LinkedIn for part-time job: Does it help?

LinkedIn is an American social media network developed specifically for employment and job-related services. It is well established in the developed world as a place for employers and potential job seekers to look for their desired options.

LinkedIn, still in its blooming stage in Bangladesh, is mostly used by University students to look for part-time internships or apprenticeships. And sometimes it has been really helpful. Zakia Sameen Nur, a fourth-year student of Economics at the University of Dhaka told the writer,

"I find LinkedIn to be a handy platform for students, provided you use it correctly. Using LinkedIn is how I’d found my apprenticeship at Bongo."

She also advised the students to ensure their LinkedIn profile is optimised and professional, including details about their job roles and accomplishments.

As per Zakia, there is a specific way to reach out to various professionals.

"Sending a note with a connection request may help. I also find looking at their profiles and job roles handy when researching potential career paths or higher education."

You must ensure a few things while searching for a job on LinkedIn. As per Zakia,

"I also keep coming across various job opportunities on LinkedIn. All I had to do was type in a few keywords for which LinkedIn alerts me about job openings."

But there are drawbacks as LinkedIn is still restricted in Bangladesh among a specific section of highly accomplished people. University students often fail to fulfil the requirements of these employers.

Again, many undergraduate students have fallen prey to scammers due to LinkedIn. Mahmud Hasan Mahim, a third-year student of Development Studies, University of Dhaka told The Financial Express in this regard,

“LinkedIn has not been helpful for me. I know people who have got part-time jobs through the network, but personally, I have found many scammers within LinkedIn who come in the disguise of employers and seek to exploit naive undergraduate students. And to be honest, it is difficult to identify them."

Despite all this, success stories of peer groups have inspired many students to be part of Linkedin. Zara Mustafa, a third-year student of Economics at Brac University said in this regard,

"In my opinion, LinkedIn is a great platform to showcase our experiences and interests and make meaningful networks. I have not found any job suitable for me yet as I am still in the process of developing myself through voluntary work. However, LinkedIn has helped my friend acquire a job at a well-known research institute in Bangladesh."

Many users are also unaware of the etiquette of using LinkedIn. People share their personal pictures, statuses, etc. on LinkedIn which they commonly do on sites like Facebook and Instagram. For a successful job landing, knowing the norms is basic.

LinkedIn is still in its infancy when it comes to Bangladesh and has only become popular in the urban circle of the country. Although social media network is becoming exceedingly popular with time, it will still take a few more years to have a strong footing among the employers and employees of Bangladesh.