Preparing Yourself for the Career World with LinkedIn

As a Nigerian undergraduate, it’s normal to start thinking about how to get a job. But do you know that you can start preparing for the career world while in University? How?

With Linkedin!

What is LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is an online platform that allows you to connect with professional individuals or organizations in any field of your interest.

Furthermore, you can use the platform to:

• Seek job opportunities
• Showcase your professional skills 
• Reach out to potential employers
• Connect with work colleagues, professionals, or institutions of interest
• Build your brand through your profile page, sharing content (posts, pictures, videos), and engaging with your networks
• Communicate with various people from all walks of life.
• Keep tabs on the happenings in  your fields of interest

Sounds exciting, right? Gone are the days when you’d have to go from one company to another with your CV in hand to get a job. With LinkedIn, you can easily find places you’d like to work for, reach out to them (through their preferred communication channel), and be on your way to the career of your dreams.

But before you’d be able to do all of the above, you’d need to create a LinkedIn profile. And not just like an ordinary social media profile, but one that will draw the interest of hiring managers and valuable networks. 

How to Create an Attractive LinkedIn Profile 

You can also create a LinkedIn business page if you need one. 

Note that your profile doesn’t have to be perfect at first, but be sure to constantly update it.

Setting Up Your Network

After setting up your profile, LinkedIn allows you to follow/connect with other members based on the details you provided, e.g education, work experience, interests, etc.

A connection involves you inviting an individual of your choice. In return, the person accepts the invitation and becomes part of your network. You can also send each other private messages, and view content, and networks.

Following a page/individual is the same as you do on other social media channels. You’d be able to keep track of their activities and view their content without a direct connection.

Make sure you only follow pages or users relevant to your personal and professional growth.

How to Apply for a Job on LinkedIn

As we stated earlier, LinkedIn is your go-to source for seeking job/internship opportunities. Based on the details you provided on skills and work experience, the app allows you to search for any job of your choice. You’re also given an option to receive notifications on any related job opening through your email. Once you accept, you’ll be able to get a list of jobs.

After you pick a job, you’ll see the full details about the company hiring, what they’re looking for, and how you can reach them. Some drop their email address for you to contact while others don’t. But don’t worry, LinkedIn gives you the option to either ‘apply’ or ‘save’ the job. 

If you choose to apply, you get to upload your cover letter and resume. An email is sent to you to confirm your application. Then you wait for a reply.

Note: LinkedIn also allows your page to be visible to hiring managers. But it depends on you filling in all the needed details briefly and concisely to attract the industries you’d like to work with.

Ways to Attract More Connections and Valuable Networks on LinkedIn

• Create engaging content (like an update on a project you’re working on, an interesting experience, or a repost of a member’s content)
• Comment and react to other members’ posts
• The more you connect, the more visibility your page gets for hiring managers to access
• Publish and share articles
• Post video content
• Update your status, eg, let your network know what you’re up to in your career, job search, or in life.
• Lastly, be consistent. Your page cannot thrive without you. So try to be active to engage your audience, update your profile, and create more valuable connections.

But what if you have no work experience?

You can still showcase your skills and passion with your content. You can also be on the lookout for internship openings and apply. 

Don’t forget that it takes time to build a network as a beginner. So don’t rush in inviting or following just any user.

Learn ways to make your LinkedIn profile better as you progress.

Good luck.