Unit Two of ENGL301 consisted of two main topics. The first topic was to create an online profile on LinkedIn and the second was to learn the range of techniques used for constructing a research proposal. LinkedIn is one the most popular social networks used by the professionals in various fields. The online platform establishes a network for professionals to easily communicate with one another. Many employers use LinkedIn as a platform to search for potential candidates while hiring so the selection of content and layout of the profile is crucial. Prior to creating my very first professional LinkedIn profile, I spent a lot of time researching what was essential for a webfolio by searching for common themes and useful tips in existing profiles.  I have noticed that many profiles have a professional looking picture to convey a good first impression. Another common trait was that summaries were short and concise in order to quickly introduce oneself to potential employers.  I also realized that it was very important that search key words should match and describe your fields of interest.  This way, potential employers and other professionals in those fields will be able to easily to locate your profile by using those keywords. I found it much harder to set up my LinkedIn profile than other leisure social network profiles such as Facebook. I had difficulty introducing myself and finding words to entice the reader to continue reading my entire profile.  Additionally, it was hard to maintain the balance of sounding friendly and professional at the same time.

The other main topic of Unit Two was to construct a proposal for my final report.  After choosing a workable topic, I needed to conduct research to understand the current state of the organization, existing problems and come up with solutions for its problems. I have also learned to formulate a set of interview questions to collect specific detail for my report and a survey to collect feedback from a larger population. I really enjoyed being able to peer review my fellow team members.  It was very interesting to see what topics that they chose based on their work experience and backgrounds. Each individual identified different problems and used different approaches to resolve the problem. This exercise really broadened my perspective on how issues can be connected together. The comments that I received from my teammates also helped identify any unconscious biases on my part.  I felt that my proposal became more viable after their critique.  I look forward to more peer review assignments.