05-27-2009, 10:25 AM
Most people are familiar with the largest job boards: Monster, Careerbuilder, and Yahoo!HotJobs. Their size and scope make them unavoidable. However, ads placed on these sites often garner many hundreds of responses in a short period of time. Competition for virtually any posted job is intense, and even highly qualified candidates will find stiff competition to be considered for these positions. If you aren't a "perfect fit" candidate, your resume will likely be ignored.
My clients learn that posting a resume online and responding to job board postings is a very risky stand alone strategy for obtaining a job. However, job boards can be a rich source of information for the jobhunter. I teach my clients to view job boards as online business intelligence sources, and how to take maximum advantage of them. Going beyond the major sites, I recommend smaller niche job boards, as well as "aggregator" sites that troll the internet and gather into one large database jobs from many sources. There are literally hundreds of such sites to explore. Here are some of my favorites:
AGGREGATOR SITES
SimplyHired.com
"Job Search Made Simple: Looking for a job shouldn't be a full-time job! That's why we built the biggest, smartest job search engine on the web. We search thousands of job sites and companies, just so you don't have to. We eat, sleep and breathe job search, to help you find that dream job. Use our nifty tools to find local jobs, identify trends, research salaries, and secure that offer letter. "
Indeed.com
Indeed.com is a meta search engine. With one search on Indeed you gain free access to millions of job listings on all the notable search engine websites not to mention along with newspapers, associations and company career pages. Be sure to check our their Tips and Tools, Job Trends, and Forums sections.
FederalJobSearch.com
Looking for a US government job? FederalJobSearch is the place for you. John Keville, Federal Job Search founder says "Our customer's experience has taught us that the federal hiring process can be extremely confusing and time consuming. While there may be a wealth of information sources within the government, we have found that the sheer volume of the information can be daunting to the average federal job seeker. Our mission has been to provide a user friendly way to find a federal job, powered by a highly sophisticated search engine"
UNDER THE RADAR JOB BOARDS
WorkTree.com
WorkTree.com is a job portal that links you to job search sites and other career resources on the Internet. Search for government, industry, national, and international jobs. WorkTree also provides access to many newspaper classified ads, eliminating the need to manually search through multiple papers to find all the jobs.
SnagAJob.com
Find a job with the nation's largest job site for part-time and full-time hourly jobs. Find jobs by your location or by employer on SnagAJob. You can create a free profile and with that said profile you are able to apply to jobs, have employers contact you directly, and receive e-mail job alerts and newsletters. You can also run searches for specific job categories such as teen, summer and seasonal jobs.
JobCentral.com
JobCentral offers job-seeking assistance for all industries and occupations. Run searches from entry-level to chief executive and receive up to date information on employment and career opportunities available throughout the nation. You do not need to register to gain access to the site's features and are able to post resumes and cover letters.
Job-Hunt.org
Job-Hunt is a free employment search website that links to thousands of employers and job search resources. It also includes job search support groups and advice. If you have a Twitter account you can also follow Job-Hunt with Twitter.com. You can search for jobs on Job-Hunt by industry or profession.
SOCIAL NETWORKING JOB BOARDS
LinkedIn.com
Quite often finding a job all boils down to who you know. With LinkedIn.com you get the best of both worlds: you get a social networking site and a job search engine. LinkedIn helps you grow your professional network. You can manage your professional information that is publicly made available, find and meet perspective clients and partners, collaborate with other LinkedIn members, discover business opportunities, partake in online discussions, and more.
NICHE BOARDS
Niche boards don't try to be everything to everyone all at the same time. They are geared to specific types of jobs or job seekers.
Idealist.org
Idealist.org focuses on job opportunities in the non-profit sector, as well as volunteer opportunities. Search for contract, full-time, part-time and temporary jobs at your specific levels and needs such as education level, language, area of focus, and location. Idealist keeps you informed on upcoming job fair dates in your area. You can also track down volunteer jobs for kids 12 years and under to seniors 65 and over.
ComputerJobs.com
ComputerJobs is another engine if your area of expertise happens to lay in the computer and technological industry.
MediaBistro.com
Mediabistro is the site for editors, writers, producers, graphic designers, book publishers, and others involved in such industries as magazines, television, film, radio, newspapers, book publishing, online media, and advertising who are in need of employment or are just seeking out advice. You can use Mediabistro to network with others in your line of work and to connect to job opportunities relating to your field.
AfterCollege.com
On AfterCollege.com you have two options: you can find you school and join your network which will allow you access to exclusive jobs and events or you can run a quick search for over 200,000 job listings. You can browse job categories such as internships, part-time, and full-time along with specific areas of expertise such as teaching, accounting, law enforcement, healthcare, and physical therapy just to name a few.
CollegeRecruiter.com
"CollegeRecruiter.com features hundreds of thousands of entry level job and internship job posting ads from all industries. Because our entry level job site is primarily targeted to college students and recent graduates with zero to three years of experience, many of the job posting ads are for internships, seasonal jobs, and entry level career opportunities."
JOB BOARDS FOR PART TIME WORK AND CONSULTING PROJECTS
Guru.com
Guru.com can assist in landing you a freelance job. Employers can post their projects and contract work for free. Guru offers a free basic membership or a subscribing membership. Employers and Freelancers can also put to use Guru's SafePay Escrow and Dispute Resolution services, which decreases transaction risks.
