Best job search sites?

[Danimal1209]

Graduating from DePaul University in a few weeks time and looking to get in to my field. I'll be graduating with a BS in Information Assurance and Security Engineering. I've attained this feat while working 30 hours a week with a 3.5 gpa.

Now that I'm looking for work, I need to find some job sites that will yield better results than craigslist.

Where do you guys go to search for work?

 

[Leros]

I'd normally promote Indeed (http://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=security+engineer&l=chicago).

However, you should really take advantage of the career services provided by your university.

 

[Danimal1209]

Agreed. I haven't had time recently but I really want to get in there so they can help me.

Thanks for the link.

 

[Leros]

Agreed. I haven't had time recently but I really want to get in there so they can help me.

Thanks for the link.

You should really get on your game. You should have started this process a year ago.

Do you have any internships or coops (i.e. real experience)?

 

[hans007]

Make a linked in profile and be sure to stuff it with acronyms of stuff you actually do understand so recruiters will pick it up.

I got our of school 10 years ago and actually got a job as a contractor at Symantec in craigslist of all places... might still be worth looking at too

 

[Danimal1209]

You should really get on your game. You should have started this process a year ago.

Do you have any internships or coops (i.e. real experience)?

I had an internship last year that lasted 6 months. But, I learned nothing.

Also, why should I have started job hunting a year ago? I still cannot take a fulltime job for another 6-7 weeks.

 

[AreaCode707]

I had an internship last year that lasted 6 months. But, I learned nothing.

Also, why should I have started job hunting a year ago? I still cannot take a fulltime job for another 6-7 weeks.

Ideally you use your college time to take various internship opportunities, wow the employers and secure an offer for the point when you graduate. That's why these employers take on interns - it's a "try before you buy" program. Interns more often are a drag on efficiency, so employers are definitely not doing it for the free labor.

SimplyHired and Indeed are the most useful job posting aggregators I've found. Anything posted anywhere else will probably show up there in one easy search.

Best search strategy - use job boards to find employers in your area and then go search their career sites directly. Only a small percentage of jobs get posted to third party job boards because it's expensive. You'll get more directly on the employer site.

 

[DeviousTrap]

I had an internship last year that lasted 6 months. But, I learned nothing.

Also, why should I have started job hunting a year ago? I still cannot take a fulltime job for another 6-7 weeks.

Because you're looking for an entry-level position, most ads are not targeted at recent grads. A good chunk of employers either have programs for recent grads that have early application deadlines, or you could have tried to get an internship that would lead to a full-time offer right out of school.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I had an internship last year that lasted 6 months. But, I learned nothing.

Also, why should I have started job hunting a year ago? I still cannot take a fulltime job for another 6-7 weeks.

Wow. Don't tell potential employers this. And you've only being using Craigslist?

I got my job in the fall of my senior year. And started three weeks after graduation.

 

[jaedaliu]

stuff takes time. carve yourself out some time and get to the career center with your resume in hand. You're probably too late for most of the employers bringing hiring managers to the school to interview candidates.

 

[drbrock]

Yeah most people have their jobs lined up before graduating. I would start sucking up to people in the career office hard core. You are an engineer so you do have a leg up on most other majors outside of medicine and maybe accounting. At least you have an internship, even if did learn nothing. You will probably be asked why you are not with that company. I would have a good answer as to why and possibly have a reference from that company if you can get one.

Good luck on the job search. it will be tough but I would think if you focus up you should land one in a month or two. Just remember not to blanket resumes out there. Find 4-5 companies a day and really focus on getting to the decision maker. 99% of resumes get screened out to begin with.

Some people don't believe in resume writers, but I think if you not a great writer I would bite the bullet if you have not gotten an interview in the first 2 weeks. Or go by your career center and have them basically do it for you.

 

[EagleKeeper]

For a noob, resume writers are a waste of $$

Upload your resume to Dice, CareerBuilder and Monster.
Subscribe to Indeed;
Look at Beyond.com, Jobwall, Geebo
Register with the local state employment board for where ever you desire to go.

Utilize the career center of the school
Check with instructors that taught the key areas; they may have leads.

Anyone charging you for help is not a fraud; but a couple steps above. They are selling their experience and mailing list to you.

