As the college application process approaches deadlines, high schoolers across the nation are feeling the stress to impress. Many students gather letters of recommendation, transcripts and write many college essays. But what about those social media accounts? Are they part of the process when a college looks at potential students?

Feather journalist Kyler Garza, ’21, seeks a greater understanding of how the countless hours high schoolers spend on various social media platforms and how it affects their acceptance to colleges. New statistics show that 9/10 teenagers ages 13-17 are using social media platforms. Daily Users for the most popular platforms are as follows:

Twitter – 134 million

Snapchat – 190 million

Instagram – 500 million

Facebook – 1.59 billion

As colleges aim to fill their allotment for the upcoming school years, they vet each student carefully. According to a Kaplan Survey, 68% of colleges believe social media platforms are fair game for gathering information about potential students. So yes, what you post, like, tweet, snap does matter.

The video below highlights these statistics, offering tips to help high schoolers with a more positive social media presence.

For more information on the impact of Social Media in the college process, read Kyler Garza’s article,

Professionals, students share impact of social media on college admissions.

To view more Feather videos, visit our Media page.

The author can be reached via email: Austin Petersen, Instagram and Twitter.