MBA Program

Social Media Workshops

Sarah Park, MBA ’11, (left) one of the organizers of the first MIT Sloan social media workshop. Photo: Jen Consalvo

Over the summer of 2009, four MIT Sloan students - Amanda Peyton, Ariel Santos, Brian Cantwell, and Sarah Park - approached the Career Development Office to ask for support in offering a social media workshop for MIT Sloan students. The goal was to create a peer-to-peer learning environment in which students could share and test ideas about how best to leverage social media tools as part of the job search.

With the CDO's approval, the team created a pair of workshops, "Twitter for Beginners" and "Social Media for Beginners." Each workshop was designed to lay out practical techniques for using Twitter and other online tools to help students research companies and distinguish themselves in interviews.

Students who participated in the "Twitter for Beginners" workshop in October came away with an expanded understanding of how to network and follow emerging industry trends online. One workshop attendee wrote, "I used to wonder, 'Why use another Facebook that does less?' Now I realize that the way you build your network, interact with people, and gather information using Twitter is totally different from the way you use Facebook and Linked In.'"

For students who come to MIT Sloan to explore new careers, efficiently and creatively expanding one's professional networks is a critical endeavor. The workshop organizers - whose backgrounds represent a range of experiences in technology and online media - recognized an opportunity to supplement the traditional career development offerings and support their peers in this regard.

The second workshop, "Social Media for Beginners," will take place in November.