Robert Starks Jr., Vice President of Learning Initiatives for MaxKnowledge and Founder of Careertipster, discusses the opportunities to use social media strategies in the private postsecondary education sector in an interview for Career Education Magazine.

1. TM
Social Media Strategies –
How to Use Them, and When
With Robert Starks, Jr., MaxKnowledge, Inc.
Published by: woRkFoRce communications © 2012 The Baxandall Company, Inc.
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2. Reprinted with permission.
© 2012 The Baxandall Co., Inc.
Published by
Workforce Communications
Career School Services www.careereducationreview.net
Social Media Strategies –
How to Use Them, and When
With Robert Starks, Jr., MaxKnowledge, Inc.
W ithin the career college sector,
career outcomes are under the micro-
employers surveyed use social media
as a recruitment tool. There are multiple
scope – now more so than ever. And other similar surveys out there, and
given today’s economy, there are ad- they all show an increasing trend of
ditional challenges that exist within using social media as a mechanism to
the career college sector – for both source talent. Yet, the percentage of
the institutions and career services
professionals. Social media is a new
According to a 2011 Jobvite
tool that can be leveraged specifically
by career services professionals to help
Social Recruiting Survey, 80.2
them face some of those challenges by percent of employers surveyed
helping a school’s graduates find jobs use social media as a recruit-
and be more career-ready. ment tool.
For many people, social media is just
a fad or simply a communications tool. graduates, or even schools and career
But that’s where they’re mistaken. There advisors using social media to help their
has been a global adoption of social students is nowhere near as high. Why?
media and it represents a new way of Perhaps it’s because career advisors
human interaction. And whenever have not yet recognized that this shift
human interaction changes it also has occurred and, therefore, are not
changes society. intervening to train the graduates
According to a 2011 Jobvite Social coming out of their schools to use and
Recruiting Survey, 80.2 percent of harness social media in a way that
ROBERT STARKS JR. is Masters of Science in Management from Colorado
the vice president of Technical University, and his undergraduate
learning initiatives for degree in marketing from Arizona State
MaxKnowledge, Inc., the University. He is the director of media and
leading employee training technology for the Arizona Career Development
company for the career Association (ACDA) and the founder of
college sector of higher Careertipster.com.
education. His experience
in career services, alumni Contact Information:
relations, and community Robert Starks Jr.
outreach in the career Vice President of Learning Initiatives
education sector earned MaxKnowledge, Inc.
him three Best Practice Awards from the Arizona Twitter @robertstarksjr
Private School Association. Robert earned his E-mail: roberts@maxknowledge.com

3. 29 Career Education Review • October 2012
allows them to gain exposure to the employer screening in 2011. By contrast,
very recruiters who are using these in 2012 it is number three. It’s also im-
platforms to search for them. portant to note that there is an entire
Career advisors need to step in industry being built today called Online
and do something to improve this Reputation Management. So there is
situation, said Robert Starks, Jr., vice no argument that social media and
president of learning initiatives with online presence is big business.
MaxKnowledge, Inc. “We as career professionals can’t
“They need new skills, first of all, to be satisfied with helping graduates
help them understand how to use just develop resumes, cover letters
social media for job and the other traditional career market-
According to research done searches. That’s the ing tools,” explained Starks. “We need
first challenge,” he new skills and we need to teach gradu-
by Employment Screening
said. “The second is ates search engine optimization, how
Resources, social media back- a rising trend in to control your Google results, how to
ground checks ranked 6th on employers not only clean up or optimize their profiles in
their list of top 10 trends in using social media such a way that it enhances their
employer screening in 2011. to source candidates brand so they’ll be seen by the very
By contrast, in 2012 it is but to screen candi- recruiters who are looking for them,
number three. dates, as well. It has and so on.”
become a new type The career college sector touts as
of background check, if you will.” one of its differentiating factors from
According to research done by public institutions the fact that they are
Employment Screening Resources, heavily focused on career outcomes
social media background checks ranked and that their career service staff is
6th on their list of top 10 trends in heavily focused on helping graduates
Robert Starks, Jr., passionately explaining social media strategies to attendees of the 2012 APSCU
Convention in Las Vegas.

4. Career Education Review • October 2012 30
find jobs. Yet, many career advisors lack they’ve never had the ability to
the skills necessary to utilize social do before now. They can gain
media tools. insight into those students and
There are several ways career learn things they’re passionate
advisors can leverage social media about and involved in. That infor-
that go beyond a communication medi- mation can then be used to re-
um. And because social media is ever- engage the student in a conver-
evolving, these new skills should be sation. It’s about building relation-
learned, honed and used all the time, ships and building rapport like
whenever possible, to better help never before.
prepare and train students:
Skip-Tracing
Communication and Data Mining
• Again, schools are able to research
• Social media is not just a communi- and locate students or graduates
cations tool. There are entire online who have defaulted or dropped out.
communities behind the tools.
Personal Development
• Help students understand that
the conversations they’re having • Social media has enhanced our
online are not just conversations. ability to engage with other experts,
They are producing content and not just in books or blogs, but
data. And anyone who uses social also through Twitter. You can
media, no matter the platform, is have a conversation with an expert
a publisher. As a publisher, every- that you might otherwise never
thing you say online is now data be able to meet. You can read an
that is indexed by
Google; it is per-
manent and it is Takeaways on what social media is and
searchable. Data on why it’s important:
the Internet can live • Social media isn’t just a fad. It’s also not
outside the Internet. only important – it’s an absolute game-
This has implications changer.
for how students and • Digital Media Literacy is a must-have for
graduates need to advisors.
be trained to be care- • Social media is not just technology – it’s
ful in what they say culture and relationships.
online and how they
• Data mining can improve engagement;
manage their online
connect with those who fall off the map;
personal brand.
learn from experts and engage.
• Schools always have • Personal branding is a must – to model
graduates that fall and teach.
off the map. By using • The new job search is about inbound
social media, schools marketing.
now have the ability • In order to prepare for the future,
to research someone training is a necessity.
online – something

5. 31 Career Education Review • October 2012
expert’s blog and learn, over time, profiles. They also need to think
through the content that they are about their SEOs and whether
publishing and sharing with the they own their own domain name
world. And by following the right and have a Web site. “Everything
experts, one can actually engineer that’s happening in traditional
their own learning network, much business marketing is happening
like when one goes to conferences for personal branding and how
and seminars. This can only en- we market ourselves to get a job.
hance what a student learns in As stated before, this requires new
the classroom, Starks said. If skill sets that career advisors
career advisors can teach students should be helping teach students
to do this, it can be very empower- and graduates,” said Starks.
ing. It will also help them enhance
their ability to target the networks • Job search in social media doesn’t
and the people they should be mean that one starts using social
getting to know and engaging with. media tools just to look for jobs.
That would equate to an old school
Personal Branding and Job Searching way of looking for a job. Today
it’s about using social media tools
• There’s been an explosion in tech- to make opportunities come to
nology and how people market them. It’s about teaching students
themselves. No longer can a student to be a magnet that attracts people
or career advisor think that a job and opportunities to them. Every-
search strategy involves having a one needs to become marketers
resume, cover letter, business and understand inbound marketing
cards and thank you letters. Today and how it relates to their careers.
they need to think about a market- Written by Cheryl Hentz.
ing campaign and a student’s social