LinkedIn helps you stay in touch with your contacts and maintain a professional presence. Just having a profile isn’t enough though. To get the most out of the platform, you need to know how to use it. That’s why we’ve created this handy LinkedIn guide for students and graduates.
We’ll cover how to nail:
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Profile essentials
Let’s start with the basics. After your name, the first things people will see on your profile are your photo and headline.
Remember: your LinkedIn profile will usually rank in the top five Google search results for your name. So, you want to make a good impression. And perfecting your photo and headline is a great way to do just that.
Pick an appropriate profile photo
You don’t need a professional headshot. But you’ll still want a profile pic that’s different from the ones on your other socials.
Make sure you look smart and work-appropriate. Pick a photo where your face is easily identifiable and there are no distractions. Potential employers want to see you, not your holiday scenery.
Some people use their graduation photo for LinkedIn, but this isn’t always the best choice. You don’t look like your everyday self in a hat and gown. It’ll also quickly date after graduation.
If you don’t have an existing photo that you like, take a head and shoulders snap against a plain background. Think of it like a passport photo – but you’re allowed to smile here! If you wear what you’d wear in an interview, you’ll instantly look professional.
Write a strong headline
Your LinkedIn headline is a summary of who you are that appears alongside your name. If you don’t customise this, the default will be your job title. Take the time to edit your headline as it’s a great place to express yourself. If you’re looking for your next opportunity, use this space to call out what you want too.
Some good examples of LinkedIn profile headlines for students and graduates include:
- Pharmaceutical Sciences Student, University of Lincoln | Looking for Summer STEM Industry Placement
- Business Graduate, UCL | Former P&G Placement | Red Cross Volunteer | Seeking Permanent Role
- Graduate Data Analyst at Jarmany – French Speaker – IT Infrastructure Enthusiast
Your headline should tell people what you do (or want to do) in a short and snappy way. Top tip: use punctuation such as pipes (‘|’) or hyphens (‘–‘) to divide the headline into different points.
Don't worry about a profile banner. LinkedIn banners are nice to have but aren’t essential.
If you’ve got easy access to custom banners, feel free to use one. Some universities provide LinkedIn banners for students and graduates. Using a uni banner is a good idea if you’ve studied at a prestigious institution.
If you’re applying for a creative role, designing your own banner is one way of showing off your skills.
Biography
LinkedIn’s About section (formerly known as the summary) is where you round up your experiences and hopes for the future.
The About area is where you sell yourself. It’s like the personal profile part of a CV. Here, you’ll dive deeper into the things in your headline while sprinkling your personality.
Big yourself up and write a strong, professional summary – the About blurb is your elevator pitch. And remember, elevator pitches are short so keep it to the point. It’s a great skill to sum up who you are and what you offer in this way. So, don’t waffle.
An example of a strong LinkedIn About summary for a student is:
“I’m a fourth-year Accounting and Finance student at the University of Plymouth, on track to graduate with a 2:1 in my BA (Hons) degree.
As part of my course, I completed a placement year at the FTSE 250-listed company, IG Group. During this time, I worked across the Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) and Group Reporting teams at the successful FinTech. I gained valuable practical experience dealing with data, processes and outputs. One of my responsibilities involved generating revenue forecasts and analysis. I’m particularly passionate about forecasting.
I learned a lot at IG Group – most of all, how finance is the right career path for me. I’m now looking for a graduate placement to begin after I finish university this year.”
Work experience
When summarising your work experiences, follow the same tips as you would with a CV. Not sure how you’d go about doing this on your CV either? Check our advice on how to write a graduate CV.
Once you’ve perfected your CV’s content, you’ll find it a breeze to copy key details across to LinkedIn. As LinkedIn has a set structure, you don’t need to worry about fiddly formatting like you do with a CV.
For each experience, describe what the company does, what your role was and any skills that you gained. Once again, keep it short.
Make sure you include any internships and short-term placements. You don’t need to have had a full-time job to have earned valuable skills.
Remember: keep your information up to date and aligned with your CV. You don't want any employers to catch you out with dates not matching up!
Need more experience for your CV?
There are plenty of ways to gain CV-worthy experience at uni. We've put together a guide to help you expand your CV while studying.
Skills, endorsements and recommendations
Your LinkedIn profile has a section where people have the option to write you a recommendation. Your connections are also able to endorse your skills, which tells potential employers what you’re good at.
Where possible, ask any employers, lecturers or colleagues to recommend you. People will generally be happy to help and it makes your LinkedIn stand out. Remember to pay it forward by endorsing those who you know too. Creating a positive culture will encourage everyone to praise each other.
As for skills, make full use of this section. LinkedIn lets you add up to 50 skills, which you’ll then be able to receive endorsements for.
Don’t forget that lots of businesses are looking for multi-lingual employees. So, make sure that the Languages section of your profile is accurate.
Showing your professional personality
LinkedIn is a professional platform but professional doesn’t have to mean bland. Your professional self is still you, so show your personality!
Use LinkedIn as your opportunity to display your professional interests.
Do this by:
- Sharing, commenting and writing articles that you wouldn’t share on your other social media channels – talking about industry trends displays your commercial awareness and highlights areas you’re interested in
- Writing about your own experiences – talk about your journey and summarise experiences you’ve had (eg. share what you’ve learned after an internship or a career networking event)
- Making use of every field on LinkedIn – add any courses, volunteering roles (including those within uni societies) and awards
By showing your personality, you let employers know that you’re a well-rounded person. You show them what drives you and everything you’ve achieved – even if you’re new to the world of work.
Networking
Ultimately, LinkedIn is a networking tool. So, use it this way. Once you’ve created a profile you’re proud of, connect with others so they’ll see your hard work. Start by adding your friends, coursemates and colleagues. You’ll expand your connections by adding people you meet through networking – either online or in real life.
Writing posts on your profile is a great way of putting yourself in front of new people. Your posts will go beyond your connections so every time you post, you create a new opportunity to network.
Sometimes it’s useful to think of LinkedIn as a contacts list. If you meet someone somewhere (eg. at a careers event) and want to talk to them again, connect on LinkedIn instead of swapping numbers.
Make sure to send notes when connecting with people – even if you’ve met them. Leaving a note when you add someone helps them remember you and increases the likelihood they’ll accept your request.
For more advice on making connections online and offline, visit our ultimate guide to networking.