General feedback on topic 3

Well done for all your efforts in topic 3 – the best set of posts we’ve yet seen :-)

It was good to see a number of you tuning into the importance of authenticity, rather than indulge in lengthy descriptions of how to use LinkedIn, for example. You can achieve more impact by linking to a key piece which describes how to do this, and keeping your words to discuss which aspects you might find useful/difficult to do for yourself and why.

Talking of words, take care with the infographics *that they are exactly that* – visual information – and not simply an excuse to fit in extra words. Text on an infographic should be minimal – let the visuals do the talking! It’s very effective when well done, and tends to increase the number of comments and general interest around your posts.

Quite rightly some of you noted that digital portfolios are more relevant for some types of job than others, and even then it would be very unusual indeed for an online profile to be the ONLY basis upon which a hiring decision was made. Yes there is lots of exciting innovation in this space, but don’t get too carried away by the hype! Don’t forget that building, maintaining and customising professional profiles, and growing your networks around this, is very time consuming and not something that can be achieved overnight. And plenty of businesses do still rely on traditional CVs. Drawing upon some of these points  would help to move posts from “descriptive” to “critical” in marking terms.

Taking a critical perspective (as per the example above) on whatever issue being discussed is definitely a good approach (and by “critical” I don’t mean “rubbishing” the idea, but instead presenting a range of positive and negative perspectives on a topic in order to come to an informed decision). Making connections and comparisons between the various topics we have covered so far also improves the analytical aspects of your work. See this useful post on Bloom’s taxonomy if you are still unsure about how to improve your marks.

So now make sure that you apply the points you have discussed in topic 3 to the development of your own digital profiles – remember that the other element of assessed work for this module is to reflect at the end of it on how you plan to develop your own professional profiles.

As we’ve said to many of you on your individual feedback, now that you are comfortable with the style and structure of the module, why not experiment a little? Try some video or audio input to your posts, for example. Expand your networks beyond the course – reach out to relevant people or companies on twitter, this could be to thank someone for their interesting post that you used, or to follow a company you might be interested in working for in the future.

Don’t forget to use the module hashtag #UOSM2008 on twitter to share useful posts, build your networks and interact with each other in support of the comments you’ve made on the work of others.