Newly admitted UNL students can connect online at new ClubRed

Move over Facebook and Myspace: ClubRed is the newest way for new students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to connect with one another socially.

Developed and launched last week by UNL's Office of Admissions, the new online social network for admitted students has already surpassed more than 500 students joining. UNL invited admitted students to join ClubRed via email Jan. 29, and by Jan. 31, more than 450 students had joined and begun creating their profiles.

A few institutions nationwide have created internal social networks for student recruitment, including private universities, but UNL may be the first major research institution, according to the UNL Office of Admissions.

"We think ClubRed will give admitted students a new level of connection to the Husker student experience. Already, prospective students are finding other students with shared interests and posting questions and reactions to the different features among residence halls, majors and more," said Alan Cerveny, dean of admissions.

Once students join the site, they can set up their profiles and upload photos, search for friends, check and send messages, join discussions, read and comment on blogs, and review their Office of Admissions checklist for preparing to enroll at UNL. Recruitment staff and student ambassadors have profiles in ClubRed and serve to get discussions started and to provide feedback on questions about the admissions enrollment process and life on campus. Already, messages are posted with newly admitted students looking for roommates, students from their hometown or region attending UNL, and other social-networking messages.

ClubRed looks and acts somewhat like the popular social-networking sites Facebook and Myspace, but was developed from separate technologies. ClubRed has an application that works with Facebook that alerts users of new messages on ClubRed.

The site is limited to newly admitted students, Cerveny said. These students receive an invitation and a password to get in to the site, leaving little if any opportunity for others to get in the site.

"We have taken steps to find a balance between over-managing this online community and assuring that it is more secure than public social-networking sites," said David Burge, associate director of admissions. "Based on the more than 200 students who have been logging in every day, we seem to have found that balance."

More information about UNL Admissions is at http://admissions.unl.edu.