By Nicole Lee (26S05A)

The build-up of LinkedIn scandals so far this year has been nothing short of cinematic yet diabolical—from controversial takes on legal cases to false encounters with important figures, we’ve seen it all. The whole saga has directed the spotlight to the LinkedIn culture in Singapore: not how LinkedIn is thriving with its growing prevalence, but rather the unhealthy nature of the platform. 

In such a competitive society, it’s natural to resort to any available measure to produce a “worthy” portfolio – that is, through LinkedIn. As such, the platform has become an essential component of job application processes, internship opportunities and even university admission exercises.

Needless to say, people are getting hooked onto LinkedIn. 

Narrowing it Down 

But wait, we could say the same for our very own community too. Here in RI, a good number of students go the extra mile to balance academics with holistic development. They would leverage any resource at bay to keep themselves a step ahead, curating a portfolio so attractive that it shines in the eyes of recruiters and admission officers.

So, how do they showcase themselves to the world? 

Students can often be found in their natural habitat, LinkedIn, scrutinising each and every detail. They can spend hours pondering over which skill set to advertise, what experience to emphasize on, where they should mention an achievement, or most importantly, who they want to seem like. 

Resultantly, their profiles are often well polished and elaborate, some even masterpieces. However, within all the carefully curated paragraphs, there exists cracks within the practice; Some profiles may seem overstacked, too convoluted…byzantine. 

What is it actually like in the RI LinkedIn community? Why are people hopping onto LinkedIn? Let’s dig into it. 

Jumping Onto The Bandwagon 

A couple of months ago, I hopped onto LinkedIn, curating my profile from scratch. Yet after racking my brains and exhausting all of its cells, I only managed to fish out a meagre list of achievements and experiences. 

Tragic. 

Armed with a half completed profile, my first instinct was to spam requests for connections— my main goal for getting onto LinkedIn was to see for myself exactly how it was like in the community, or more importantly, explore how others were utilising the platform. 

For starters, RI is well-connected in LinkedIn. The school has its own profile exhibiting various school events,milestones and significant achievements. With a large following, most of which being alumni and students, the page is a great site to source for LinkedIn users, and also where my expedition to explore the RI LinkedIn community kicked off from.  

Moving deeper into the network, I noticed a general trend across each profile; a large percentage— in fact, almost everyone — has built up their experience well. Be it internships, start ups, or even organising MUNs (Model United Nations), most users have somehow managed to direct their skills towards specific career aspects. The most prominent job scopes we’re looking at could be lawyers, entrepreneurs, doctors, researchers… The list goes on. 

I found a few demographics that I thought were worth digging further: 

1. The Humanities 

For humanities-related profiles, users have gone through local or international legal internships, most of which hail from relatively well-known firms. Most have also been active on the MUN (Model United Nations) circuit for years before retiring, raking in awards for delegations and credit as members of the organising committees. Users have also been very hands-on in volunteer work, with common examples being student-led projects and as for the more large-scale organisations, MPS (Meet the People Sessions). It was interesting to observe similar combinations of skill sets, experiences and even volunteering work each user accumulated, that is, possibly influenced by the already existing profiles and recommendations. 

2. Entrepreneurship 

As for users looking towards entrepreneurship, their profiles appear to be the most vibrant, with every section filled out decisively according to plan, subject to further updates. There seems to be a large diversity of hustling work including projects, summits, networking, and even start-ups. Although, in a bid to be all rounded, users may find themselves dabbling in numerous areas of experiences and work, which may in turn result in a collection of various portfolios, complicating their profiles as it becomes increasingly stacked. 

3. The Sciences 

Lastly, medical/ scientific-related profiles. Users have been actively reaching out for internships and research opportunities too, as seen from their decorated experiences. The most common examples feature job shadowing, research projects and olympiad participation(s). They seem to be well represented and skilled in their respective fields, leveraging on their strengths to build their portfolios. 

The Benefits of LinkedIn

Now that we’ve explored the common demographics of RI LinkedIn users, let’s trace back to the purpose of LinkedIn. We’ve observed how LinkedIn is evolving to become a connecting tool between not just alumni but also students, and a prime platform to display one’s skills and qualifications.

So here comes the burning questions: Why LinkedIn, and what can it do?

While the general intentions of RI users on LinkedIn cannot be possibly merged into a single definite idea, it is well believed to be for connections and more importantly, exclusive opportunities.

Besides connections and opportunity grabs, LinkedIn also seems like a great way to keep track of one’s performance and progress, appealing to students who wish to plan out their development process and hone their qualifications step by step.  

Although, has LinkedIn been of actual help to its users?

We can infer that the platform does, in different ways, empower its users and connect them to the wider network where they may be able to source for further opportunities to work towards their goals. 

