Should i apply via linkedin or search for referrals

I am applying for ML and new grad roles in various companies, right now i am just exploring opportunities on linkedin and haven't applied. I am confused while applying that should i find some referrals first and then apply or i can just apply for the roles without any referrals. And if i apply via linkedin should i stalk potential recruiters and ping them saying "heyy, i have applied for that role please look into my resume" ? Note: Posting from friend's account #swe #engineering #software #referral #hiring #jobhunt #microsoft #slack #paypal #ebay #facebook #twitter #dropbox #amazon #atlassian #brex #google #instacart #square #twilio #faang #datadog #snowflake #rubrik #bloomberg #stripe #snap #lyft #uber #spotify #apple #robinhood #yelp #vmware #apple #asana #atlassian #airbnb #adobe #affirm #airtable #akunacapital #brex #benchling #bloomberg #blend #coinbase #citadel #c3ai #cruise #coursera #cloudera #datadog #databricks #dropbox #deliverr #doordash #docusign #flexport #facebook #figma #glassdoor #google #hulu #hudsonrivertrading #instacart #instabase #intuit #ironclad #jumptrading #lyft #linkedin #microsoft #mongodb #nvidia #nuro #opendoor #okta #pagerduty #pathai #pinterest #plaid #quora #qualtrics #reddit #redfin #rippling #riotgames #ripple #robinhood #roblox #salesforce #samsara #scaleai #servicenow #shopify #slack #snap #snowflake #splunk #square #stripe #spotify #tableau #trulia #twilio #twitch #twitter #tusimple #twosigma #uber #verkada #wayfair #waymo #wish #workday #yandex #yelp #zendesk #zillow #zoom