Facebook, MySpace, and Co.: IHEs ponder whether or not to embrace social networking websites.TO BE OR NOT TO BE ON MySpace, Facebook, and other social networking websites This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. ? That is the question. With the growing interest in these online marketing and PR newcomers, higher ed leaders are wondering about making the leap and setting up a presence in such uncharted--and often described as dangerous--waters. WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY MySpace and Facebook, the most popular of these websites, have been around for less than four years. But they already tout member bases of more than 100 million for MySpace and more than 19 million for Facebook, and MySpace got a profile boost when it was puchased by Rupert Murdock in 2005. Beyond these numbers reported by the companies themselves, independent surveys have confirmed a mere fact of life in America: Students are addicted to these new "social clubs." The Noel-Levitz report "E-Expectations: The Class of 2007" labeled upcoming college freshmen "the Social-Networking Generation." A national survey of 1,018 high school juniors conducted by phone in 2006 found that 43 percent had created a profile page designed for prospective students using a site such as MySpace or Live Journal; the 57 percent who hadn't said they would if they could. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Stephanie Geyer of Noel-Levitz, an update to the project will ask several additional questions to explore students' ideas about, and preferences for, college and university engagement on external social networking sites A Web site that provides a virtual community for people interested in a particular subject or just to "hang out" together. Members create their own online "profile" with biographical data, pictures, likes, dislikes and any other information they choose to post. . She notes that many schools are considering or have built their own social networking See social networking site. social networking - social network communities within their own sites. As the current report notes: "Today's college-bound students connect, communicate, and create collectively online. This trend toward online social networks presents dramatic implications--and new possibilities--for e-recruitment." In late 2006, the Pew Internet and American Life Research Project surveyed a national sample of 935 youths ages 12 to 17 about how and why they use social networking sites. The report, "Social Networking Websites and Teens: An Overview," confirms that 55 percent of online teens have created a personal profile online; 55 percent have used sites like Facebook. Also discovered: 48 percent of teens visit social networking websites daily, with 22 percent visiting several times a day. And "The 2007 Horizon Report," released around the same time by the New Media Consortium and the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI Eli (ē`lī), in the Bible, high priest and judge of Israel, teacher of the boy Samuel. 1. (language) ELI - An early system on the IBM 705 and IBM 650. [Listed in CACM 2(5):16 (May 1959)]. 2. ), concluded that social networking web services (1) Loosely, any online service delivered over the Web. Such usage appears in articles from non-technical sources, but not in IT-oriented publications, because definition #2 below describes the correct use of the term. can't be ignored. "Increasingly, this is the reason students log on. The websites that draw people back again and again are those that connect them with friends, colleagues, or even total strangers who have a shared interest," explains the report. ADMINISTRATORS KEEP OUT? While these sites are widely used, they're seen as student-only spaces. Are administrators or professors even welcome? Fred Stutzman--a PhD student at the School of Information and Library Science at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public, coeducational, research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Also known as The University of North Carolina, Carolina, North Carolina, or simply UNC who has researched identity, social software, social technologies, computer-mediated communication Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) can be defined broadly as any form of data exchange across two or more networked computers. More frequently, the term is narrowed to include only those communications that occur via computer-mediated formats (i.e. , and more specifically Facebook--thinks social networks are key media through which students can be engaged. Conversations that level the playing field among students, academics, and administrators can occur. In other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , students and faculty/staff are equals on these sites. "Part of college is building successful relationships with those in power, and the humanizing aspect of communication in a space like Facebook goes a long way," he says. That's just the idea behind an initiative at Mars Hill College Mars Hill College is a private, coed, liberal-arts college affiliated with the North Carolina Baptist Convention. The college is located in the small town of Mars Hill, North Carolina, 15 miles due north of Asheville, western North Carolina's largest city. (N.C.), which settled in MySpace and Facebook last year. Initially used for on-campus communications, Facebook has become an enrollment strategy addition. Once the MHC MHC major histocompatibility complex. MHC abbr. major histocompatibility complex MHC major histocompatibility complex. network reached a certain momentum with current students, more and more students from high schools visited by MHC admissions reps or who had been sent mailings started to join the Facebook "friends" group of the institution. "Now, many of those Facebook friends are enrolled to attend next fall," says Andy Mrozkowski, webmaster at MHC. The University of Florida University of Florida is the third-largest