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A few months ago I made a LinkedIn profile and filled it in with my skills and work experience. I didn't, however, get around to adding all my coworkers and currently only have one connection.

There was a career's expo at my uni a couple weeks ago, which I attended and sent my resume in to a company I was interested in. The resume did not contain a link to my LinkedIn profile. I checked my LinkedIn today and saw that about a week ago, the HR manager from the company found and viewed my profile. For context, I'm a computer engineering student and most of my classmates don't have a LI presence either.

I feel like the fact that HR manager decided to check my profile is a good sign considering that the company probably got hundreds of resumes sent in, but I'm concerned that she might have been turned off by me having pretty much no connections. Somehow I feel like having no profile at all would have made me look less antisocial.

Am I overthinking this?

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  • You don't need Linkedln at all. It's really a site for professionals.
    – SmallChess
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 6:07
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    @StudentT I've been working part time as a software dev for almost a year now and my similarly aged coworkers have LinkedIns, so I figured it was something I should have.
    – Katerina B.
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 6:09
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    If you are concerned about having nearly no connections, and nobody is adding you then why not start adding people yourself (for example your direct colleagues)? "Work" you way up from there.
    – Edwin Lambregts
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 14:56
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    @tomredfern was that sarcasm? It's not true.
    – maria
    Commented Mar 25, 2017 at 6:16
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    Might want to have someone read over your linkedin profile to see if you're presenting your history in a way that's appealing to companies. Very doubtful they'd dislike you soley because you have no friends on a social media site.
    – Dan
    Commented Feb 6, 2018 at 17:45

3 Answers 3

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The fact that they spend their precious time to look for you on social media is a positive sign.

Does having a Linkedin with no connections reflect badly on me?

YES, If you are a professional with N years of working experience. This might indicate you don't have a good social and communication skills.

However, for your case it's perfectly fine, as you are a fresh graduate and you just created your account couple of month ago. They are not expecting to see C level people in your connections.

Am I overthinking this?

Yes, you are. Instead, give them a call (Not an email) a week after you apply, and follow up with them. This shows your interest and enthusiasm.

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  • Thank you for your advice! Should I still call them if about a week ago (a day before my linkedin was checked) I received an email from HR saying that they're already currently reviewing all the resumes and will be in touch?
    – Katerina B.
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 6:13
  • @KaterinaB. If that is already the case you really should have mentioned that in the question. I'd still follow up maybe two weeks after that initial response.
    – Weckar E.
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 7:50
  • @KaterinaB. What they have told you is something very generic. They usually give such reply after they come back from career events which they have received tons of applications. Give them a call after a week, and ask them for a follow up.
    – comxyz
    Commented Mar 20, 2017 at 7:57
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Profiles that don't show any connections often look fake. Thus, as long as you've taken the first step by setting your profile up, go ahead and start connecting with people.

Consider reaching out to other students in your major. I wish I'd done this because I've lost track of people without meaning to do so.

You can also consider family members, neighbors, professors, etc.

By getting your network started, you'll look as though you have the social skills that matter in the workplace.

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You have as many connections on your linkedin account as you like.

There are "hunters and gatherers" who will connect to anyone. And there are people who pick who they connect to. I only connect to people that I know personally reasonably well. People who could in principle be asked about me and would be able to recommend me.

Lots of them have connections to other people who I have never met - I don't connect to those. If I did, these people would have connections that I must definitely have never met. And there are those who use second hand or third hand connections to make up the numbers.

As I said, as many connections as you like. However, you can have information about what you have done in the past, basically a CV. And many recruiters check your linkedin (and facebook, and twitter etc. accounts) to check if there are any signs of outright stupidity and unprofessionality. If you post on facebook how you got slaughtered on the weekend, or what idiots you have to work with right now, that's something that will influence the recruiters decision.

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