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This study investigated the role of social media engagement in supporting the Internal Auditing profession, focusing on how platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn contribute to education, professional development, and career readiness. The study was underpinned by the Social Learning Theory (SLT), which explored how modelling and interaction within online communities influence the knowledge, skills, and professional identity of Internal Auditing students and practitioners. A quantitative survey was administered to 441 students and practitioners, which yielded a strong response rate of 88.2% (441/500) and a reliable basis for analysis. Descriptive results highlighted that respondents valued social media for developing competencies such as leadership, adaptability, and digital skills, while also acknowledging concerns about stress and limited enhancement of critical thinking. Reliability testing produced a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.852, confirming high internal consistency. Factor analysis revealed a three-component structure that explained 56.5% of the variance, and these include Social Media for Academic Interaction (29.2%), Responsible Digital Citizenship (15.9%), and Psychological and Cognitive Strain (11.4%). These findings confirm that social media engagement is a crucial tool which offers opportunities for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and professional growth. However, the study identified challenges in the use of social media, such as the lack of credibility, privacy, and psychological well-being. The study recommends that educators, professional bodies, and industry leaders adopt structured strategies that enhance content quality, engagement approaches, and digital skills training to maximise benefits while mitigating risks. Finally, this study concludes that social media serves as a critical enabler of lifelong learning, professional identity, and future career preparedness in the Internal Auditing profession when strategically facilitated.

Social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube continue to provide higher education lecturers with the opportunity to share personal and academic resources. They use these platforms to communicate with colleagues and students for educational purposes. This study was motivated by the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak has made online learning a priority for higher education institutions, and lecturers in South Africa have had to rethink the adoption of social media platforms as learning tools. Although social media platforms were used before the COVID-19 pandemic, on a small scale, this study investigated the readiness and challenges of lecturers in adopting social media platforms as a teaching and learning tool during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. This study collected qualitative data from individual lecturers using a purposeful sampling technique. The findings of the study indicate that lecturers are ready to adopt social media as a teaching and learning tool during the covid 19 pandemic. WhatsApp is the most used social media platform for teaching and learning. This study also identified some benefits and challenges in adopting social media platforms for teaching and learning in higher education institutions (HEIs), however, in practicality these challenges should be explored and addressed before rolling out social media usage in HEI’s. Based on the findings, the study provides recommendations on the use of social media platforms in teaching and learning in HEI’s during pandemics, as well as future research on social media use to assist in teaching and learning in HEI’s.