Steven Cohen of Library Stuff asks about "Using Blogs as a Recruitment Tool"?
I posted a comment, but thought I’d expand a bit more here.
As a current LIS student, I just don’t see how this would work without
some serious censorship, self- or school imposed. I don’t know any students who are always upbeat about their experiences here.And while we all have had some outstanding experiences to relate that might work for recruitment efforts, I would seriously question the integrity of the person who only reported the "good" stuff. But then, I question all marketing.
From the article Steven points to:
Though the blogs are sanctioned by Ball State as a recruitment tool,
school officials insist the online documents are uncensored.…
Jerrick Adams, a Delta High School junior, said the concept might benefit teens shopping for a college if it’s done right.
"It sounds like a good idea, but I’m just wondering how honest these students will be," said Adams. "It’s an issue that could come into play."
Not to pick on the youngun’s but if a HS junior can see the self-censorship issue here…?
Could this work? Sure, but only in certain ways. If the students(s) selected are one or more of the following:
- "Cheerleaders"
- Highly atypical, in that they enjoy every assignment, professor,….
- Willing to self-censor for the "good of the department."
Now, one might ask what is the difference between this and some current
student bloggers, or even what is expected of the professional
librarian in regards to her own institution? On one hand, the
differences are minimal or even non-existent one could argue, on the
other, they are fairly large.
I am not disparaging any personal bloggers who have blogged about their LIS education. All I am saying is that they most likely censored themselves. They wrote only about positive experiences or if they wrote about negative ones, then it was probably a highly specific case and was also probably worded more carefully than normal (Including myself here).
For instance, see this excerpt from Joy’s "What I don’t blog."
When I get together with other students we complain–a lot. I believe it is an inalienable right of students who have little choice but to jump through each hoop whether it seems to be the right hoop at the right time to us or not. We need outlets and I prefer venting with other students rather than my husband. Or the readers of this blog. Complaints are boring unless you happen to also be trying to figure out how to handle an on-line assignment that still has a vestige of a blue book exam.
But I also don’t complain much on my blog because I don’t want my teachers to read about my problems here. (Not that I believe any of the teachers at my school read my blog, but they could.)
If I have a problem that I should bring up to a teacher, that’s what they invented email and the telephone for. Just as Rochelle, Dorothea, and Meredith wrote about in relation to work, I also want to retain an
aura of professionalism on my blog by not dissing teachers or the school in a public forum over momentary frustrations. I chose this path and I like it, teachers and school included. My blog is about the path, not the momentary frustrations.
I agree entirely with Joy. We students do compain a lot. (Kind of reminds me of being in the Army.) And we deserve to be able to complain, but it must be kept in context. But if potential recruits, er sorry, students, only see the good then they are getting an inaccurate picture.
And to blog as part of a "recruitment campaign" would imply even greater censorship, self or otherwise. Because I can guarantee you that the schools do not want what the current students are discussing at the coffee house, in the lab, or wherever to be blogged, and especially not as part of a recruiting tool.
It may work for Ball State, but it will be because undergrads are different in their information needs than grad students for so many reasons. See the article, they’re talking about what life on campus is "really like," does it snow all the time, dorm room life, blah blah blah. Most grad students are well aware of how to find out that information. More importantly, their questions about what life on campus is really like are in no way the same questions as some kid in high school. The questions will be completely different if only because they have already been on a campus for a while, and they are older.
So, yes, I can see this working for undergraduate recruitment. And maybe even on some level for graduate recruitment but, especially in the case of graduate education, I would argue that it in no way would be truly honest in regards to what is really important to potential students.
And as an aside on Joy’s post, I too do not humor myself that my professors read my blog. But I know for a fact that one of my prof’s (my advisor) is aware of it and has at least looked at my interdisciplinary stuff because I pointed it out to her.
So, will some school try it? Probably. And maybe even because they saw it on Library Stuff. I just hope none of the selected student bloggers try to look me in the eye and tell me they are being fully honest and are uncensored. It’s rude to laugh in people’s faces.
7 responses so far ↓
1 Christina Pikas // Sep 28, 2005 at 7:54 am
A couple of comments. First, the point of blogs as marketing tools for corporations or recruitment tools for universities is to give the large institution a human face (see for example all that’s been written about Scoble’s effect on Microsoft’s image) — to adequately do that, it has to be somewhat honest. Good and bad and forthright about challenges and issues. I *do* think hs kids can spot the fake profiles a million miles away — you know the pretty person on the cover of the flyers.