Net-Temps.com
Net-Temps has ranked among the top Internet job boards since 1995 and concentrates on the temporary and staffing industry. Net-Temps' services are free to all job seekers. As a job seeker you are allowed to search jobs, post resumes and cover letters and apply online all for free.
My clients learn that posting a resume online and responding to job board postings is a very risky stand alone strategy for obtaining a job. However, job boards can be a rich source of information for the jobhunter. I teach my clients to view job boards as online business intelligence sources, and how to take maximum advantage of them. Going beyond the major sites, I recommend smaller niche job boards, as well as "aggregator" sites that troll the internet and gather into one large database jobs from many sources. There are literally hundreds of such sites to explore. Here are some of my favorites:
AGGREGATOR SITES
SimplyHired.com
"Job Search Made Simple: Looking for a job shouldn't be a full-time job! That's why we built the biggest, smartest job search engine on the web. We search thousands of job sites and companies, just so you don't have to. We eat, sleep and breathe job search, to help you find that dream job. Use our nifty tools to find local jobs, identify trends, research salaries, and secure that offer letter. "
Indeed.com
Indeed.com is a meta search engine. With one search on Indeed you gain free access to millions of job listings on all the notable search engine websites not to mention along with newspapers, associations and company career pages. Be sure to check our their Tips and Tools, Job Trends, and Forums sections.
FederalJobSearch.com
Looking for a US government job? FederalJobSearch is the place for you. John Keville, Federal Job Search founder says "Our customer's experience has taught us that the federal hiring process can be extremely confusing and time consuming. While there may be a wealth of information sources within the government, we have found that the sheer volume of the information can be daunting to the average federal job seeker. Our mission has been to provide a user friendly way to find a federal job, powered by a highly sophisticated search engine"
UNDER THE RADAR JOB BOARDS
WorkTree.com
WorkTree.com is a job portal that links you to job search sites and other career resources on the Internet. Search for government, industry, national, and international jobs. WorkTree also provides access to many newspaper classified ads, eliminating the need to manually search through multiple papers to find all the jobs.
SnagAJob.com
Find a job with the nation's largest job site for part-time and full-time hourly jobs. Find jobs by your location or by employer on SnagAJob. You can create a free profile and with that said profile you are able to apply to jobs, have employers contact you directly, and receive e-mail job alerts and newsletters. You can also run searches for specific job categories such as teen, summer and seasonal jobs.
JobCentral.com
JobCentral offers job-seeking assistance for all industries and occupations. Run searches from entry-level to chief executive and receive up to date information on employment and career opportunities available throughout the nation. You do not need to register to gain access to the site's features and are able to post resumes and cover letters.
Job-Hunt.org
Job-Hunt is a free employment search website that links to thousands of employers and job search resources. It also includes job search support groups and advice. If you have a Twitter account you can also follow Job-Hunt with Twitter.com. You can search for jobs on Job-Hunt by industry or profession.
SOCIAL NETWORKING JOB BOARDS
LinkedIn.com
Quite often finding a job all boils down to who you know. With LinkedIn.com you get the best of both worlds: you get a social networking site and a job search engine. LinkedIn helps you grow your professional network. You can manage your professional information that is publicly made available, find and meet perspective clients and partners, collaborate with other LinkedIn members, discover business opportunities, partake in online discussions, and more.
NICHE BOARDS
Niche boards don't try to be everything to everyone all at the same time. They are geared to specific types of jobs or job seekers.
Idealist.org
Idealist.org focuses on job opportunities in the non-profit sector, as well as volunteer opportunities. Search for contract, full-time, part-time and temporary jobs at your specific levels and needs such as education level, language, area of focus, and location. Idealist keeps you informed on upcoming job fair dates in your area. You can also track down volunteer jobs for kids 12 years and under to seniors 65 and over.
ComputerJobs.com
ComputerJobs is another engine if your area of expertise happens to lay in the computer and technological industry.
MediaBistro.com
Mediabistro is the site for editors, writers, producers, graphic designers, book publishers, and others involved in such industries as magazines, television, film, radio, newspapers, book publishing, online media, and advertising who are in need of employment or are just seeking out advice. You can use Mediabistro to network with others in your line of work and to connect to job opportunities relating to your field.
AfterCollege.com
On AfterCollege.com you have two options: you can find you school and join your network which will allow you access to exclusive jobs and events or you can run a quick search for over 200,000 job listings. You can browse job categories such as internships, part-time, and full-time along with specific areas of expertise such as teaching, accounting, law enforcement, healthcare, and physical therapy just to name a few.
CollegeRecruiter.com
"CollegeRecruiter.com features hundreds of thousands of entry level job and internship job posting ads from all industries. Because our entry level job site is primarily targeted to college students and recent graduates with zero to three years of experience, many of the job posting ads are for internships, seasonal jobs, and entry level career opportunities."
JOB BOARDS FOR PART TIME WORK AND CONSULTING PROJECTS
Guru.com
Guru.com can assist in landing you a freelance job. Employers can post their projects and contract work for free. Guru offers a free basic membership or a subscribing membership. Employers and Freelancers can also put to use Guru's SafePay Escrow and Dispute Resolution services, which decreases transaction risks.
Net-Temps.com
Net-Temps has ranked among the top Internet job boards since 1995 and concentrates on the temporary and staffing industry. Net-Temps' services are free to all job seekers. As a job seeker you are allowed to search jobs, post resumes and cover letters and apply online all for free.