Creating a LinkedIn Profile

Additional sections

As with your résumé, you are able to add various sections to your LinkedIn profile.  LinkedIn has created sections for you to choose from. You do not need to include all of the sections the site offers, rather add only those that are relevant to you and your career field.

Summary

The summary is your opportunity to expand further on your personal brand.  Here you can describe your greatest accomplishments, ambitions, and interests.  When writing your summary, it is important to remember the audience.  You do not want to write large blocks of text; instead, use shorter blocks and bulleted lists where appropriate.  As with all professional documents, ensure that your summary is grammatically correct and without typing errors.  Based on your industry of interest and the experiences you’ve had, you may choose to include an image, video, or other document in your summary section.

Sample Summaries:

• A second year Marketing undergraduate student at Boston College with an interest in marketing, advertising, and social media. Seeking a summer internship to apply my experience assisting a company’s branding needs through social media outreach, developing marketing plans, digital marketing, and conducting customer research.
  
  Specialties:
  
  • Event planning
    
  • Social networking and marketing
    
  • Account management
    
  • Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel)
    
  • Adobe CS5.5 Suite (Photoshop, Flash)
     
• Enthusiastic and focused student graduating in May with in-depth agency and industry experience and a focus in advertising and the arts, specifically dance and theater. Served in college on the Executive Committee for a yearly student-run dance extravaganza and each year moved up in leadership roles, including finance manager, choreographer, marketing coordinator and president of the organization.
  
  Interested in an entry-level position with an advertising agency in account management or media planning in New York City; currently preparing to move to the city post-graduation. Also qualified and experienced with arts administration and arts and theater education with elementary school children; extensive volunteer service in classrooms and after-school programs.
  

• An Introduction
  Officially, I am a senior in Boston College's Carroll School of Management studying marketing and information systems. But more importantly, I am a creative thinker who produces, values, and supports ideas that push boundaries. Marketing is my passion, and my specific interests lie in brand management, digital marketing, social media marketing, and product marketing.
  
  Why Marketing?
  The concept of branding has interested me from a young age. Though I may not remember which cartoons I watched on Saturday mornings as a child, I can still recall numerous commercials for various everyday products. Despite the fact that these products were seemingly ordinary, compelling brand stories expressed through unique advertising made them extraordinary. The lasting impact a brand can leave on a consumer and the loyalty that results from this impact fascinates me. Successful brands connect with their consumers, I believe that marketing is the key to a positive relationship between a brand and its audience.
  
  A Forward Thinker
  Norman Mailer once said, "One must grow or else pay more for remaining the same." This idea not only applies to individuals but also to brands. Today's consumer responds to innovation and creativity, and I hope to build a career around devising and implementing avant-garde marketing campaigns.
  

Experience, Volunteer Experience & Causes, and Organizations

These sections resemble the similarly-titled sections on your résumé. They will likely contain the majority of the information you share on your profile informing others of what you have done in the past. When updating these sections, include internships, work experience, extracurricular activities, and volunteer experiences. Describe each experience in enough detail to inform the reader about your responsibilities and accomplishments in each position. Be sure to include action verbs, industry-specific keywords, actions taken, and results achieved.

Education

Include your Boston College education and any other higher education experiences you may have. This could include study abroad experiences, previous degrees, exchange programs, or time spent at another institution. Here you can also include activities and organizations you participate in.  In the description section, include any relevant information not stated elsewhere, such as thesis titles, minors, or scholarships. LinkedIn has a special section for listing courses, so you do not need to write related coursework in the description. 

Courses

Include any relevant courses you have taken and associate them with the proper Education entry utilizing the drop-down menu.

Skills

List your skills or areas of expertise. Include keywords and phrases from your industry. While you can add up to 50 skills to your profile,  try to add at least 10 skills initially. Unlike on your résumé, it is acceptable to list interpersonal skills in addition to technical or industry-specific skills.

Your direct connections on LinkedIn are able to endorse you for skills on your profile. Skills that receive more endorsements will automatically be listed first in your skills list. However, if you would like to highlight certain skills, you can change the order by clicking “edit” in this section. In order to obtain endorsements, consider endorsing your connections’ skills, as they may choose to return the favor. 

Projects

Include any projects you would like to highlight from your educational experience, work experience, internship, or elsewhere. Describe your responsibilities and accomplishments. You can also add the team members you worked with for each particular project.

Additional Optional Sections

• Honors & Awards
  
• Languages
  
• Interests
  
• Personal Details
  
• Publications
  
• Test Scores
  
• Patents
  
• Certifications