College Graduate Personal Websites
Key Competitive Advantage?
It’s Happening! My Baby Girl and Baby Boy are Graduating!
After 5 years in college, 4 years in performing arts high school, and 14 years of dance recitals, my daughter will be graduating from university this year with a degree in graphic design. As well, after 7 years of college, 18 years of karate training, and 24 years of academic encouragement (aka. butt kicking) my son will attain a doctorate in pharmacy this year. They follow in the footsteps of their older brothers who have JUST graduated in the past two years.
You can imagine Walt and I are like…
Finding a job: using Personal Websites to gain an edge
As a pharmacist, a job in ultra-high demand, my son will be able to choose pretty much any area of the country and any job he wants. My daughter however, as a graphic designer, will have to work much harder to find and secure her job come next May.
What can my daughter do to locate the perfect graphic design position? How can she stand out among the sea of applicants? How will recruiters recognize how amazing she is, with just a one page resume and over 100 applicants for every job opening?
College Graduate Personal Website — Top 10 reasons a college graduate needs one
In the 2015 survey of 300 Human Resource (HR) Professionals by the market research firm Research Now for .ME Registry, a company that operates .ME domain names, many findings pointed to the need for soon-to-be and recent college graduates to develop a personal website. My daughter, especially as a graphic designer applicant, will greatly increase the likelihood of that job offer if she has a personal website. WHY? According to the study:
- HR Professionals agree that a personal website can better highlight examples of creativity, ambition, innovation, marketing saavy, visual thinking, awareness of branding, leadership
- 50% of HR Professionals feel that personal websites humanize the candidate
- 67% of HR professionals claim that a personal website provides more insight than a resume alone
- 59% of those surveyed believe that personal websites provides a dynamic representation of personal and professional qualifications
- 60% feel personal websites makes a positive, professional impression
- 55% agree that personal websites increase their interest in learning more about the candidate
- The most important content for an applicant to feature on their website includes: traditional resume, an interactive resume with links to work samples, work related blogs and portfolios, honors and awards, biographical information
- 33% of recruiters agreed that a personal website can provide a competitive advantage
- 40% of HR professionals would be more inclined to contact the candidate with the personal website, between two candidates with seemingly equal qualifications
- ====>>> 42% of recruiters say that less than 1 in 100 job seekers are utilizing personal websites as a leverage to enhance their candidacy! (I found this fact the most surprising of all!)
A new era of recruiting — College Graduate Personal Websites
There is no doubt in my mind, based on the findings of the study, that my daughter, as an upcoming job seeker, would benefit from a personal website. As a graphic designer, she could easily show her portfolio, her personal style, and her creativity with a personal website in a way that a traditional resume could never attain. Times have changed since I was on my job search and it’s now apparent to me that a personal website allows applicants to take control of their online image, shaping it and allowing them to stand out.
This new research confirms that we are moving beyond the age of ‘be careful what you post’ and into an era of digital presence and savvy to differentiate yourself in the job market. While recruiters continue to scan social posts for red flags, they view digital assets as tools to better understand candidates and to help them make more informed hiring decisions. The candidate who offers that content has an advantage in telling their personal story.
~Predrag Lešić, CEO of domain.ME
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This post was inspired and sponsored by Domain.ME, the provider of the personal URLs that end in .ME. As a company, they aim to promote thought leadership to the tech world. All thoughts and opinions are my own. #HireME
Sounding good to me
Now that I think about it, a lot of young bloggers do mention how a website helps them out.
Wow, that’s a good idea! Then you can include it on your resume.
It is surprising that Web sites are such assets for a lot of candidates. Thank goodness I don’t have to worry about these new-fangled, space-age requirements….
That’s very interesting. I never thought about it before. Wasn’t around when I graduated.
Yes, a website is the modern-day portfolio, and you don’t have to wait for an interview to showcase it (or spend money making copies and sending it all over!)
What a great idea. It’s crazy that a website is used for recruiting these days!
I hadn’t even thought of having a personal website for a graduate. In this day and age it makes sense. They say recruiters check out personal sites of future personnel like Facebook, so this would be a great idea to have something that personalizes you and makes the information you want seen out there.
sounds like a ice book
It is important to make it personal. I can see where personalizing and humanizing would add to websites. Make people comfortable and want to look around.
This sound like a nice idea
The website would be awesome for your Daughter to show her Portfolio and her Creativity~ She definitely would know how to lay it out and present it! I wish her the best & I know she will land a wonderful Job and do well at it!! Take care~ 🙂
Sounds good love to visit it
What a great idea! Don’t think I would have ever thought of that but I’ll definitely pass on the idea! Thanks for sharing!
First, congratulations on the grads! Second, I never would’ve thought of personal websites (my day was way before the internet, lol)–but nice idea.
Congrats to your children on graduating.
I never even thought of something like this. On the other hand, computers weren’t even invented when I graduated in 1970 (not very much).
We will be entering the college era next year as my daughter enters her first year. We’re still applying so no idea where she will go but wherever it will be, she’ll learn a lot and have a great time! This is the digital age so it makes sense why college graduates would need a website!
Congratulations to your children. I never knew such help was available as this and will pass this info to my adult children.
You and Walt must be such proud parents. I know it a relief to get all your chicks out of school, but isn’t it a strange, but good, feeling for the nest to soon be empty. Congrats on a job welldone. Thanks for the info regarding personal websites and the need for graduates to have one. I thought about getting one when I was laid off after 30 years as a legal secretary and paralegal. It’s not easy to find a job when you are pushing 60. I ended up having to go on disability, so I didn’t get my website. I had set one up myself for my sister when she died suddenly 4 years ago as a way to notify all of her out-of-state friends for which I had no contact info. It still brings me comfort!