Facebook Self-(Re)Presentation and the Employers’ Practice of Using It as a Recruitment Tool

The online social networks allow individuals to continuously create and model their self-presentations and representations. Facebook stands for a relevant example as people are given the uncensored opportunity to unfold their online selves according to their interests, preferences, goals and expectations. The current research aims at investigating the way students (re)present themselves on Facebook social networks and their readiness to consider the implications of Facebook usage as a recruitment tool by the current employers. As more and more people use figurative photos to present themselves on Facebook, it becomes important to understand whether the users are aware of the consequences derived from uninspired choices when it comes to future employment. Neither the virtual, nor the physical self can ever truly be liberated from the other and the association between them may become an advantage and a disadvantage at the same time. The investigation is concentrated on the person’s perception, taking into consideration the reasons for profile pictures and album photos selection, for the generated content and its effects on the online identity. The analysis relies on a sociological survey based on self-administered questionnaires – 89 undergraduate students from the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration in Bucharest participated to the research we conducted during two weeks in April 2013. The data analysis validates the main hypothesis is that students’ self-presentation through their Facebook profiles follows the offline personal data and is not influenced by potential employers’ assessments. The main objective of this paper is to present a manner of using Facebook for faculties in order to better communicate with students. Thus our research is based upon previous examples from academic literature and upon a pilot study conducted online, using a self-administrated questionnaire applied on students from the College of Communication and Public Relations at the National School of Political Science and Public Administration in Bucharest. Based on their answers, this article proposes some recommendations for using Facebook for university staff and professors.