LinkedIn

[StoicJ]

What is it, who uses it, and why?

And for those who are familiar but stay away from it, why is that?

[bjcheung77]

I don't use it, individuals use it for "connections" and "recommendations" for finding jobs, for networking, etc...
Most people use it to enhance their resume or in additional to their resume, and for personal "show" for prospective employers...
For me, I think if I am already in a good position, there's no need to "display" myself for others to hire.
I would rather use other tools of networking, I think individuals use LinkedIn are middle management and lower.
The ones higher up the chain don't want that much exposure, they already have their "careers" and their path set.

[StoicJ]

I see downside, but not much upside. But I know it's pretty popular so I am trying to understand how people use it.

It's basically a resume that everyone has access to? You can create a list with it of, say, accountants in Memphis TN who graduated from Ball State and speak Spanish?

[sanantone]

When I was looking at reviews for Free Code Academy, I saw that many people were contacted by recruiters and landed jobs just by listing their skills on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is great for some fields; it's completely useless in my field.

[bluebooger]

I made a linkedin account solely because when I completed some statistics.com courses they (statistics.com) gave me a digital certificate I could post on linkedin -- so I figured hey, why not

I obviously didn't pay for the premium linkedin account --- $30 a month ?? LOL, yeah right
maybe if I get laid off some day I'll do a premium for a couple of months to see if it helps me get a job, but not now

and of course me being the smart *** I am when I signed up I put my job title as "blah blah blah"

a couple of months later I got an email from support saying that was against the TOS and they politely asked me to put my real job down -- and they really were very polite

so of course I put "potato farmer" and my location as "Idaho" LOL

which is about as far from my actual job and location as could be

[Bibby]

Basically, LinkedIn is a public-visible resume, and it's a tool for staying in touch with your wider circle of colleagues. It's also a place to publish articles of varying quality, and some people use LinkedIn groups to discuss topics of interest. I've had a few recruiters contact me on LinkedIn about job opportunities (although in every case, it was either a job I didn't want, or else they ended up hiring someone with more experience).

If you're a recent graduate looking for a job, I highly recommend having a LinkedIn account and making sure your profile is complete and up-to-date. It won't hurt you to have a professional online presence, and it may help you find a promising opportunity. On the other hand, if you're settled in your career, and you're not using LinkedIn for professional networking or publishing articles, making a LinkedIn might not help you very much.

As Sanantone mentioned, LinkedIn is valuable in some fields but practically useless in others. It's big in the IT, finance, and marketing fields. It's probably less useful in healthcare, security, elementary education, or law (with the possible exception of certain highly specialized positions in those fields).

[StoicJ]

Thanks. I'm starting to see some ways I might be able to use it. After I wrap up this degree and my relocation I will set up an account.

[RANSOMSOUL]

Here is how I see the platform:

Young person pursuing degree (LinkedIn's value will be excellent in growing your network for connections on jobs and job resources once you graduate)

Mid-Level Employee (LinkenIn's value is showing you how many companies are out there and possibly need your skill sets. Some people go to work on Monday, praying for Friday - willing to give up 4 days of their life in jobs they hate. Why continue to stay at a position if you have an excellent resource that can aid in your efforts to get out!

Upper Management/C-Level (LinkedIn's value is excellent on leveraging for corporate opportunities)

I do some heavy international traveling and have used LinkedIn from business opportunities, leveraged relationships with beautiful places to stay and mostly just to meet some super talented people that I now call friends.

Online platforms like, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram (heck Degreeforum) can be a waste of time and worthless to many but they can also be phenomenal resources if you use them with that as your focus.

[cookderosa]

What is it, who uses it, and why?

And for those who are familiar but stay away from it, why is that?

I'm there! You can find me if you type in homeschoolingforcollegecredit... I think.

[icampy]

Basically everyone in aerospace uses it, so I keep mine up to date. Northrup, boeing, nasa, blue origin, spacex, ula, blah blah. I made one years and years ago, I only started maintaining it a few years ago, though. Gotten some job offers from it, most are junk, but a few that were serious, but that is not why I have one at all. Its just a serious version of fb for adults. Like previously mentioned, a public resume and profile. Just make one, add your connections, update it regularly, and someday it might help you out. I never do anything except update skills amd certifications when I gain new ones.