KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / MONDAY, AUGUST 16, 2010 / BACK TO SCHOOL
37
ORGANIZATIONS
Social Media Club connects on campus
Members say strategic use of Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare can lead to future career opportunities
BY COREY THIBODEAUX cthibodeaux@kansan.com
Social media can do much more than just connect you with friends.
It's a network, a continuous stream of consciousness enabling users to find jobs and windows of opportunities. A new group on campus is planning to make sure students are aware of social networking.
Maya Tao, a senior from China, and Joe Davis, a senior from Coventry, Conn., founded the University's chapter of the Social Media Club. Its goal is to stress the importance of social networking in the non-traditional sense.
"If you are not online and someone is searching you, you are in big trouble," Tao said.
The Social Media Club is an organization with chapters all over the world that aims to promote the practices of social networking, including ethical behavior and literacy.
The group isn't meant to tell people how to use Facebook or Twitter, but how not to use them.
Katie Brosius, a graduate student from Keller, Texas, said the improper use of Facebook hindered the ability to get a job, but other sites were beneficial. Using social media in the proper way, she said, showed potential employers your value.
"It's really how students can differentiate themselves when it comes to getting a job,"
n.
Brosious, who is a part of the Lawrence chapter, said few universities emphasize social media though they should, especially in a small city such as Lawrence.
Other social networking sites are creating new opportunities, which the new group will discuss. Some include the geographically based Foursquare and
"It's really how students can differentiate themselves when it comes to getting a job."
KATIE BROSIUS Keller, Texas graduate student
Gowalla, which allow businesses to give benefits to returning customers.
The website LinkedIn.com is beneficial for business networking, and is imperative for getting a job, Davis said.
"A lot of students aren't on that and they should be," he said.
The students in the social media class on campus talked about the possibilities of starting a group, but no one did anything until now.
The city of Lawrence has its own chapter where members get together at "Tweetups" and discuss the significance social media has in today's world.
Daviss said he wants the University's chapter to start having meetings the first week in September and maybe collaborate with the Lawrence and Kansas State chapters as well.
"Lawrence is a lot more community-oriented than I think a lot of places are," she
said.
For instance, Brosius said, if a
student started talking to a business some work for Kansas Athletics. He on Twitter, that student would be said having those connections will
more likely to be hired because of a demonstrated ability to communicate and network.
And sometimes, getting an education isn't as important as who you know. Davis is the social media
"It's just knowing people, not really what you know."
JOE DAVIS
Coventry, Conn., senior
manager for Lawrence Freenet and what you know"
23rd Street Brewery and has done
do more for him than any degree, all because of social networking.
"Ive probably learned more from working than going to school," he said. "It's just knowing people, not really
on/KANSAN
t lab
wrence science
M. D. Rezaiekhaligh/KANSAN
6A
MONTEMAYOR
smontemayor@kansan.com
For having grown up with the onset of the Internet, our generation may not be all that Web savvy when it comes to researching, a study by the International Journal of Communication suggests.
The study, written and conducted by professors at Northwestern University, found that students often only chose websites that appeared at the top of Google searches to complete tasks or perform research. Eszter Hargitta, associate professor of communication studies at Northwestern and one of the study's authors, said that most mistakes in the Web research process occur before students even click "Search."
"I think part of it is not so much necessarily what else they can be using." Hargittai said. "I think a big part of it is being more critical and careful about what they are already using."
Hargittai said that search results aren't necessarily ranked in terms of credibility. More sophisticated queries are also needed to glean credible sources from popular search engines.
University of Kansas students have nearly 400 databases at their fingertips, with information on every subject at the University that is not usually found through Google searches.
tami Albin, undergraduate instruction and outreach librarian, often helps students interested in improving their ability to navigate the library's extensive online resources. She said that whether a student is using Google or a library database, a level of skill is needed to effectively complete a desired task online.
"The research process, youknow, it's like anything else," Albin said. "You learn how to do something we'll ever time. With new technologies, you have to learn how to do research different ways. A student who jumps online and pulls three articles off of the Internet and then writes a paper on it and hands it in the next day is not going to get really, really good grades."
Albin said that students are welcome to bring assignments to the library to review with a librarian and seek the proper avenue for research.
Rothman said he most often uses the library's databases or news sources such as The New York Times when working on a project. Rothman analyzes the assignment and considers what research will be necessary before logging on. He said that these skills were instilled during a freshman English course.
While Alec Rothman, a sophomore from Boston, is an exception to the rule, Thea Glassman, a sophomore from New York City, affirms the study's results.
"My English teacher last year actually looked at our bibliographies before he read our papers to see how valid our sources were," Rothman said. "And once he saw
"We can find ways to access the things they need."
"Librarians love to stuff so, we're really good at it." Albin said
SEE RESEARCH ON PAGE 6A
employees to get direct deposit
BY MICHAEL HOLTZ
mholtz@kansan.com
Two separate policies require students and University of Kansas employees to sign up for direct deposit to receive refunds and paychecks electronically.
"We've been trying for years to encourage staff and employees to utilize direct deposit," said Diane Goddard, vice provost for
According to an announcement that the Bursar's Office posted online, the new refund policy allows students to receive refunds faster and more safely than they would if the University distributed them as checks.
The second policy is a state mandate requiring direct deposited paychecks for all state employees, which includes University employees. The employees have until Oct. 1 to comply with the new policy.
Though the state's deadline for direct deposit enrollment is Oct.1, the goal of the Bursars Office is to have 100 percent enrollment by the beginning of September. Yoakum said more than 95 percent of University employees have already signed up.
"The advantage to the University is better business efficiencies," said Katrina Yoakum, comproller for the University. "We spend a lot of time following up with checks that are not picked up."
administration and finance. "We ramped it up to the 80 percent level pretty quickly. Getting from 80 to 95 percent has been more difficult."
Employees who do not have an account at a financial institution will receive a Skylight Financial account, an ATM-based bank, and a Skylight pay card. Employees must sign up for this service at the Payroll Office.
Kelsey Smith, a junior from Council Grove, signed up for direct deposit when she started work for KU Libraries three years ago. She said she recomend other students to sign up for it as well.
"I think it's easier that way," Smith said. "You don't have to worry about getting a new check deposited in the bank."
Though University officials have recommended refund direct deposit for at least five years, they was unable to mandate the policy until a federal law changed. The
policy has been in effect since last November.
Yoakum said direct deposited refunds will save the University $10,000 annually.
The Bursar's Office most recently notified students of the refund policy in an e-mail sent Aug. 2. The e-mail included instructions explaining how to set up direct deposit online or by completing a direct deposit authorization form.
"Having everyone on direct deposit means there are fewer people who handle that transaction," Goddard said. "It's just more efficient and much more accurate."
It's also much quicker, Goddard said students signed up for direct deposit will receive refunds at least a day faster than they would otherwise.
Edited by David Cawthon
Bursar's Office (705) 861-8290
For more information on refunds, please contact the Bursar's Office
(785)864-3322
bursar@ku.edu
(785)864-4385
payroll@ku.edu
For more information on paychecks, please contact the Payroll Office.
(785)864-4385
payroll@ku.edu
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