Spotlight for Recruiting Professionals
When it comes to interactions with employers during their job searches, students’ aversion to using social media as a communication tool is gradually softening, according to results of NACE’s Class of 2017 Student Survey.
Students who used social media in the job search have become more comfortable with the idea of being contacted by potential employers via social media. (See Figure 1.) And while the majority of students still aren’t comfortable with the idea of initiating contact with employers through social media, that percentage is diminishing.
Among the 52 percent of students who used social media in the job search, the most common way that they did so was to research potential employers of interest via a platform’s search bar, followed by posting a resume on a publicly accessible profile and communicating with friends and/or family to discuss job openings and potential employers. (See Figure 2.)
Meanwhile, less common activities included communicating with current employees of potential employers, receiving recruiting-related messages from employers via private message, communicating with university alumni who worked for potential employers, and initiating contact with potential employers via private message. Researching potential employers via a platform’s hashtags was rarely undertaken.
Among students who used social media in the job search, LinkedIn has remained highly popular, while Facebook and, in particular, Twitter have seen considerable drop-offs. In addition, LinkedIn was considered by far the most useful of the three. (See Figure 3).
NACE’s Class of 2017 Student Survey was conducted from February 15 to April 30, 2017; more than 21,000 students at colleges and universities nationwide took part, including 4,200 graduating seniors. Participating schools will find a complimentary copy of the report in MyNACE > Research Reports; an executive summary is available on NACEWeb.
Figure 1: Students’ Level of Comfort Communicating with Employers on Social Media
| Communication Type |
2017 |
2016 |
2015 |
| Students comfortable being contacted by an employer |
57.7% |
52.4% |
37.7% |
| Students comfortable initiating contact with an employer |
32.2% |
24.7% |
27.6% |
Source: Class of 2017 Student Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers. In this analysis of students who used social media as a resource in the job search, the percentages represent the students who, on a five-point scale, indicated that they were either “very” (4) or “extremely” (5) comfortable “being contacted” by and “initiating contact” with potential employers via social media.
Figure 2: The Ways Students Use Social Media in the Job Search
| Use of Social Media |
% of Students |
| Researching potential employers of interest via a platform’s search bar |
77.9% |
| Posting a resume on a publicly accessible profile |
50.5% |
| Communicating with friends and/or family to discuss job openings and potential employers |
39.5% |
| Communicating with current employees of potential employers |
28.9% |
| Receiving recruiting-related messages from employers via private message |
27.8% |
| Communicating with university alumni who worked for potential employers |
18.7% |
| Initiating contact with potential employers via private message |
17.6% |
| Researching potential employers via a platform’s hashtags |
7.7% |
Source: Class of 2017 Student Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers.
Figure 3: Use and Effectiveness of Select Social Media Platforms in the Job Search
| Platform |
Class of 2017: % of Respondents
Using |
Class of 2017: % Responding “Very” or “Extremely” Useful |
Class of 2016: % of Respondents
Using |
Class of 2016: % Responding “Very” or “Extremely” Useful |
| LinkedIn |
83.7% |
57.1% |
86.2% |
58.8% |
| Facebook |
44.1% |
26.7% |
53.5% |
22.0% |
| Twitter |
16.8% |
19.6% |
23.0% |
26.3% |
Source: Class of 2017 Student Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers. In this analysis of students who used each platform, the percentages represent the students who, on a five-point scale, indicated that the platform was either “very” (4) or “extremely” (5) useful in finding job openings and researching employers.