updated analyses on Thailand’s political and economic situation, as well as a section on conferences/seminars, which include summaries of past conferences/seminars and information about upcoming ones.

What is remote networking?

Statistics produced by the careers service last year showed that a large proportion (about 25%) of Royal Holloway graduates found their first job through their personal network.  Despite the expensive campaigns by the leading recruiters, many more graduates started their career not through a graduate training scheme but in a position secured through knowing people.

Britain has always been famous for the “Old Boys Network” where jobs were secured less on merit than personal connection. This has changed significantly but the personal connection is still very important.  Of course this is not unique to the United Kingdom – here are some interesting examples from South Africa, India and Pakistan and Australia. China has a complex tradition of personal relationships including Guan Xi.

The importance of networking was highlighted in “My Dream Job Plan” last Monday and tomorrow’s session on “Remote Networking” is going to look at how to build up your personal network even if it is overseas.  This is a chance for you to think creatively and to develop an action plan to help you when you graduate. Whilst ideal for first year undergraduates, this session could be useful to any international undergraduate or masters student. To book your place click here It is at 5.00pm in the careers centre. Networking is also a large part of the Hidden Job Market.

If you want to find out more about the jobs that are never advertised and to develop intelligent job hunting skills come along to the careers centre at 1.00pm on Monday February 9 for an interactive workshop – no need to book, just turn up.

Don’t let Facebook ruin your career!

Hands up who is on Facebook? Or Myspace? When I asked a group of finalists a couple of weeks ago, the response was that nearly all were on at least on of those websites.

I enjoy Facebook. I like being able to see what my friends are up to, sharing photographs, arranging events that never quite happen… It is an incredible tool for connecting people and helping people to find lost friends. Old school photographs of mine have turned up on Facebook as old friends remember times shared.

Employers like Facebook too. Many are using it effectively as an advertising or marketing tool. But Facebook can also form another part of the recruitment cycle.

The New York Times ran an articlea couple of years ago about how candidate profiles are Facebook had lost them potential jobs. It isn’t just friends who use Facebook to find you. Employers can access your Facebook profile and see what sort of person you are. Are you discrete? How do you behave in public? And many Facebook profiles show the lighter side of student life – the side that employers can get concerned about.

From an employers perspective, accessing Facebook profiles gives a much clearer picture of candidates. Of course employers are not expecting candidates to have behaved entirely properly although University but repeated behaviour and comments from Facebook friends can reveal a lot.

Blogs likewise can be an issue. Blogging is an exciting way to develop points of view and to share opinions. Some bloggers try to be as controversial as possible. If you are blogging in your own name, you must accept the consequences for that too. Employers might not take kindly to candidates who use blogs to broadcast what they might consider as being outrageous views.

Social networking sites can also be used to commit crimesagainst you. Identity theft can be a serious issue and information accessed online can help that happen. Which? recently produced a report about the risks. To test how easy it would be to find personal data about somebody on publicly accessible websites, Which? asked a researcher to investigate their editor Neil Fowler. Using only Mr Fowler’s name and occupation, the researcher was able to find out details including the names of close family members and the floorplans to his home, including access points.

However you can protect yourself. Blogs can be anonymous. Social networking websites generally have privacy controls – e.g. Facebook. You can choose what level of information people can see and therefore conceal information about yourself. When applying for jobs make sure these settings are set to protect you and allow you to continue to share the network with your friends. Social networking is here to stay and grow, just make sure you have control over what aspects of your life are public online.