Step 2: Job Search Research

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Why do I need to do research for job searching?
You cannot create an effective resume without knowing what it is that you want to do and to be honest, with whom it is that you are trying to please. You should know what type of position that you are applying for. You also need to consider the employers and industries that hire your desired position. How can you effectively write a resume without knowing what information they are looking for and present it to them in the way that they want to read it?

Once you have an idea of what types of positions you want and think you can qualify for, you should narrow it down to about two or three similar positions. Find the job descriptions for these positions as you will be using them to help you prepare your resume for your job search.
Word of Caution - Do not fall victim to paralysis by analysis. Do your research and make a decision or you’ll never get to create your resume. This process should not take more than a few hours or a day at most.

Where can I look for job descriptions?

• Occupational Outlook Handbook:  The Occupational Outlook Handbook is managed by the Bureau for Labor Statistics and is an A to Z reference manual for hundreds of different job types. Please visit http://www.bls.gov/oco/.
• Wet Feet:  WetFeet was started by Stanford MBAs Gary Alpert and Steve Pollock who were looking for information for their next career moves but none existed at the time. Voilà! They created numerous products to help you research your next career move. Check them out at www.wetfeet.com.
• Federal Government:  For federal government jobs, please visit www.usajobs.gov.
• State Governments:  For state government jobs, please visit each state’s website. Typically, the web address is www.state.__.us. Simply replace the initials for each state in the blank between state and us. For example, www.state.co.us for Colorado’s website.
• Job Search Engines:  Job search engines will have the job descriptions for all their open positions. Just search on the position that you are looking for. There are numerous job search engines out there but start with the big ones:
  • www.monster.com
  • www.hotjobs.com
  • www.careerbuilder.com
  • www.linkup.com
  • www.jobcentral.com
  • www.indeed.com
• Search Engines:  You can also use  www.google.com, www.bing.com or www.yahoo.com to find out more about the type of work you want.

What should I do with these job postings and research?
After researching the job descriptions that interest you, you should narrow it down to at most three. Once again, look for job descriptions from a few jobs in the same career field (e.g., editor, copyeditor, and proofreader) and from a few different employers within the industry you want to work in. This way you will have a good understanding of what is expected and how you can write your resume to fit the job types and industries that you are looking for. 

Also, keep in mind that job titles differ for each organization and industry.  You may want to search on job categories rather than just titles. A great place to find out what job categories you are interested in is the Occupational Outlook Handbook available at http://www.bls.gov/oco/.

Your next steps should be to:

1. Print the position description(s)
2. Read them carefully notating on the descriptions what you have already done in some capacity
3. Visit the employers’ web sites
4. At their websites, review the information regarding the employer's expectation of employees, mission/vision statements, core values, etc.
5. Print the information to use as a guide when describing your experiences 

So where do we go from here?
Now that you have the details on what you want to do, it’s time to build your resume.