by Marie Herb 

When applying for colleges, students often use many online resources to find out about schools they are considering. On the flip side, colleges are also using online resouces (including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even google) to learn more about who is applying to their schools and what kind of image these students will bring to these respective schools. Schools are increasingly uses social media sites as a way to “protect” themselves from students who could destoy the school’s reputation as Bauerlein’s article explains.

Constantly, hearing about some of the tragic and terrible events that occur on college campuses at the hands of college students, colleges should have a right to know who is applying to their school “beyond” an essay. Social media plays a key part in many teenager’s lives, which is why it is an interesting and key part of the application process. As more schools are admitting to using social media as a factor that is considered when applying to schools, perhaps more students will think twice about posting inappropriate materials online. While this does not solve the problem, of teenagers acting in ways that colleges do not see as positive, perhaps it could help make them learn to be careful what to post on social media sites.