If you’re looking to get your first job, change careers, or get back into the work force, you may be experiencing the struggle that most people find when trying to apply for jobs in person. Going around town handing out resumes to prospective employers or looking through ads in the newspaper just doesn’t cut it most of the time. So outside of these traditional methods, where to people find jobs?
Luckily, thanks to the Internet, you can look through job postings online and apply for jobs from the comfort of your own home. This makes it easier than ever to find your next employment opportunity. If you’d like to find out about the best places to look for jobs online, we’ve got you covered. We’re going to tell you about:
- Reasons to look online for your next job
- 11 of the best places to look for jobs online
- Our top tips to help you get hired
To kick things off, let’s talk about some of the pros to taking to the Internet for your job search.
Benefits of searching for jobs online
- Find more postings than you might elsewhere – with so many websites with job postings available to you, you’re sure to find a ton more job openings listed online than you would in your local newspaper or by going in person to various workplaces. Many companies advertise jobs only online, so you might also find opportunities that aren’t listed anywhere else.
- Easily apply for more jobs – since you don’t even have to leave your home, you can quickly and easily submit your application to more prospective employers than you would by bringing your resume to various companies in person.
- Don’t waste money paying an employment center – instead of paying someone at an employment center to arrange interviews for you, you can find hundreds of job postings online and apply for them. You may even get more interview offers this way!
- Most companies have taken to the Internet – because posting a job on the Internet allows a larger group of people to become aware of a job, and companies recognize how employer branding improves their recruiting process, many companies only accept online applications to increase their pool of potential candidates. Many workplaces even have their own online application system, so you need to get with the times if you don’t want to miss out on every opportunity that suits you.
There are some awesome reasons why we think looking for jobs online is way better and easier than other traditional job search methods. Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about the best job search sites you can use to find jobs online.
Top 11 websites to a find job online
1. Indeed
Indeed is one of the most popular job search engines, operating in over 60 countries. You can find jobs at companies big and small. You can sign up to get emails with postings for Indeed jobs according to keyword or phrase you’re looking for in a search. Post your resume to your Indeed profile to make it easy for employers to find and contact you about openings.
If you need help finding opportunities in your area that line up with your skill set, check out the Job Seeker Help Center for support with using Indeed. Millions of people have found jobs through Indeed – maybe you’ll find your next job there as well!
2. Monster
Monster is another one of the largest job posting sites that millions of people worldwide use to advance their career. No matter what industry you’re looking to find work in, Monster can help connect you with employers looking for people with your skills and education.
Like Indeed, you can upload a copy of your resume to Monster so people looking to hire employees can check out your resume and see if you’d be a good fit. This site is really easy to use, and can help you with finding a new place to work and taking the next step in your career.
3. LinkedIn
Our next site, LinkedIn, is a little different from the others we’re telling you about. LinkedIn is like a combination of a social network and a career search website. It works similar to any other social media platform, but for professional use instead of everyday, personal use. On your LinkedIn profile, you can add your work experience, education, skills, and more – similar to how you would on a resume.
Once you’ve created your LinkedIn profile, you can add people you know from your real life as friends, and connect with other people in your field who may be able to help you with your search. Your friends can vouch for you and endorse your skills that you’ve listed on your profile. Of course, you can also browse and apply for thousands of positions with LinkedIn’s job posting features.
To learn more about LinkedIn, head over to our free LinkedIn course.
4. College Recruiter
Next up is College Recruiter. This site is aimed toward college and university students and recent graduates who are looking to start their careers after finishing their post-secondary education. It can be difficult for students to find even entry-level positions, and College Recruiter makes it easier to get connected with employers who are looking to hire individuals straight out of school.
On CollegeRecruiter.com you’ll find postings for internships, part-time and full-time jobs, as well as opportunities to get started in your career. Some other cools things about College Recruiter is that the site has been around for over 2 decades (since 1996) and is a certified WOSB (woman-owned, small business.) This service has helped thousands of students and grads find work opportunities both during and after finishing their years of education. It’s definitely a great site to check out!
5. Glassdoor
Glassdoor is our next recommendation of the best job sites to use. This site is great for finding out more about companies you’re interested in working for, from questions they ask in interviews, to what salaries are paid to various positions at the company. The information all comes from people who are or have previously been employed by the companies. This helps you find out what the reality of a position is like before you even apply for it.
Besides all the useful information you can find on Glassdoor, you can also see what companies are looking for people to hire, and see a list of openings being advertised as well. The people behind Glassdoor pride themselves in providing perhaps the most transparent (pun intended) career search system online.
6. Workopolis
Create a Workopolis profile to upload your resume for prospective employers to look at, browse openings in your area, and apply for positions in minutes. There are always tens of thousands of available jobs posted on Workopolis, so you’re sure to find opportunities near you. Though they primarily cater to Canadian jobs, you can find jobs in the U.S. as well!
