Some students are changing the content and privacy settings to their Facebook accounts in case prospective employers look at them.
A recent survey commissioned by Microsoft found that 70 percent of recruiters and hiring managers in the United States have rejected an applicant based on information they found online.
The survey also found that 78 percent of recruiters use search engines to find applicants and 63 percent look at applicants' profiles on social networking sites such as Facebook.
Telecommunications professor Dom Caristi said he doesn't think people are aware of how often employers search for information about people online.
"I think it's happening more today than it did last year," he said. "It's not something everyone does but there are more people saying ‘I might take advantage of this.'"
Caristi said he discusses the risks of social networking Web sites with his students.
"I advise students that no matter what they think when they set their privacy settings, their information isn't shared just among their friends," he said.
Sophomore education major Emily Spalding said she recently changed her privacy settings and took content off her profile. She said she's actively looking for a job, and she deleted content that may seem inappropriate for her future after she graduates.
"The sooner you get that stuff off your profile the better," she said. "Two years from now when I'm looking for a teaching job, no one should be able to see my stuff because of the privacy settings, but if they somehow get around it, they would have to look pretty deep to find anything."
People often aren't aware how easy it is for other people to find information online including where they live, groups they've joined and causes they have supported, Caristi said.
Telecommunications chairman Joe Misiewicz said he's made comments in class about people changing their names on Facebook. He said he thinks some students are tidying their profiles and trying to make their sites more private.
Caristi said the combination of inappropriate material on Facebook and how someone presents themselves in an interview could make or break them when it comes to getting hired.
"If what's on your Facebook profile is a bunch of pictures of you drinking out of beer funnels in party mode, that's going to impact no matter how good your interview is," he said.
Spalding said it's important that profiles are set to private so that you have an opportunity to truly market yourself.
"If you have your profile set to private, all [employers] will have to judge you on is your interview," she said.
Caristi said it might be too late for students to get some of their information, such as pictures, delted because digital copies could have been made, but it's never too late for students to try to protect themselves.
Students should set their privacy settings as strictly as possible and watch what sort of information they put on their pages.
"They should adopt the attitude that they shouldn't post information that they think is private between friends," he said. "If you wouldn't be comfortable with your parents seeing it, then don't post it."
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