university in the United States, with 50,912 students (as of Fall 2006) and has the eighth-largest budget (nearly $1.9 billion per year). UF is home to 16 colleges and more than 150 research centers and institutes. also started to use Facebook groups last year to promote three graduate programs to undergrads This article is about the television show. For the educational term, see undergraduate education. This article or section does not cite its . You can Wikipedia by introducing appropriate citations. . The decision was based on plans developed by a graduate-level public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most class, on assignment for the University Relations office. Course descriptions, faculty and student bios, and research information were included on Facebook. Grad students and faculty members posted comments and responded when undergrads inquired about the programs. Each program was seeking 10 to 12 additional graduate students, and with that goal met by all three, Joe Hice, associate vice president for Marketing & Public Relations, says, "We believe the Facebook outreach helped." Another example: Park School of Communication at Ithaca College The college offers a curriculum with over 100 degree programs in its five schools:
INSTITUTION-CREATED SITES David Bowers, assistant dean for external affairs at California Western School of Law Founded in 1924, California Western School of Law (popularly known as California Western or Cal Western) is a private, non-profit law school located in San Diego, California. in San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. , is a strong believer in the power and the future of online social networking. But he has stayed away from Facebook or MySpace, despite that CWSL CWSL California Western School of Law students have set up groups on both sites on their own. "It would be a breach of my responsibility to my constituents to recommend the use of those sites rather than provide them the tools they're looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. ," he says. The institution had studied closely the terms of agreement of these third-party, for-profit services. Administrators now have plans to launch a private social networking website using an external vendor instead. The public social networking concept, Stutzman notes, "is not a public service. It is not a utility. There are no guarantees about what may happen to the Facebook [business], who may buy it, or what may happen with its data. Colleges must keep this in mind before they base any strategy too squarely in the Facebook." In this context, is a private social-networking website the way to go? It's definitely the safest and the most convenient--for institutions, at least. WHAT DO STUDENTS THINK? Sam Jackson, a senior at Philips Exeter Academy (N.H.) who has reported extensively about the whole college admission process on his personal blog, has been admitted to the Yale Class of 2011. Like other early-admitted freshmen, he has used the institution's own website, which has a section dedicated to the future students. He also interacts with peers on a Facebook group these high school seniors created themselves. While he recognizes the usefulness of the school's website, such websites do demand students juggle yet another login Signing in and gaining access to a network server, Web server or other computer system. The process (the noun) is a "login" or "logon," while the act of doing it (the verb) is to "log in" or to "log on. and web presence. He says, "I would like to see an integration between one of these sites and another more mainstream social networking website--a concept that I understand was actually under consideration from the development staff" [at Yale] ." With the release of Facebook application programming interface (API) in August 2006, this kind of integration is now possible and could help build the next generation of social networking websites on your campus. Five Rules for Marketing Institutions Using Social Networking Sites If your college or university has made the decision to launch a marketing initiative using third-party social networking websites, follow these basic rules of engagement. 1. Know whom you are dealing with. Read the terms of service (networking) Terms Of Service - (TOS) The rules laid down by an on-line service provider such as AOL that members must obey or risk being "TOS-sed" (disconnected). of any external website you'd like to include in your marketing mix and make sure your institution can deal with any possible associated privacy and copyright risks. 2. Meet the locals. Set up a profile on any social networking websites you might use as a communication channel to experience the service firsthand as a user. 3. Learn the culture and the language. Marketing speak doesn't work very well in online communities. Get a good idea of what's acceptable behavior and what's not. 4. Select and empower good ambassadors. Talk to (and listen to) your student employees or interns. They use these websites on a daily basis and are part of the scenery. Delegating your social networking efforts to student ambassadors will avoid possible backlash caused by what could be perceived as administrator invasion of students' privacy. 5. Follow the laws of the land. Don't get your outreach initiatives bogged down by legalities. For example, institutions can create profiles on MySpace. While they are barred from doing so on Facebook, they can launch a group instead. Resources Collegewebeditor.com (more research and examples), www.collegewebeditor.com/social Facebook, www.faceboook.com MySpace, www.myspace.com Noel Levitz E-Expectations Report, www.noellevitz.com/Papers+and+Research/Research North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop. State University's webcast of Facebook Phenonemon panel discussion, www.ncsu.edu/facebook Sam Jackson's college blog, www.samjackson.org/college |
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