Job Search Engines

The job search is one of the most emotionally-taxing and time-consuming parts of the job application process. It often seems like there’s an overwhelming number of positions out there, and it can be hard to figure out where to even start.

Perusing the career section of your ideal employer and similar companies is the best way to apply for a job, but it’s likely that you’ll have to turn to a search engine, or two, in your pursuit of a job. To make the job or internship search more bearable, here are the pros and cons of the top job search engines in the country.

We’re basically the Glinda to your Dorothy.

CareerBuilder, the largest employment website in the United States, offers numerous career resources for applicants such as an advice section with tips and articles on a multitude of topics, online courses, and resume services (ranging from $179 to $279).

As for job searches, CareerBuilder allows applicants to refine their results; for example, if you search “Accounts Payable, New York, NY”, on the results page you can specify the industry (Hospitalism/Tourism, Non-profit, Finance), the city (New York, Jersey City, Hoboken), and the companies (this is great for removing recruiting firms). The number of job opportunities is listed next to each option, e.g. “New York (201)”.

While CareerBuilder’s results refinement is much appreciated, the site’s personalization doesn’t extend to the jobs in your area section of the home page; the section shows all available jobs, not necessarily those in your desired field. CareerBuilder’s employment opportunities tend to be quite corporate, so if you’re looking for more artistic, creative positions, this isn’t the best site to use. The search engine also tends to have an unimpressive number of internships in a limited number of fields.

An eyesore of a site that attracts suspect characters, Craigslist is essentially the thrift store of the job search engine world; there are definitely promising opportunities there, you just need to be patient and know where to look. The job section is divided into thirty-two different fields, allowing you to instantly search for your desired position. In addition to full-time and part-time work, Craigslist is a great resource for internships and freelance work (the gigs section is particularly helpful for the latter). Like other job search engines, some postings include salary while others do not.

Unfortunately, many job opportunities on Craigslist are actually scams. Once you are able to identify one, you’ll recognize the endless duplicates that appear in every field. To be safe, you should create a Craigslist-specific resume that only has your name, cell phone, and email address. By omitting your physical address, you can protect yourself from identity theft. Also, remember to NEVER fill out anything that requires a social security number or bank account information before you have a job.

Indeed is a mix of CareerBuilder and Craigslist, without the negative aspects of both. Indeed remembers your last ten searches and lists them on the bottom of the screen, so every time you visit the site, it tells you how many new opportunities have since appeared for each search. The site allows you to refine your results by choosing the company, distance, employer (great for eliminating recruiters), location, salary estimate, and title. Like CareerBuilder, Indeed lists the number of opportunities next to each option.

Indeed has jobs in assorted industries—from Bard College to Bloomberg to the Whitney Museum of American Art—and many employers post directly on Indeed, rather than using a recruiter. The site lets applicants to write and read reviews of employers, allowing applicants to gain insight into different companies. Indeed is also a great search engine for internships and freelance work. The only glaring omission on Indeed is its lack of career resources.

One of the largest job search engines in the world, Monster is another employment website with impressive career resources such as a question and answer section, individualized job communities (CareerBuilder lacks this feature), online courses, and resume help (you have to pay but it has more options than CareerBuilder).  The home page has a “Featured Jobs” section that appears to provide applicants with similar jobs—not necessarily their desired job—in their search region.

Monster allow applicants to refine their results by checking off categories, industries, salaries, and skills, but it doesn’t specify how many opportunities correspond to each option. This can be incredibly annoying considering the large number of Company Confidential and recruiter postings that appear on the site. The site doesn’t remember your searches like Indeed does, so seeing the same jobs time and time again is a common occurrence. Like CareerBuilder, Monster tends to have more corporate postings and isn’t particularly good for internships.

Although Monster boasts the best career resources of the four sites, the question and answer section is powered by Yahoo! Answers, which, much like Youtube comments, often contains examples of the worst aspects of humanity. You have been warned.

Images courtesy of Marilyn Keepsakes, CareerBuilder, Mercy Designs, Examiner, and Monster.