By Blanca Sarabia

Staff Writer

With such a competitive job market, employers are now able and willing to look through prospective employees’ social media to determine whether they are fit for a particular job.

Many employers use social media to learn more about an applicant than solely going off of what their resume states. Some people may argue that this is an invasion of privacy, but we unwillingly give up that right when we post different content on social media networks. A potential employer may not pay much attention to last week’s “mani-pedi with the girls” post, but depending on the position you are applying for, that “Thirsty Thursday” post (if you’re not 21, or depending on how the picture looks) may spark their attention.

According to the Huffington Post, 37% of employers use Facebook to prescreen their applicants and 11% said they plan to do so soon.

“When I first applied to my last job, my coworkers told me that my boss looked through our Facebook to see how many friends we had, I guess the amount of Facebook friends determined how social we were,” CSUSM student Stephanie Perez said.

Remember, before posting anything that may come back and haunt you in the future, always ask yourself, “Would I willingly show this to my future employer?” Yes, that party Friday night might have been unforgettable…but you don’t want your boss remembering it as well, would you?

Of course, technology will only keep progressing, so asking you to completely refrain from using social media networks would be outrageous; instead let it benefit you. Think of them as a medium to show others who you really are, the most important thing is to be yourself while always remaining cautious.