Where to look for jobs these days?
July 7, 2015 8:59 PM   Subscribe

Say you're a person in your 20s with an Associate's degree and you're looking for a new FT officey job. United States, based in a mid-size city. Receptionist, light bookkeeping, phones, etc. Where do you look? What do you need to do online?

I'm trying to help someone close to me and I don't really know where to tell them to look or what to do as I have had a specific career path so there were listservs and databases in that area I could query. And it's been over 5 years since I looked for work, so things have changed.

Hit me with your sites, articles and advice please!
posted by purple_bird to Work & Money (14 answers total) 13 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: USAJobs.gov for all federal jobs.
posted by ctmf at 9:02 PM on July 7, 2015


Best answer: State, county, and municipal websites are also full of jobs like this. And school districts maybe.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 9:06 PM on July 7, 2015


Best answer: Indeed.com aggregates job postings from all over -- different job boards, company websites, etc. A good place to start!
posted by shepard at 9:13 PM on July 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


Best answer: Indeed.com scrapes several other job boards I think and so acts as a sort of clearinghouse.

Where I live, craigslist is probably the go-to for small office job listings.
posted by fingersandtoes at 9:13 PM on July 7, 2015


Asking friends is pretty effective. Word of mouth referrals cut through HR red tape.
posted by deathpanels at 10:52 PM on July 7, 2015


Best answer: In addition to the above answers, ask the CC's career services center for assistance and membership to any listservs of job opportunities and also attend any job fairs they suggest.
posted by vegartanipla at 4:30 AM on July 8, 2015 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I tried indeed and all those government sites but every interview and job I've had so far came from craigslist. (Me: 20 something BA in Socal)
posted by secretdawn at 6:27 AM on July 8, 2015


Best answer: I got my first job out of college by signing up with lots and lots of staffing agencies. Lots of temp agencies also have a recruiting arm, and after I'd gone through the intake process to be a temp with one agency, they eventually wound up placing me permanently with one of their clients. Even if you don't get that lucky, lots of places using temps as a sort of screening system for permanent support/administrative positions, and it can be a good way to make personal connections with people (which is actually how I've gotten most of my jobs), if you get longer placements. My mother also has stayed employed and found new jobs this way, and she's a career secretary.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 7:20 AM on July 8, 2015 [3 favorites]


Best answer: Do you have any colleges (community, 4-year, whatever) around you? Check all of their sites for employment opportunities. Also, think about the major employers around you. Does the local hospital have admin-type openings? Insurance agency? Sometimes for the big fish you have to go to their specific site postings and not to the general purpose websites.
posted by carrioncomfort at 7:21 AM on July 8, 2015


Seconding vegartanipla's answer, and also tell them to contact former professors. I send job ads to former students all the time.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 7:42 AM on July 8, 2015


Best answer: My company advertises those sorts of jobs on Craigslist, Indeed, and Localwise.
posted by freezer cake at 11:02 AM on July 8, 2015


Best answer: See if your alumni association has job boards and networking opportunities.
posted by saturdaymornings at 5:15 PM on July 8, 2015


Best answer: Nthing temping. Lots of positions are essentially temp-to-perm. I got several good receptionist/admin jobs that way. If you're already coming to their office every day and doing a good job, it's just easier for them to keep you. Another nice thing about temping is that if you don't like the job after you've been there for awhile, you don't have to accept the permanent position if they offer it.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 7:53 PM on July 8, 2015


Response by poster: Thank you all for the suggestions!
posted by purple_bird at 5:18 AM on July 9, 2015


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