Second, if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all. I firmly believe that complaining about individual professors or assignments isn’t appropriate for blogs. It’s best done in a closed forum. Professors are people, too, and if you have an issue with them, either bring it up to them f2f and get it taken care of or bitch quietly to your significant other or mommy or pet or whatever. This doesn’t mean fair criticism of one class over another — that’s a great use of a blog and would be helpful to students coming in trying to make a choice. IMHO
2 Mark // Sep 28, 2005 at 8:59 am
Thanks for the comments Christina! Basically, I agree with you.
But after years in the military and other somewhat dysfunctional organizations, I do not agree with the “if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all” meme. I personally find that to be simply ridiculous if we ever want to see much change for the better. I would rephrase it to something closer to, “don’t say anything if you can’t say it nicely.”
Of course, people will interpret that in varying degrees, but at least it allows for constructive criticism. The original formulation only allows for “positive criticism,” by which I mean only pointing out what’s right or good, but does not allow for constructive criticism of what is wrong or even mediocre.
But, even given that, I was not advocating dissing profs, the school, and so on in a blog. I agree fully that if you have an issue with a prof you go see them.
I still stand by my comment that if we follow the rules both you and I are advocating that one would get a skewed picture.
But maybe that’s the philosopher and devil’s advocate (OK, pessimist) in me.
3 jenny // Sep 28, 2005 at 11:32 am
Not to be glib, but why would students want to help with recruitment? I have enough people to compete with already, thanks!
~J
4 Mark // Sep 28, 2005 at 12:44 pm
Hey J, glib is fine because to be honest it was one of my 1st thoughts. But it seemed sort of peripheral to angle from which I wanted to critique the idea.
And I’m trying to be better and not engage in so much negative critique of things. That may mean only pointing out one flaw in something versus pointing out all of them I can find. My philosophy education made it way too simple to engage in that sort of critique without enough emphasis on positive critique.
So small steps in the world for me right now. But I agree, I have no interest in increasing the competition for all those librarian jobs that are out there. Or so I hear anyway.
But then no one has asked me to be a recruiter for the school. And I doubt, and hope, that they wouldn’t. But I also know how to behave in certain situations that might have some bearing on whether someone decides to come here.
And that means I’ll give them a critique, not a recruiting talk. Now, in all self-honesty, it’d probably be a much more positive critique than I might give.
See, self-censorship. My point was not that it is a bad thing. I was only trying to point out a limitation inherent in it. I have spent far too many years representing various organizational entities, to include my country, to be completely clueless as to the politics of the situation.
5 jenny // Sep 28, 2005 at 1:36 pm
Yeah I completely agree with you on the self-censorship point. I think no blog would be useful as a recruitment tool unless it was censored self- or otherwise.
Yeah I guess as I have only attended one library school, I am not really an expert in the field of recommending library schools. Were I to go to library school again, I would still have chosen my library school, but mainly again because I wanted to get out of libschool without a lot of debt. If money were no object, I can think of at least 3 other schools I would think equally qualified, and 2 of those in places I would have liked better.
But I have to say, for the many, many, bad things I have said about my library school (ahem), when I went to a conference the summer after I graduated and saw all these librarians who were like “wireless? why would you want that?!” or “flickr? rss? what are those?” I was happy to have gone where I did!
6 Christina Pikas // Sep 28, 2005 at 7:14 pm
(I’m former Navy so I know *all* about complaining, lol) I think fair, even-handed complaints about the food in the dining hall or parking or whatever would be ok on those blogs. Saying it nicely and avoiding personal attacks would be fine. There might be an administration lawyer, however, who would faint over some of the blogging about underage drinking (oh, no, *we* never did that when I was in school)
Anyway, I *always* plug my library school 1) because it’s awesome 2)because the more brilliant librarians it produces, the better I look for having come from there.
I’ll tell people in a heartbeat what math and physics professors to avoid — just ask — but I won’t do it on a blog.
7 Mark // Sep 28, 2005 at 8:29 pm
Agreed again, Christina. Your point is well taken, and I believe I was trying to say something similar, although from the opposite direction.
I love these converging on a common understanding discussions. There just seems to be a lot less of them where I am (physically) at the moment compared to other places I’ve been.
I too support and will continue to support my library school and for the same reasons as you. Heck, I’m applying to stay for a 2nd degree so I must like it.
I think a lot of my issue with the concept we’ve been discussing is that I have already been a Recruiter, and it was one of the very worst experiences (and 2 years) of my life! And the secondary fact that I despise most marketing.
But yes, I would be happy to discuss specifics in a one-on-one forum, and also not in a blog. I too, as I said earlier, self-censor. I may just draw the line in a slightly different place than someone else.