This answers the question: Even if LinkedIn was only created for members of the workforce in the first place, students are seeing the value in it. That is, for something their predecessors and seniors haven’t done thus far—their personal branding. 

For some, it’s an opportunity to get connected to the professional community and even work alongside them. For others, it may help as a guideline to their preparations for the future, more so of who they want to be. The platform is starting to not only cater to the workforce, but also to those who are eager to step into the professional landscape. 

Concerning Trends 

However, as much as LinkedIn may have been revolutionary and useful, the platform does present some concerning trends too. Of all things I’ve observed, something stood out patently: Portfolio Grinding. 

While it’s absolutely normal for LinkedIn users to be invested in their profiles, a minority (or more than that) may take things to another level. LinkedIn, to them, might not be just a platform to display their journey to growth—it is a place where they’re able to curate their online persona and portfolio; Where they have the freedom to select and display any skill or experience they collect. It is seen as a key factor to inherent success in the future, as they document any activity deemed strategic and relevant to their future aspirations. 

As a result, users may find themselves placing heavy emphasis on polishing their profile, forming a practice we call “portfolio grinding”. Although it could be argued that the constant hustle eventually (or most of the time) rakes in great returns, the sheer amount of effort and dedication poured into LinkedIn may point towards an unhealthy obsession. 

It could start off as pure curiosity, evolve into subtle investigation on other users, and then a motivation to follow suit. Over time, people start to religiously log into LinkedIn to check their profile statistics, track their achievements and scout for new connections. 

Gradually, LinkedIn becomes an integral part of their social networking, somewhere they channel their attention and energy into. They’re most likely fully integrated into the community, with extensive connections, as they spend pockets of time grinding away on LinkedIn. 

But hold on, it might not just be a case of a hyperfixation on the platform, it could be more. What if students are doing this for another reason, one that stems from within?

It’s due to the strong sense of competition among students — not just in RI, but on a national level. More talents and achievements are being recognised widely, as more opportunities are being handed to students. 

All of this contributes to a growing fear: the fear of missing out (also known as FOMO). Most of us have probably experienced it at least once in our lives — as we see others faring much better than us and making the best out of their time in school, we’re pushed to actively search for something to do just to fill in that space. 

That could be why more students are stepping up to clinch as many opportunities as they can get. Besides passion and interest in sparking change, deep down, it could also be the need for validation, to stop feeling inferior to others.

I’ll never have the complete answer to this phenomenon, but it’s clear that more and more pressure is being cast onto our shoulders to excel. It wavers our sense of self as we try to search for a way to stand out from the crowd and put forward to society the best version of ourselves. 

Students are taking on so much more than they’re expected to, and while it’s good to push ourselves to improve and grow as much as possible, it’s also important to give ourselves the time to breathe. We’re maturing too fast, mirroring the working world so closely that we almost live like the adults themselves.

Now let’s bring it down to the RI context: LinkedIn has only fueled the FOMO culture in RI, as people take on unhealthy amounts of pressure in the form of commitments and academic pursuits. There’s a growing mindset that as long as a person has more achievements at hand, they’re essentially guaranteed a headstart in their future, which only drives people to build their portfolio further. 

If left unregulated, it could trigger the sense of insecurity for not doing enough, a fear of being left behind…people can get so caught up in the rat race that it ultimately takes a toll on their mental health. Coupled with the endless hordes of notifications from the platform, students are constantly reminded of the impending future, pressuring them to do whatever they can to keep themselves ahead of others. 

The result is a sprawling community full of talented youths and alumni, although if we take a look deeper beyond the surface, we may very well see that the general well-being of users is at stake. 

Closing thoughts 

And here it is, my final thoughts on LinkedIn. After spending weeks staring at the same screen, I’m in the midst of placing an order for a new pair of spectacle lenses, seeing as to how my vision has gotten alarmingly worse. I’ve searched every corner, delved into numerous communities and seen for myself the wide array of profiles. Truly, I was LockedIn onto LinkedIn. (Please get the reference)

My only regret? Not turning off notifications from LinkedIn. It has been weeks, months even, and my dead profile still gets email notifications. 

I’m seeing both sides of the coin, the two faces to LinkedIn. I don’t know if it’s something we should immediately start dedicating our time to yet, although it does seem to serve a good amount of purpose. 

People in RI are indeed well-connected on LinkedIn, and it could be due to the tight knit community or the strong hustling culture. As long as they’re content and benefitting from it, there seems to be nothing wrong with being on LinkedIn. Although, if left unmanned, it could bring about negative repercussions to users. 

Who knows, maybe one day we’ll all be on LinkedIn, relying on e-portfolios to carry us through our future applications and networks. However, seeing as to how we’re still stuck in the RI campus, that possibility still remains light years ahead of us. Until then, try to enjoy the carefree days we have left and as always, work hard, play hard.