LinkedIn is the world's largest professional network on the internet. Some people have described it as Facebook for your professional career, while others treat it as an online networking tool.
However you use it, LinkedIn can help you to find the right job or internship, connect, strengthen and enhance your professional network, and help you learn the skills you need to succeed in your career.
So if you’re thinking about exploring new opportunities or looking for a new job, then here are some tips to make sure you’re ‘findable’ on LinkedIn.
Make sure your profile is complete
This may seem obvious but not everyone completes the core and recommended sections of their LinkedIn profile. The reason this is often overlooked is that you have to add the sections manually so it’s worth checking that you have added the basics including education, current position, career break and skills.
Your education is one of the first sections a recruiter looks at so make sure you’ve added the highest qualification you’ve achieved.
By adding and you will automatically display our badge on your profile.
Update your skills regularly
LinkedIn is essentially a search engine and your skills are “keywords” used by the algorithm to produce and prioritise search results.
According to LinkedIn, members with five or more skills listed are contacted up to 33 times more by recruiters and other LinkedIn members. It is easy to let your “Featured Skills and Endorsements” section of your LinkedIn profile become out of date as you acquire new skills and others become less relevant, so at the start of a new year, or when you change roles take the time to update your skills.
You can choose from over 50,000 standard skills from supply chain management to aerospace engineering, or add your own. You can display a maximum of 50 skills but be strategic about your choices to ensure they are relevant to your career goals and the interests of recruiters.
Recognise the skills of your colleagues and contacts
Endorsements from your connections on the platform will help your LinkedIn profile appear higher up in the search results and should get you more profile views.
Start by endorsing your professional connections such as managers, colleagues, people you’ve worked with and university peers for their skills, and you should find that they return the favour. You can also ask for endorsements directly. This also applies to giving recommendations – another powerful way to boost your profile on LinkedIn.
Spread the word
To keep updated on all the latest Cranfield developments and opportunities, make sure to follow us and join your alumni groups on LinkedIn.
For more career-related resources check out our Career learning packs. The learning packs, exclusively available to Cranfield students and alumni, cover a wide range of topics from CV creation to negotiating job offers, and virtual recruitment events to psychometric assessments. Log in to your alumni portal to .
