Build your academic

“Brand” on Linkedin

How to be social in academia

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Why should I have a

LinkedIn presence?

• Colleagues, research institutions and funders are on Linkedin
• LinkedIn profiles show up at the top of Google search results
• In contrast with other social media platforms, LinkedIn is focused on business and employment. As such, it has the potential to communicate your research to corporate audiences and bring a wider readership to your work
• As of 2024, LinkedIn had over 990 million users according to the site. This can be very useful to create contacts, especially with companies and researchers you would like to collaborate with

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Where should I start?

From researchretold.com:

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“Think of your LinkedIn profile as a dynamic CV in which you can showcase your skills, expertise and experience.

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Since the platform is less personal than Facebook and more formal than Twitter, the way you share information in your profile requires a different approach.”

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Elements of an effective profile

• Use a professional picture. Have a solid colour background, good lighting and preferably a smile. This will make it easier for others to associate you with the information you share on your profile.

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• Display your expertise at a glance. Use the banner to add more related images. For example, pictures of you doing your usual activities. These can be tutoring, giving lectures, doing lab work or on field trips. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words.

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• Write a headline that summarises what you do, or even what you want to do. This is the second most important part of your profile. It is the punchline that will make a recruiter or peers get interested. Be as brief and specific as you can. You can use keywords that make your profile easy to find. A recommended structure is: name | keyword + job title + affiliation | field or specialisation.

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Elements of an effective profile

OK, I’m there. Now what?

• Build your network: Add as many contacts as you can
• Search for people you know by email or their names
• Connect with colleagues and students
• At conferences, ask people for their LinkedIn profiles and open a communication channel without sharing other personal details
• Remember to send out invitations when you meet new people

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OK, I’m there. Now what?

Follow companies and people that interest you

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• Berkeley Public Health! (and any of our research centers in your area such as CTML, LOHP etc.)
• Other schools of public health or centers of research at other institutions (or schools you’ve attended)--start with the “top 10” (Harvard, Yale, UCLA etc.) then look at schools doing work in areas you are interested in.
• Publishers and academic journals i.e. Elsevier, Nature
• Government institutions: NIH, Health Resources and Services Administration
• Media such as NYT Health, LA Times Health

OK, I’m there. Now what?

Post new content consistently.

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• Post news about advances in the field/ share content from external platforms – articles, journals, YouTube videos, newspapers to spark conversations.
• Write articles on LinkedIn and – to generate discussions.
• Spread the news about that paper you wrote which was finally accepted (don’t forget the link!).
• To take advantage of the personal side of LinkedIn you can also share the challenges you face in your research, and recommendations on best practices.
• Posting once every 2 months won’t get you much of a following—shoot for weekly posts.

OK, I’m there. Now what?

Tips on posting research effectively

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• Make sure to list fellow researchers and tag their names
• Tag any relevant funders, institutions
• Tag the publisher/journal
• Use hashtags like keywords–brainstorm any relevant keywords and use those
• Always hashtag #UCBerkeley and #BerkeleyPublicHealth
• Tag Berkeley Public Health! We will repost to our 13.5k followers

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OK, I’m there. Now what?

OK, I’m there. Now what?

Join professional groups

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• Post your own research and relevant articles/videos /research
• Comment on the posts of others.

OK, I’m there. Now what?

Pay attention to your

notifications!

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• LIke/comment/share the posts of your network
• Look for mentions & repost those that are relevant

Other tips

If you’re bold, message NYT health & other news outlets with your posts

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Request through our ticketing system to share news on our page first, then repost on your profile

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Create a Twitter/X profile to share short form news, replicating material from LInkedin in short form.

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Questions: Diana Stasko, dstasko@berkeley.edu

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