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As a student who is about to go through the college admission process once again and in a few years will be applying for a “big girl job” I have used social media to get information on prospective schools and possible jobs that apply to my major; I also use social media in the same way many of my peers do, as a public forum to express my inner thoughts and share about my day to day life. Using social media as an emotional and idea outlet can be problematic onsidering many admission officers and possible future employers can easily access this information and use it to determine my eligibility.
While it is perfectly legal for both colleges and employers to consider your social media presence I think it becomes a question of whether or not it is ethical and whether it infringes on a person civil liberties. It is widely known that the first amendment gives you the freedom of speech and the fourth amendment is typically used to ensure your privacy but these unalienable right cannot revent colleges or employers from viewing your social media sites, a place where you shouldn’t feel the need to censor yourself, and use them against you.
In my opinion your language on social media shouldn’t be held against you as long as you are practicing pure speech. It is a known fact that many colleges view your social media sites but believe that if they are going to do so it should be stated in their admissions guidelines and they should have formal policies about how they review your social media presence and also rocedure to verify the identity of the applicants social media since fake and malicious accounts can be made easily.
The formal policies should include information about who conducts the reviews, the weight of your social media footprint in the admission process, and how the school will ensure equal treatment and prevent discrimination against applicants with the information which includes photos. With the internet and social media becoming more accepted everyday privacy is diminishing and the bill of rights seems to be lowly becoming obsolete.
Although colleges and employers viewing your social media may seem like a violation of your civil rights they are simply taking advantage of the resources given to them and viewing what you posted to be view publicly.