--- title: "Beware of the Social Media Graduate Degree" id: "19012" type: "post" slug: "beware-of-the-social-media-graduate-degree" published_at: "2013-08-14T22:49:43+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T19:02:59+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2013/08/14/beware-of-the-social-media-graduate-degree/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2013/08/14/beware-of-the-social-media-graduate-degree.md" excerpt: "Graduate programs in social media are apparently on the rise, but one consultant says candidates with such degrees are exactly the type of people your association should avoid. Why? Plus: How long’s the shelf life of your Facebook posts?" taxonomy_category: - "Marketing / Communications" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "Hiring" - "Marketing" - "Social Media" - "Technology" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "C-Level" - "Director" - "Manager" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Beware of the Social Media Graduate Degree Are you looking to hire a social media manager? Have you noticed candidates with social media degrees on their resumes? Here are five reasons why you shouldn’t hire them. The details, and more, in today’s Social Media Roundup: ### Social Media Degrees > [New Post] Social Media Degrees: The New Fool’s Gold for Companies and Nonprofits- [http://t.co/JEGUK6eCw5 (opens in a new tab)](http://t.co/JEGUK6eCw5) > > — Colleen Dilenschneider (@cdilly) [August 14, 2013 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/cdilly/status/367717627596386304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **Skip school.** Like many associations, you may be hunting for a social media guru to manage your presence on Facebook and the rest, and you may be tempted to hire someone with a fancy new graduate degree in social media. [Nonprofit consultant Colleen Dilenschneider says (opens in a new tab)](http://colleendilen.com/2013/08/14/social-media-degrees-the-new-fools-gold-for-companies-and-nonprofits/) this person is “exactly the type of person that your organization *should not hire* to guide your use of digital platforms and content marketing.” Say what?Dilenschneider says those folks are dangerous to your brand, and she lists five attributes of such candidates that make them unattractive hires. Number one: Social media changes quickly, and a two-year graduate program may not be able to keep up. “Imagine how out-of-touch your skill set would be if you graduated today from even an expedited graduate program that you walked into 18 months ago: You’d have missed Vine and the rise of Snapchat,” she writes. Read her four remaining points and tell us if you agree: Are social media degrees a good idea? *(ht @[cdilly (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/cdilly) )* ### Facebook Shelf Life > REPORT: [#Facebook (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/Facebook?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > Page Posts Have Shorter Shelf Lives Than Previously Reported | [http://t.co/1A6iXqE0PG (opens in a new tab)](http://t.co/1A6iXqE0PG) > [#cmgr (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/cmgr?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > > — Ashlee Piga (@alange710) [August 13, 2013 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/alange710/status/367414128341962752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **Timing is everything.** When you post something on your association’s Facebook page, you expect it to have a shelf life of at least the rest of the day, right? Not gonna happen. [David Cohen, of the unofficial blog AllFacebook, looks at some recent analytics (opens in a new tab)](http://allfacebook.com/wise-metrics-page-posts-shelf-lives_b123278) . Among the findings: 75 percent of a page’s audience sees its posts within the first hour and 50 minutes. What’s the key takeaway here for community managers? Optimizing the timing of your posts is critical. You want to post when you have as wide a reach as possible. *(ht @[alange710 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/alange710) )* What links are you sharing today? Let us know in the comments. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock) [Chris Brandon](https://associationsnow.com/author/chris-brandon/) Christopher Brandon is a contributor to Associations Now. 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