Barbara Fullerton is the Electronic Resources Librarian at Pioneer Hi-Bred International in Johnston, IA. Barbara works with a variety of clients on topics concerning data mining, gadget software, web design, E-journals, licensing issues, and research requests.  She has worked as the Computer Services Librarian at Shook Hardy & Bacon, LLP where she was the liaison between the IS department and the library staff.  Barbara has an M.L.I.S. from Emporia State University, Emporia, KS, a paralegal certificate and a B.A. in mass communications.

Updated May 1, 2002 (New section on recommended books on job hunting)

Updated February 15, 2002 (items highlighted in Yellow)

In the past several years, the Internet has created a new way for people to search for that “perfect” job. Employment hunting has become much more fun. It is easy to search for possible positions with a company, business or educational facility. Websites containing employment classifieds are much simpler to search than their print companions. Webmasters have designed ways for prospective employees to sign-up on job-finding websites and create personal alerts concerning their job needs. In many cases, the job hunter can post a resume online, which can be utilized by prospective headhunters and company human resources personnel.

Many of these job boards have added value to their websites with information including relocation surveys, job search tips, moving companies, salary comparisons, city data, Fortune 500 information, real estate companies, and assessment resources. Most of these job boards have simple search engines and online help documents.

There are a few things for job hunters to consider when using these job boards. Watch for out-of-date listings, inquiries unacknowledged by potential employers, positions filled already at the company, and postings without date of listing or expiration date.

Two of the top popular job boards on the web are Monster.com and Hotjobs.com. Both offer thousands of job opportunities but use simple search engines.  There are however, many other useful resources, so let's begin:

Monster.com
This site has over a million postings. A job seeker can post a resume and also create a job portal under the button “My Monster.” This portal can help a person activate a resume to show potential employers, track online job applications, and create job search alerts. Monster.com was launched in January 1999.

Hotjobs.com
Hotjobs has been compared to Monster.com, and until recently, Monster.com was looking at buying Hotjobs. The sites are identical in nature in both searching and posting information. Currently Yahoo is looking at buying Hotjobs.

Career USAToday
This is a great website for searching for positions. If a company has placed a job ad in a print newspaper owned by Gannett, the ad is automatically added to this website. Ads also come from national employers through USA Today, and from CareerBuilder (see next entry). Search by topic, state, or city. The database is updated daily. In my opinion, this has something more to offer than Monster.com or Hotjobs.com. I would recommend this website as one of your Top 5 job hunting resources.

Careerbuilder & HeadHunter.net
Recently, Careerbuilder acquired HeadHunter.net, another large database of job postings. All of Headhunter.net jobs are now available on CareerBuilder and a job seeker can now find twice as many postings including international listings. CareerBuilder has a Personal Search Agent (PSA) that searches for new postings that is initiated by an e-mail message. NOTE: for librarians there is a separate category for Library Science. This is different than Monster.com or Hotjobs.com where library postings are listed under Education. CareerBuilder and Headhunter.net have postings from a variety of resources, including ads published in print newspapers. At CareerBuilder, a job seeker can also search by salary requirements. The format of these websites is much easier on the eye of the searcher. The only problem is that the date of the posting does not show up on the site.

CareerJournal
This Wall Street Journal website lists ads from the newspaper for executives, managers and professionals. Compared to other job boards, they have a small database of listings.

Jobsourcenetwork
A directory of the links to some of the largest job networks on the Internet. Published by Benjamin Scott Publishing, the job guide directory focuses on metropolitan centers nationwide. Searching is not available, but it is a good source of job links. A searchable guide is available to paid subscribers.

Staff Finder
Employers and job seekers can both search this database for potential placements. The site is provided by Staff Industry Analysts Inc., the same company that publishes information for the Staffing Industry Report. Warning: searching the database is clunky.

411Jobs: The Career Directory
Look for a variety of jobs listed in USA job banks, online classifieds, and career specific sites. Also available is a “resume zapper” that will distribute a resume to up to 10,000 job recruiters.

*Flipdog.com
Almost 500,000 job opportunities to search. You can locate a job via category, location or by keyword. Librarian is not listed in the categories, so I used it as a keyword search. A wonderful item that flipdog has is the premium postings. Flipdog.com defines their Premium Postings as “feature jobs from organizations that want their positions to be more visible to job seekers. Premium Postings appear at the top of job search results and offer an easy way to see some of the hottest opportunities on FlipDog.com.”

Career Site
This site has merged postings from over 70 leading job sites and has over 25,000 employer listings. It is considered one of the largest online recruitment networks with access to over 150 e-recruiting sites comprising over 30,000 recruiters. Headquartered in San Ramon, CA, the company is privately held.