 

[Danimal1209]

I've worked in customer service for 10 years or so. I currently am employed by Officemax, in which I sell technology products and work in their computer support section. So, I have face to face experience with customers and know how to speak to them with respect and patience.

My internship had to end abruptly because my fiance got laid off and I had to pick up more hours at officemax.

It's not the easiest thing to work 30 hours a week, commuting 1.5 hours each way to school while taking 4-5 classes. You don't have the time to research companies, or really do anything.....

I just thought there really was no point to search for jobs more than a year before graduation since there was no way I could work there until school was over. I needed the job at Officemax for money and there was no way I could take a nonpaying internship.

I guess I'll just check those sites out.

 

[drbrock]

Eagle keeper has good advice on the local state unemployment board. If you put in the effort they will try to find you a position. In south florida welfare and unemployment checks are rampant so our local offices are slammed. However they do have a separate group of people with real degrees and they put you in front of the pack who are just going through the motions to get their checks.

I did the same thing as you in undergrad. My friends had their jobs lined up and I did not have a job until a month or two out of school. It randomly worked for me though. I got a job paying twice as much as any of my friends and worked less. It was sheer luck but moral of the story is there is always hope. Use the sites as a last resort. They are typically a big waste of time IMHO.

Sucks you have to work so hard at OfficeMax. Hopefully those days will be behind you soon.

 

[Danimal1209]

Thanks guys. I guess I kind of threw myself under the bus by not attending the career fairs and such. What I think the next step should be is to finish creating my resume and bringing it in to the campus career center for review.

 

[SheHateMe]

I'm pretty sure your school has some type of fair coming up. I was just like you. Only, I was afraid to go to fairs and go to the career center because I was intimidated.

The first career fair I went to...I ended up with an interview and an internship.


Anything can happen dude. Just go.

 

[AreaCode707]

You can still take advantage of career resources at your college even after you graduate. They're there for alumni too.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Make a linked in profile and be sure to stuff it with acronyms of stuff you actually do understand so recruiters will pick it up.

I got our of school 10 years ago and actually got a job as a contractor at Symantec in craigslist of all places... might still be worth looking at too

I know a computer security firm in this area that posts on CL. You might be surprised at what's on there.

Wow. Don't tell potential employers this. And you've only being using Craigslist?

I got my job in the fall of my senior year. And started three weeks after graduation.

Yeah I interviewed for a network admin gig with Progressive and they would extend a full time offer if you were within 6 months of graduating.

Also as others have said, Indeed is a great site. It's where I got my current job from and they don't post outside of their own website. It's a <1000 person company so the fact Indeed picked it up makes me think they are pretty good for aggregation.

 

[leper84]

Dose of realism- find a company you want to work for and find a way to prove yourself/ get in good with someone who works there. Make calls, show up and explain you're fresh out of school and looking to start a career. Try to find a manager to talk to. If you have a professor(s) who liked you, talk to them see if they have any advice, for all you know they may have a contact or a hook up they can point you towards.

Its always, always about who you know.

 

[Leros]

I had an internship last year that lasted 6 months. But, I learned nothing.

Also, why should I have started job hunting a year ago? I still cannot take a fulltime job for another 6-7 weeks.

My company stopped interviewing college grads about a month ago. We do our college recruiting for the upcoming summer in the last half of the fall semester and the first half of the spring semester (something like October to March). That's fairly typical from what I remember when I was in school.

When I was in school, this is how the job search process worked. There was a spring career fair at the start of the spring semester. You'd go talk to as many companies as possible and get them to take your resume. In the next 2 weeks, companies would request on campus interviews with you through the university's career services. On campus interviews happened mostly in February, with a handful in March. By spring break, the college recruiting season was pretty much over. So that's why I say you're late in the game.

 

[Danimal1209]

Ah, I see. I had no idea.

 

[jaedaliu]

one thing that wasn't highlighted:

Get to the career center quickly. Possibly before your resume is ready because they can help you with it. Also because you want to see if you can sign up for upcoming interviews. Each wasted day may mean missed interviews.

 

[OCGuy]

<removed>

Is "Internet forum spammer" available?

 

[mmntech]

Make a Linked In profile so you can research employers. Also try to seek out industry specific job posting sites. Monster et al are rubbish.

 

[Corporate Thug]

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