We have all heard of the greatest invention since sliced bread, Google. As easy as it is for a monkey to type in your name, a future employer can do just the same and thanks to Mark Zuckerburg, they can now click on to your personal Facebook page.

With the accessibility of news feeds, photos, wall posts and statuses, most college students using ‘the book’ tend to forget they should probably watch what they say, post and upload. Your profile picture says a lot about you, whether it is you raving it up (see above), or studying in the library, a recruiter will judge you based on your initial appearance.

After learning in Comm 381 the dangers of the Internet and Facebook, I have tried to dodge my red cup or two from the flashes of the sorority paparazzi’s. But once something is uploaded and tagged, no matter if it is removed or deleted, it is permanently imprinted and capable of resurfacing (Bad news for pictures in which I untagged myself due to double chins).

Unfortunately, future employers do not care about pictures in which you think you look ugly or your skinny arm pose has failed you but in fact how they can see you in a corporate and professional setting. I do not mean that CEO’s and Corporate Hoe’s themed social you had last week (Note to self: a men’s button down shirt and your bra sticking out is not made professional just because you add glasses).

What happened in Punta Cana does not stay in Punta Cana if you have visual evidence of the bottles you popped, the clubs you slutted it up at, and the pieces of a very blacked out puzzle right in front of you. As Onward State writer Dennis McNamara stated, “you do not want to look like you’ll be ‘that guy’ at the company Christmas party.” I doubt the skill required for the job you want is how much you can drink in one week.

Keeping your personal life to yourself is hard enough for A list celebrities who have to worry about gossip tabloids and paparazzi, but for the average human, we tend to broadcast this stuff to our friends voluntarily. Employers do not want to see mobile uploads of you and your friends doing body shots off each other, holding drug paraphernalia and/or peeing outside.

Having a Facebook page that is not censored or carefully conducted is dangerous because it gives your future bosses an all access pass to your personal life. You might have nailed the interview, but one status update about getting it in Jersey Shore style might risk your career. Some questions cannot legally be asked during interviews, and your Facebook profile might scream out the answers loud and clear.

Now if you want to act professional, get a LinkedIn page, or just make a private Twitter, because anything posted on the internet is permanent, and no matter what, can and will be seen.

For a more positive start to your morning, click here to read John Tecce’s reasons why Facebook can be a helpful marketing asset for college grads trying to find jobs.