Engagement in Higher Education: Take Advantage of Facebook Groups

There are several ways to engage with new and prospective students through social media, but consider trying Facebook Groups.

Facebook Groups create an additional resource for your institution where students connect and communicate about what classes to take, clubs to join, best places to live, which meal plan reigns supreme, or just chatting about current events. 

To begin, create a Facebook Group for each class and then have a student, or several students from that particular class act as the group administrators. This will make the group authentic. 

What if a group member acts inappropriately or posts something indecent? If a group member says something salacious, other group members tend to reply, but if it escalates their comment(s) can be removed and reported to Facebook by the student administrators.

Similar to Facebook Pages, Groups offer a sense of a smaller, more engaged community, only with privacy controls and three types of settings: Open, Closed, and Secret. I highly recommend using a Closed group, because anyone on Facebook can discover and ask to join the group, but only members can read posts. Group administrators are responsible for approving and removing members and monitoring the group for rude or inappropriate posts. Click here to see the complete privacy options for Facebook Groups. 

Next, have your student administrators communicate to the group membership where your school’s official social media channels and event calendars are located. It can help amplify your message and create more followers, which leads to more engagement and discovery through other social media networks, such as Twitter or Instagram. Pose questions to your group, but not too often - allow the new students to direct the conversation, only jumping in to kickstart a conversation.

Remember to promote your Facebook Groups and add the URL for each group on your school’s main Facebook page, even adding the URL to the admissions website - why not send it out with your acceptance letter to students? 

Lastly, make sure to add a custom photo in the header and provide a description in the About tab. I'm a big fan of Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other social networks, but right now the best way to get new and prospective students to communicate, share, and talk about your school is by using Facebook Groups.

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6 Things To Teach Students About Social Media

Today’s society is becoming more and more socially focused with each passing day. Social media is not simply a passing trend; it is here to stay. Now more than ever, students need to understand the basics of social media and how it can affect their future both negatively and positively. A strong or weak social media presence now affects both college admissions and the workforce.

Professionals look for people that know how to stay both current and professional in the middle of a social age. There are several things that teachers can begin teaching students early on about social media that can help them as they enter college and the job force.

1. Online Reputation:
   One of the best things teacher can teach students about is how to manage your online reputation. An online reputation can effectively keep high school students from landing a good job during school. More and more employers do a quick search on Google before making a decision regarding potential employees. Students should understand that what they put on the Internet is out there for the public, unless it is properly protected.
2. Privacy:
   Teach students the importance of maintaining a professional public appearance online, and show them how to use the privacy settings on popular social networks to keep personal things private to your inner circle. Protecting your privacy can mean the difference between an unintentionally posted, inappropriate photo being leaked online and keeping it private before your can delete it.
3. Keep Connections:
   While students may not understand it now, their classmates and teammates may become a valuable connection down the road. Encourage your students to connect with one another on social media, and to stay connected even after they stop going to school with one another.
4. Establish Your Expertise:
   If students know what they want to do with the rest of their life, they can begin, even now, establishing themselves in their field. Encourage your students to start blogging about their passion and getting involved in that online community. You never know what opportunities that may open for you down the road.
5. Use it to Your Advantage: Aside from these benefits, there are also monetary benefits of being Internet savvy. College students can find the cheapest used textbooks online. Teach them where to find these and how much money it will save them when they enroll in school/
6. Stay Updated:
   Staying current on new trends will help you get ahead of the crowd and show that you are a go-getter and on top of new things. Staying updated will keep you from falling behind the times, which seem to change very quickly in an online world.

Social media will drive the upcoming generation even more than this one. It’s incredibly important that students learn early on how to manage their accounts and use the for their advantage. It may not traditional, but some things really are more useful than Algebra.

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