LinkedIn in sport management education : developing the students’ professional profile boosting the teaching-learning process

Abstract

Social media have burst into people's lives, transforming their personal and professional spheres. The sports industry has not been indifferent to these changes. Indeed, the management of these digital tools has become prized in workplace settings. Among all social media, LinkedIn has the strongest link to the professional world. Nevertheless, there is a gap in the literature so far regarding the incorporation of LinkedIn into sport management courses. Thus, this work aims to share the results of an educational innovation that uses LinkedIn as its main pedagogical element through blended-learning teaching method based on the learning by doing methodology. A total of 105 undergraduate sport management students from two Spanish universities participated in this study. A pre-test and a post-test were carried out to perform diverse statistical analyses to assess the educational experience's impact. The results show significant outcomes in students' professional profile development and interaction with the sport industry; class engagement and interaction between students and professors; and LinkedIn's suitability to develop the content of the relevant course. These results highlight the educational potential of LinkedIn and encourage sports management faculty to incorporate LinkedIn into their classes as a pedagogical resource. Keywords: LinkedIn, sport management education, social media, career opportunities, professional profile, employability