{"id":2470,"date":"2015-06-02T11:49:28","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T10:49:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/?p=2470"},"modified":"2015-08-11T10:47:21","modified_gmt":"2015-08-11T09:47:21","slug":"academics-are-you-linkedin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/2015\/06\/02\/academics-are-you-linkedin\/","title":{"rendered":"Academics, are you LinkedIn?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Rolodex\"<\/a>

flickr photo by renaissancechambara<\/a> shared under a Creative Commons (BY) license<\/p><\/div>\n

Academic.edu, Mendeley, Researchgate are among a growing range of online\u00a0professional networking tools\u00a0that support academic practice and are\u00a0increasingly used by academics to further their\u00a0professional learning networks (PLNs). These platforms typically offer members a social space within which to share ideas about teaching, highlight their latest research and showcase their\u00a0work. If you use these platforms, you might also want to consider\u00a0joining\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0the professional business networking service.<\/p>\n

Why link in?<\/h3>\n

LinkedIn describes itself as ‘the world’s largest professional network with 300 million members in over 200 countries and territories around the globe.’ You should consider LinkedIn simply because this is where you will find a vast majority of\u00a0academics and your professional colleagues. LinkedIn is essentially the 21st century version of a rolodex<\/a>\u00a0(image to illustrate above for our younger readers!).\u00a0If you conduct a search in LinkedIn’s people search for ‘academics’, you will yield a return of over 220,000 results; a sizeable proportion of potential colleagues who could share your research interests, help to raise the profile of your research as well as hold the potential for future collaborative working.<\/p>\n

Getting started<\/h3>\n

Select a professional picture that you are happy with, register with LinkedIn\u00a0and then add your qualifications, your academic experience, research awards papers and publications.\u00a0Now that you have a complete profile, you can begin to add your contacts, both past and current, possibly future, from your work history. It is modern day\u00a0etiquette to add people that you meet at conferences too and by doing so, you will soon build a professional community.\u00a0Take a look at Andreas Kornelakis<\/a>, Lecturer in Human Resources Management, for an idea of how your profile can look.<\/p>\n

\"LinkedIn<\/a><\/p>\n

Inside LinkedIn<\/h3>\n

Your LinkedIn dashboard will give you\u00a0access to five distinct areas.\u00a0Here is a brief description of each function to help you navigate your way around your profile.<\/p>\n