"Closed" social media platforms, such as WhatsApp, allow academics to interact where membership of the group is controlled. Social media platforms can facilitate such CoP, yet the challenges of social media, with their unclear professional boundaries and the lack of control of readership, should be acknowledged. We read with interest the article by Dzara et al. reflecting upon professional identity formation through using social media to create virtual communities of practice (CoP).1 As early career academics, we recognise the potential of social media as a tool to build networks, foster CoP and create career pathways. [Extracted from the article]