In the New York Times article, They Loved Your GPA, Then They Saw Your Tweets (Singer, 2009) they discuss using social media to assist recruitment officers at Universities and Colleges in selecting future students. The article has both positive and negative points to it, and I can see how this is going to be a debate for years to come.
I do have to agree with most of the article, if Universities or Colleges are using the 'whole-student/person' approach, then using the social media information, from Facebook or Twitter for example, should be used. This will allow for schools to make better choices on applicants, the "future" students that will be attending their school.
However, I do foresee some legal issues occurring. For example "colleges might erroneously identify the account of a person with the same name as a prospective student — or even mistake an impostor’s account — as belonging to the applicant, potentially leading to unfair treatment" (Singer, 2009). This can definitely cause a few lawsuits to occur, which will then have to set precedence on future cases. I do feel that the Supreme Court will have to make a final ruling in order to set supremacy on this issue.
Lastly, if schools are using this information there must be ethical consistencies when using it. This should be done on an "ad hoc basis [and] Sometimes prospective students themselves ask an admissions office to look at blogs or videos they have posted" (2009). Every situation will need to have review consistencies and ethical consistencies, which will be in large part, a very different debate than even using social media in the application process.
This may be cliche, however - what do you think - do you want your child's social media account used for their admission to the school of their choice?
Singer, N. (November 9, 2013). They Loved Your GPA, Then They Saw Your Tweets. Retrieved November 13, 2013 from
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/10/business/they-loved-your-gpa-then-they-saw-your-tweets.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0
Hi Ken,
ReplyDeleteInteresting article, and it ties into our Team Essays for the week. This may be a good source! My personal opinion is that students/ prospective students (and anyone in general) should be careful about what they are posting on social media sites. Employers and those working in admissions for colleges will be looking into those types of sites to see who people "really are" and may pass judgment based on what they post online.
-Sam
Good article. Working in a university myself, we have come across this same issue. I know I am very grateful that Facebook and Twitter were not around when I was a younger. I don’t like the thought of someone being judge based on one dumb moment that was posted to the internet, however, if it is a reoccurring theme for a student then they may not be the best candidate.
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