Task: This article provides tips for writing the biography in your myElements profile. This overview text will be what is fed to display on the faculty profile within your college website and your FindScholars profile.
Instructions:
This will be added to the About section in your myElements profile for help accessing this please see myElements-Your Profile
Why complete your biography?
The short biography section featured at the top of your myElements faculty profile page is an important part of your online presence providing the opportunity to share your interests and areas of research with our website visitors. Prospective students and their families, current students, and your colleagues at peer institutions will likely find your bio among the top search results when looking for information about you and your work online.
Also keep in mind that your bio will be used as a central information source for your faculty profile pages on the school and college websites.
How long should your biography be?
The best webpages share information quickly in an easy-to-read format. Your bio should be 100-300 words, with no more than two to three sentences per paragraph. This format is easy for visitors to scan on both desktop and mobile devices.
NOTE: Character count maxes out at 4000 anything over this will be truncated
What should I include in my biography?
Your bio should paint a broad picture of your work and academic interests. This is a great area to highlight what has drawn you to your field and any key areas of specialization.
Consider:
- Using first-person voice, which generally resonates better with website visitors.
- Including important keywords that someone might search for while looking for information on your area of interest. These are words that will help your profile information appear in search engine results.
- Including links to sites or resources that are important to your work. Linking also helps improve where your profile appears in search engine results when connecting people with valuable resources. (Do not, however, repeat links that already appear elsewhere on your page, such as in your list of websites.)
- Establishing a schedule and reviewing your profile annually or semi-annually. It might be convenient, for example, to review your profile as you complete your Faculty Activity Report.
Try to avoid:
- Repeating long or very detailed information, especially if it already appears elsewhere in your profile, such as in the research or teaching interest sections, or your CV.
- Making references to dated materials that may not be relevant in six months or a year. This can make your profile appear irrelevant or out-of-date.
- Getting too personal. No need to include your personal hobbies, the names of your kids or pets, or your favorite forms of entertainment.
Additional resources
The following links provide helpful information about style guidelines and recommended writing styles, as well as tips for writing for the web:
Editorial Style Guide
Voice and Tone
Web Writing Tips
Tips for Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Outcome:
Users should be able to successfully write the biography in their myElements profile.
Further reading:
myElements-Your Profile
Editorial Style Guide
Voice and Tone
Web Writing Tips
Tips for Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Need additional help?
Please fill out the myElements webform with as much detail as possible, or contact the Technology Help Desk on your local campus.