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Finding Jobs Online - CDO

Four Types of Places to Search for Jobs on the Internet

Finding Jobs Online | CDO Online home page

Type of site	Why you might use them	What to watch out for	Bottom line
LARGE JOB SEARCH SITES Examples: Indeed.com Monster.com Nationjob.com	National or international in scope Large corporations use them Vast number of jobs Searchable by job target and location "Push" technology - you get alerts when a job in your field is posted Most services are free Can post one or more versions of your resume Hundreds of thousands of applicants attract big employers	Actual employer often unknown because of third party recruiter use Not as helpful for seekers in smaller cities or rural areas Primarily focused on business and technical fields - little for education, arts, media and human service Making resume available online can result in spam, undesirable interview/job offers, and/or scams Hundreds of thousands of applicants can make you invisible	They're a nice starting point, and great if you're relocating. But there are better, more occupation and location specific options.
NEWSPAPERS ONLINE Find newspapers listed by state at http://www.newspapers.com/	Can search in any city you want Can also find apartments, local news, and other information Easier to find classified ads online than reading the physical paper	This amounts to "using the newspaper", which means it represents a tiny percentage of all available positions, and job descriptions are usually very brief and not very informative	They should be utilized but should not be the focus of your online job search. When relocating, take the opportunity to read other sections of the paper to learn about the area!
"NICHE" SITES For a list of "niche" sites, visit CDO Online's Looking for a Job section.	These sites specialize in positions in a single field The career/job search information provided is specifically for that field as well May involve joining a professional association, which will increase networking opportunities	Many positions require experience Jobs won't necessarily be in your target location Might be expensive to join (though it's often worth it, and cheaper while you're a student!)	This should be a major part of your online job search.
EMPLOYER WEB SITES	Easy to do research on the organization, since you're already on their site This is probably how they WANT you to apply Resume and cover letter submission and application process takes mere minutes This is your best bet	Not all employers have web sites, and not all that have sites post positions there Where does the application go after you click "send"? Faceless and impersonal (not your fault, though) Lots of applicants Time consuming	This should be the FOCUS of your online job search.