Admissions season is in full swing so I thought I’d post the second installment of a series of blog entries that I wrote for the Kaplan Co. website last spring. In this second piece, I share some thoughts about the potential impact of social networking sites on college admissions applications. To those of you who are gearing up for Early Admissions–GOOD LUCK! Hope some of these posts are helpful.

With the massive growth of social networking websites like Facebook and MySpace, many students today have grown comfortable posting personal information about themselves on the web. You know you’ve seen pictures of underage drinking, inappropriate public displays of affection, or rude gestures on your classmates’ pages. Maybe you even have some of these shots up on your own Facebook or MySpace page. If so, take them down.

With so many applications to read, the chances that someone in a college admissions office will be Googling or searching for every applicant on Facebook are probably slim. However, the internet is public domain, and admissions officers have every right to search. More likely, though, is that your college interviewer may decide to look you up. Most colleges offer interviews conducted by local alumni who only meet with a few students each year. These alumni interviewers tend to have the time and curiosity to do this kind of research on you, and they could easily share this information with the admissions office.

Is it ethical for colleges to consider what you put on your MySpace page as part of their admissions decisions? Absolutely. They are looking for people to contribute to their campuses, not for people who exhibit poor judgment and taste. These are the standards of adulthood, and surveys have shown that employers frequently use the internet to find information about potential hires as well.

I realize that Facebook is more secure than MySpace in that only your “friends” can see your actual page. Even so, it’s not a good idea to post anything incriminating. Most people aren’t too strict in determining who will be their Facebook “friend,” which can leave students vulnerable. MySpace is pretty much wide open, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that admissions officers or college interviewers can easily look you up. Not sure what is or isn’t appropriate for your Facebook or MySpace page? Just follow the “grandmother rule”—don’t put anything on the internet that you wouldn’t want your grandmother to see.