Clean Facebook vs. Private Facebook
 

So I don't know how I ended up thinking about this (probably because rush school is ALREADY starting!), but now I'd like different opinions. Which is is better for the PNM's chances? Cleaning up your facebook for rush, or just making it private (or both, perhaps, if you have a friend who's an active). From the search engine, it looks like most of you think making it private. But I've heard girls in different sororities say they love public profiles because they can facebook stalk and get to know you a lot better than they could otherwise. What do you all think?

i totally agree. While personally, i liked open facebooks more as a rusher, (for obvious reasons) i certainly didn't think badly of a PNM with a private facebook. I think just showing profile pic and some brief info would be the best.

I hate private - totally private - profiles.
It's like when I get a friend request from somebody I don't recognize right away. How does this person know me? Maybe that's her married name? But all the info is locked up so I no way to determine whether or not I know them.

I need a little info to make sure that's the person I'm looking for. A picture, college, high school and some other details to make sure I'm looking at the right Jenn Smith. At the very least!

i would say for pnms to go private-much easier than stressing that someone might misconstrue one of your photos or a post on your wall. most sorority members place their facebooks on private when their silence period begins(or they should).

People can also tag you in photos and/or add you to groups without your permission, so if you are public and "clean", a friend can ruin that in under thirty seconds.

I have my profile set up so that only I can see photos of myself that are tagged (if you come to my page). Of course, the photos are still visible on the "taggers" profile, but having privacy settings on your photos can help too.

Be sure you have your settings to allow messages from people who aren't on your friends list. I found that having that security setting up means that I can't get the message along with the friend request telling me who they are.

ETA: And I just realized my settings are STILL set that way.

Message them and ask them. There are myriad reasons people may have an unfamiliar name on their profile (I mentioned teachers earlier) and it's kind of rude to expect them to risk their privacy just so you can figure it out without stepping out and asking.

To the OP: Make everything private. "Get to know you a lot better" really means "try to find out if she's a slut/lush/geek etc." It's NOT a positive thing, however they may try to spin it.

I'd advise doing both.

Keep your FB profile as clean as you can. Nothing risqué, no strong religious or political posts or groups, no references to use of alcohol or other drugs. Even if you think your profile is totally locked down, you never know who's watching, and FB always seems to be changing their idea of privacy. :rolleyes:

At the same time, keep it relatively private. I HATE getting friend requests, clicking on the name, and seeing only "John Doe, Sex: Male, 1 mutual friend". (I get at least one of these a week, as I play several FB games. I routinely ignore them.) Let the world see your name, sex, maybe hometown and a few interests (which may spark a conversation during recruitment), and that's it.

Like!

Never assume what you put on the internet is private, always do both!

I'll be honest. Err on the side of private. When I have in the past checked out a PNM's facebook page and found it completely open, the first thought running through my head is never "Oh, she likes Gossip Girl". It's usually that she's a dumbshit for leaving everything completely open like that. While she may be easier to stalk, my reservations stem from the idea that she, as a future sister of mine, will have all this crap out for the world to see while representing my organization.

Privacy is overrated. Especially in a competitive recruitment. Spend some time updating your profile to make it sell you better. Folks will be looking. Why pass on an opportunity to make a favorable impression? There aren't too many opportunities to do that in a competitive recruitment.

Because every active sorority member has suggested it so far?

I personally appreciate when people leave their profile pictures (as long as they're all tasteful) on display, because it really helps me put a name to a face. At the very least, make sure that one recognizable photo is viewable on your page, because for visual learners it could help you stand out and be remembered. Also a few (clean!) interests, like TV shows or books, could help spark a conversation. Facebook, if used well, can also help you figure out what a person is passionate about, which is part of what I'm looking for during recruitment.

Also, I've been known to google names during recruitment, so make sure that your presence over all of the internet is clean, not dramatic, and generally positive. That should also be a golden rule for life, not just recruitment.