A new platform to showcase academic and extracurricular achievement is now available to all Castleton students. Unless you opted-out, you have a Merit page live online right now.

A Merit page consists of badges representing successes ranging from dean’s list to soccer Defensive Player of the Year. There are also fields for work experience and clubs, all of which can be shared via social media.

Jeff Weld, director of College Relations and Sports Information, was behind the rollout of Merit at the college last spring.

“It really is a great place for students to have a digital presence that’s positive and reflective of their time at Castleton. That stays with them, it doesn’t go away,” Weld said enthusiastically in an interview.

Merit.com indicates that 75 percent of employers research job candidates online before hiring. A student’s Merit page is like, “a resume that builds itself, and a hub for sharing your accomplishments with employers, family and more to get you the attention you deserve,” according to the site.

In addition to acting as a digital resume, Merit has automated the process of distributing names of dean’s and president’s list achievers to local media outlets.

“If you’re a student out in Alaska, we don’t have to spend time calling and wondering. Your zip code goes in, Merit pulls the radius, and the list goes out to your hometown dailies,” Weld said.

According to Weld, this process took approximately an entire week for work-study students to complete each semester prior to the implementation of Merit.

Matt Zitwer, a second-semester freshman, has already begun building a positive image for himself on his Merit page.

He was named to Dean’s List in his first semester at college and sees the value of Merit.

“I think it’s pretty nice that the school recognizes people for accomplishments and tries to put that out on the web,” he said.

In order for students to gain full control over their Merit pages, a verification process called “claiming” must be completed. Junior Jazmin Spear described the claiming process as easy and straightforward.

Nearly 200 schools have adopted Merit across the country. Colleges such as Penn State, Merrimack, and Colby-Sawyer have implemented the service alongside Castleton, according to Meritpages.com.

To claim your Merit page or to opt-out of the service, visit castleton.meritpages.com, search your name, and follow the instructions.