Kristin Schuchman, Career Strategist
- Jul 10, 2018
- 3 min read

Besides LinkedIn how much social media and technical knowledge does a job search require?

There’s no denying it – we now live in a world in which job searchers are expected to expertly sprinkle keywords into their resumes and cover letters to avoid elimination from applicant scanning systems. In the last ten years, job seekers have been asked to radically change how they search and apply for new opportunities. While you may have already faced the reality that, at a minimum, an updated LinkedIn profile is as critical to your job hunt as a resume, you may still be avoiding other social media heavy hitters like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Your need to dive into these platforms will depend on your industry – politicos, tech and marketing professionals, publicists, and journalists should tweet; visual arts and industries that attract millennials (like cannabis and retail apparel) should Instagram; but Facebook is hit and miss for job searching and career exploration. While it has moved into the career space recently, Facebook job listings tend to be minimum wage and low-skilled. (Watch out for Facebook’s attempts to move into the job search arena in the future, though, given its dominion over our most intimate, personal data.)

Before you begin a job hunt (or any career transition), take stock of your technical skills to make sure you’re as prepared as possible. Review the Technical Skills Checklist below and rate your skill level as Basic, Intermediate or Advanced. This will help you determine where you might want to invest in more training.

Smart job seekers are open to informational interviews with professionals to explore other career fields, familiarize yourself with other companies or simply network. While you’re conducting these interviews, be sure to ask about the technical skills you should be building and where you might acquire them.

Online training websites like Lynda.com and Khan Academy can be a great place to start. If learning online isn’t your cup of tea, community colleges and workforce development centers offer classes, often at a reduced rate.

Above all, don’t despair. You likely won’t need all of the skills listed below, but if you pay attention to the technical skills requested in job announcements and take steps to build your technical skill set, you will be ahead of the competition. And you will give applicant scanning systems one less reason to eliminate you from the resume pile.

Technical Skills Checklist

Basic Programming Skills