Recruiters and “head hunters” browse resumes on Workopolis thousands of times each day, so there’s potential that you could get an interview or even an offer just by uploading your resume to your Workopolis account. Sign up for Job Alert emails to be notified when a new position you may be interested in has been posted to the Workopolis site.
7. Simply Hired
Another fantastic job hunting resource is Simply Hired. This site has helped millions of people to find jobs perfectly suited for them. If you’re curious how much money you may be able to make in a specific position, you can use the Simply Hired salary estimator to get an idea of the average salary others are making in similar jobs in your area.
Simply Hired can help you search for careers by city, industry, a specific company, or a type of job. Use these filters to help you find the best opportunities for you that meet the criteria you’re looking for. Check out the lists of top companies, top cities, and top salaries on the Simply Hired home page to find out about the best of the best!
8. CareerBuilder.com
Next up is CareerBuilder.com. CareerBuilder seeks to empower those looking for work as well as employers looking to hire fresh staff. Millions of people use Career Builder every month to search and apply for work positions in North America, Europe, and Asia.
If you upload your resume to CareerBuilder, a company may reach out to you and offer you an interview based on your resume alone, without you even needing to submit an application. It’s a great website for people looking to find a new career, and it’s easy for companies to post open positions for people to apply.
9. Individual company websites
If you know exactly what company you want to work for, try looking at the company’s own website to see if they have a “Careers” type of page with listings of open positions. Many companies, especially larger ones, will have information about employment and information on how to apply easily accessible on their site.
You can even do a web search for “[company name] careers” to make it easier for you to find job postings at that establishment. As an example, check out this page where Google advertises careers with their company:
10. Government websites
Sometimes, you can also find positions posted on government websites, including federal, state/provincial, and municipal government sites. These will often have many jobs posted where you would be employed by the government, or by the city/town where you live.
Check out the official website for the government in your region to see if they have a section of their site with employment opportunities. A simple Google search can help you find the right page! Here are a handful of examples:
Federal
United States: usajobs.gov
State
California: jobs.ca.gov
Washington: access.wa.gov/topics/employment/getjob
Florida: jobs.myflorida.com
Municipal
New York City: nyc.gov/jobs
Seattle: seattle.gov/jobs
Chicago: cityofchicago.org/city/en/progs/emp
Los Angeles: www.lacity.org/find-jobs
11. Niche job websites
If the type of employment you’re looking for is in a rather specific industry, you may be able to find a job posting website that’s specifically for opportunities in that niche. This will help you greatly with narrowing down your search so you don’t have to sift through tons of postings on other websites that are outside of your industry.
You can do a web search using your favorite search engine for “[insert name of industry] jobs in [insert city]” to help you find websites for your particular industry, but here are 5 examples of niche job sites we’ve come across:
- Internship opportunities: Internships.com
- Medical field: HealthcareJobsite.com
- Acting/entertainment: Castcaller.com
- Marketing and Digital Media: TalentZoo
- Sales representatives: SalesJobs.com
Now that we’ve told you about 11 different websites to check out if you’re on the hunt for your next employer, we have a few tips to share with you that may help you have a better chance of getting hired! Have a look at these before you start submitting your applications.
4 tips to help you get hired
1. Make your resume and cover letter top notch.
Arguably the most important part of applying for employment, no matter what company you’re looking to work for, is your resume. Make sure you’ve included the necessary personal information, all of your relevant experience, education, skills, references, and any other information you think should be included.
If you want more information on creating a resume, check out this resume guide by The Interview Guys, or this resume tutorial from UpToWork.
2. Put yourself out there on social media in a professional way.
Create professional-looking social media profiles. Potential employers will sometimes do a quick search for you online or directly on various social networking websites and apps to get an idea of what you’re like as a person. As such, we recommend having a presence on social media platforms like Facebook. Also, try to have your social media profiles clear of any embarrassing posts that might deter someone from hiring you.
3. Take advantage of any connections you have at companies where you want to work.
If you know someone who works for a company you’re applying to, you could ask them to put in a good word for you. This may give you a better chance at getting offered an interview if your friend or family member can vouch for you. You can build great connections that can help you in future employment endeavours, so take advantage of any networking opportunities presented to you.
4. Join alumni groups from your university or college and see if they have a career center that could help.
Many post-secondary educational institutions have alumni groups through the institution directly or through social media platforms. See if the school you went to has any alumni groups that may be able to help you with your job search. Your school may even have a career center where they can help you find and apply for jobs that relate to your field of study.
Now you’re all set to get online and start looking for the next step in your career. Whether you’re just getting into the work force, want to change careers, or trying to get back to working after retirement, we hope that this collection of websites helps you along your way. If you’d like to find out about other cool websites and apps to use to help your career or boost your business ideas and goals, check out the rest of our website.
