LinkedIn debuts new pages for universities to help HS students

Today, LinkedIn announced that it has launched a new Page for Universities feature that allows post-K-12 educational institutions to have their own featured page similar to the pages companies currently have. LinkedIn is hoping that this new feature will better help high school students choose the right university for them.

The program launched today with over 200 universities participating worldwide. Each university's page displays very important metrics such as where the majority of the institution's alumni work and what careers many of its alumni go into. Universities can set up their respective page for its community similar to how pages on Facebook work. They can then assign page managers who can post announcements and updates to the page for anyone that is following. LinkedIn's Christina Allen officially announced the new Pages for Universities in a blog post that I have copied below (source #2).

A few years ago, my daughter and I took a road trip to visit schools before she made her final decision about college. I was hoping she'd stay in California, but it wasn't looking good. She'd fallen in love with a university 2,500 miles away, and I had to admit it was the best choice if she wanted a great robotics program and an equally good music school.

For the past few years, I'd watched my daughter and her friends struggle with these choices. For the most part, they were flying blind. Some knew what they wanted to study - but had no visibility into the career options that would result. Others had a career in mind, like my daughter, but little idea which school would best help them get there. The lucky ones had experienced family or friends who could help them navigate these decisions. For the others, it was truly a shot in the dark.

Through my relationships at LinkedIn, I knew that hidden in millions of member profiles were powerful insights about the career outcomes of educations from universities around the world. If harnessed, these insights could provide incredible value for students - helping them explore possible futures and build a support network to help them succeed on campus and beyond.

So, to make a long story short: A few months later - on the same day in August - my daughter started at her new school 2,500 miles away, and I started my new role at LinkedIn focused on helping future generations find their paths.

And today, I'm delighted to announce the launch of University Pages on LinkedIn - one cornerstone of our strategy to help students at every critical milestone from campus to fulfilling, successful careers.