Check out this article for reasons why social media is important for academic careers. And then read The Thesis Whisperer's take on why it might not be worth your time - and decide for yourself!
Our current advice is that Twitter/X isn't worth investing your time in as a researcher, due to the erosion of the things that made it useful after Elon Musk's takeover. For discussion of this, see THE's article on the decline of academic Twitter (follow these instructions to create an account) and a great LSE Impact blog considering how Twitter came to be such a big part of academia and what this means going forward.
However, if you do want to use it, Medium has some advice for academics just starting out on Twitter, or you can check out this fab open access paper 'Ten simple rules for getting started on Twitter as a scientist' for some useful tips, as well as a bit of a breakdown of the various functions of the platform.
Learn more about Mastodon and its pros and cons in relation to Twitter.
If you want to explore using YouTube as a scientist, you can check out some examples of great science communication, read about using YouTube to explain complex science, or understand how using YouTube can help dispel misinformation in science.
We mentioned how initiatives like 'Dance Your PhD' are popular on YouTube. We quite liked this winning entry from 2019 all about social experiences in larval zebrafish!
There's a lot of help for LinkedIn within the LinkedIn Learning platform, and the Careers Service has also put together some short videos on using the platform and how to find Cambridge alumni. And check out this article from Springer Nature's The Source for top tips on communicating your research via LinkedIn.
It's a good idea to read the University's social media policies and guidelines, both so you know what you should be doing and so you know how and when to ask for help if things do get out of hand.
If you are interested in communicating your research to the media, or are having media enquiries about your work, get in touch with the University's Communications Team for support and advice. There is a dedicated contact with each School too!
And if you're interested in learning more about public engagement more broadly, or want to explore other methods such as podcasting, film-making or hosting school visits, check out the Engaged Researcher training series from the Public Engagement Team.
Need to talk to someone about your research? Book a 1-2-1 or email the Biological Sciences Libraries Team to set up a time that fits your needs: sbslibraries@lib.cam.ac.uk