Social media is a platform that provides interaction between people from all over the world. Almost everybody today has an account on social media. This is because everybody has a smart-phone and internet connectivity with them. So, it becomes easier for them to stay connected with people on social media. We usually notice the extensive use of social media by the students. Although we say that students end up wasting a lot of time on social media, we never look at how it can be advantageous for the students. The top 5 social media platforms for students are-:

• LinkedIn– used by students to apply for internships, jobs and to expand their network.

• Facebook- used by students to create events, post pictures, and videos.

• Youtube- used by students to take online lectures and share videos.

• Quora- should be used by students more as it is the best networking and marketing platform.

• Twitter- used by students for micro-blogging

Therefore, it becomes necessary to identify the benefits of social media platforms for students. The following points illustrate some benefits:-

• LEARNING & NETWORKING:-
As we are moving to the digital world, the standards of education are also getting raised day by day. Nowadays, learning is not limited to classrooms only. Besides classrooms, the students can study through e-books available on the internet. Moreover, there are many sites offering courses for students like NPTEL, Udemy, Youtube, etc where students can learn and do certification courses. They can share their academic stuff using WhatsApp and Facebook with their peers. Students tend to make new friends using social networking. This helps them to broaden their network as well. Having strong and reliable network helps to achieve goals faster.

• CREATIVE EXPRESSION-
With the aid of social media platforms, students can express their thoughts and ideas in different forms like by sharing pictures, videos, and blogs. This way they tend to know how to express themselves. This helps them to explore their inner talents. This allows the students to come out of their shell and showcase their talent. Moreover, students can participate in various online competitions which gives them experience.

• EXPERIENCE GLOBAL EXPOSURE-
Social media is a platform that allows students to connect with anyone globally. This way they come to know about the diverse culture, lifestyle, language, food habits present around the world. Moreover, if they wish to study in foreign universities, then they can research  the courses available in those universities. Social media provides an opportunity for the students to share their ideas on a global level. They can attend recorded sessions online and share their thoughts and ideas which gives them global exposure. Therefore, there are infinite opportunities available for a student on social media to explore and gain experience.

• EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES-
There are numerous employment opportunities for students available online. After finishing the degree, students find it hard to get a job. Social media can effectively help to resolve this issue. Many companies announce their job openings online. Students can apply for jobs by posting their resume online . They can analyze which jobs are well suited for them by going through the job description. Moreover, the ratings posted by other people help the students in finding a perfect job for themselves to a great extent. Apart from jobs, students wishing to apply for internships can apply on social media like LinkedIn. LinkedIn also helps them connect to people working in the same company which they desire to get into. This way they can come to know about the responsibilities, skills required for the job and working conditions of the organization.

• SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING-
Students can promote various things using social media marketing. For example- they want to promote their cultural fest to ensure maximum participation from other colleges as well. They can do so by creating an event on Facebook and then invite all their friends to the event. This way the students from other colleges get to know the complete description of the event. Social media is a good platform to advertise things because it costs nothing. In recent years, we have seen many natural disasters hit various parts of our country. Therefore, many NGOs including students collect funds for these causes by posting on social media.

One of the best platforms for social media marketing and networking is Quora.  Here people choose their topics of interest. Now based on these topics they get Question and answers in their feed from the people having similar topic of interest. They can express their thoughts and beliefs by answering those questions. By sharing their ideas with people, they get new information about a topic which they never knew before. They can follow those people who they find have similar interest as them. Now this leads to the broadening of their Network. Moreover, they can promote their business on Quora with a number of users worldwide. This leads to expansion of their business as well without a penny spent.