COMM 120 UNC Presenting Myself Through Social Media Personal Application Paper INSTRUCTIONS Guidelines The goal of your 4 – 5 page personal application pa

COMM 120 UNC Presenting Myself Through Social Media Personal Application Paper INSTRUCTIONS
Guidelines

The goal of your 4 – 5 page personal application paper is to help you consider ways you can use interpersonal communication to be more effective in personal relationships and in your future employment. Where the discussion posts helped you think through and apply concepts in playful ways, this formal written assignment is meant to help you think through how you present yourself to others online and how you professionalize yourself as part of your future employment.

For this paper, you’ll choose one specific concept from Interplay and one concept from Nancy Baym’s Personal Connections in the Digital Age (PCDA) that pertains to how we communicate the self online. Then, you’ll write up a paper the explains a plan of action for being more professional and how you have applied some of the lessons you’ve learned throughout this semester in how you present yourself online for future employers. You may also choose to be creative and share examples of your online persona on sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, or others.

Keep in mind, each personal application must cite and reference Interplay, PCDA, and two other scholarly sources (from an EBSCO certified database) to support what you write. Scholarly sources generally include journal articles, dissertations, theses, and books (not encyclopedias or dictionaries or magazines). You may use any additional articles or books we have read, but these do not count as outside sources for this paper.
Remember, also, to list references at the end of your personal application on a separate page in APA format (i.e., References). Please remember to follow the proper paper format (e.g., double-spaced, 12-point font, Times-New Roman).

Specifics

Part One: Pick and describe the specific communication concept (e.g., self-presentation, emotional labor, virtual organizing) and connect it to your online professional communication by linking it to a particular concept from PCDA. Then, describe how you know you need to improve by linking both concepts to three elements of communication competency and interpersonal effectiveness (see pp. 22-25 in Interplay). While writing, remember to make it very clear why you’ve chosen to examine your online professional life through these concepts by providing specific examlpes and clear descriptions.

Part Two: Discuss your plan of action for being/becoming more professional online. Make sure your plan includes realistic steps that are not based in observations, but are actually things you will do to improve. Think of this as a clear, personalized “plan of action” that highlights the relevance of the concepts you chose and also resolves the three communication competency concepts.

Part Three: Discuss how/if you know you are improving or not by explaining where your plan was or was not effective. In other words, after you have highlighted where the concept has been problematic in your online professional life, your goal is to then show how and where you have applied your plan and demonstrate how effective any changes have been. If you are not improving your communication competency, discuss what changes in your application you could make to increase the chances that you improve; if you are improving, discuss what changes you could make in your application to improve further. Keep in mind that it is perfectly okay if your endeavor is not wildly successful.

Evaluation

Parts two and three are most heavily weighted, but equally balanced to elucidate the importance of applying the concepts. Therefore, part one is “worth” 20 points; parts two and three are “worth” 40 points each. Failure to include references to Interplay, PCDA, and additional sources, and/or incorrect APA style, and/or poor writing will result in a reduction of up to 10 points from the final points earned.

Finally, three general hints for writing your application: (1) use headings that clearly mark what you are discussing—for example, you may choose to use three headings that reflect the three parts of the application assignment; (2) proofread your work carefully; and (3) proofread your work again (perhaps with another set of eyes).

Side Note: I will do part one myself you do not have to do it. If you need any other material please reach out.