Futurestep
This website is set up by the Korn/Ferry International recruiting firm for executives and management positions. Seekers have to register to look at potential postings.

Nonprofit Jobs

Nonprofit Jobs Around the World is a large directory of positions in the nonprofit and community organizations available in 153 countries. There are also volunteer opportunity postings and internship information. It is organized by country, state and organization. Idealist is the most comprehensive directory of nonprofit and volunteering resources on the Web, including private and public organizations.

Searching for Library or Information Professional Positions

There are some follies of searching for librarian jobs on the classified websites such as Hotjobs.com, Monster.com or 411Jobs. When searching for a librarian’s position on these websites, use the keyword librarian or information professional, which will also find the keyword library. Hits will bring up positions in the Library and/or Information Technology (IT) or computer postings. Library jobs can also be found in the “Education, Training & Library” category. The following websites are considered the top sites to use when looking for a librarian job. Besides associations’ websites, state libraries’ websites also provide postings for similar positions.

American Association of Law Libraries’ Job Placement Hotline
This is a list of open positions in the law library field. No search engine is available, but the descriptions are in-depth. This list is updated on a regular basis. To place a job opportunity contact membership@aallnet.org. Cost is .75/word.

American Library Association
This is a directory of job openings after the publication of the last issue of American Libraries. The list is not searchable, but current information is available. Postings are listed by the most recent date.

Association of Legal Administrators
This website maintained by the association updates its job bank every Friday. Job seekers may view the current openings or search by job category. Besides legal administrator positions, there are classifieds for librarians, marketing directors, IT personnel, paralegals, etc.

Special Libraries Association
New jobs are posted frequently on this site. Search the classifieds or view all available jobs. For members of SLA, one can also apply for a job or post a resume at this site. The system can also notify the member when a job becomes available that fits the user’s criteria (see the “Notify Me!” link on the website). SLA also provides information to other placement and executive search firms. To look for additional jobs, look at the chapters’ websites. There are usually job postings listed.

Other Library or Information Professional Organizations, Directories, and HeadHunters

Accufile
No listings available. A job seeker must send in their resume. Boston area.

Advanced Information Consultants
Jobs for the information professional.

AimUSA
Wonderful website of information for librarians and information professionals in the LA & San Francisco areas.

American Society for Information Science & Technology
Jobline is published monthly online and mailed to all ASIST Members - over 4,000 information professionals.

Association of Research Libraries (ARL)
This association was established in 1996 to provide job hunters with an easy-to-use resource for finding positions in ARL libraries. The service is free to ARL members.

Cadence Group
Based in Atlanta, this group offers offers a wide range of library and research services.  There are a few recruiting listings under the “Jobs” link. The group also offers information concerning the library profession.

C. Berger Group
This group provides job postings for information professionals and record management positions.

F1 Services
Temporary and consulting for Dallas & Austin libraries.

Findlaw
Career Center for Legal Professionals. One can seek positions by subject (including Librarian), location, and keywords.

Heller & Associates
Open positions for Chicago and New York area information professionals.

InfoCurrent
Good information about open positions. Must register to search the job ads. For the Washington DC and New York areas.

Library & Information Technology Association
A division of ALA that lists current postings for librarians focusing on information technology in libraries.

Library Associates
Headhunters for the information industry. Good position listings.

Library Jobs Network
Based in Michigan, but there are a few postings for librarians in other states.

Lisjobs.com
An online resource for librarians to find current postings. The site is maintained by information professional Rachel Singer Gordon.

Mountain Plains Library Association (AZ, CO, KS MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, OK, SD, UT)

New England Library Association (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, and VT)

Online Computer Library Center, Inc. (OCLC)

Pacific Northwest Library Association (AK, ID, MT, OR, and WA, as well as AB and BC in Canada)

Southeastern Library Association (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA and WV)

Southeastern Library Association (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA and WV)

The Library Co-Op
There are a few job opportunities on this website for New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania areas.

Wontawk
Librarian recruitment for the Northeast states. Clients include librarians, information professionals, information services, and online databases specialists.

UK Placement Firms

Instant Library
Good website for job placements for the areas in Leicestershire, London, and Aberdeen.

City Professionals
This site has a search engine. The keyword librarians is listed in the search mode. I used the keyword “ALL” in the Job Type to find all listings. Based in London.

Glen Recruitment
Listed by salary requirements. Based in London. BTW, nice web design.

Recruit Media
One can search for librarian jobs as well as Internet researcher positions. Based in London.

Sue Hill Recruitment
Information management, information professional and librarian positions available.

State Libraries and Other Library Associations with Employment Web Pages

ALASKA
Alaska Library Association

ALABAMA
Alabama Public Library Service
Alabama Library Association

ARIZONA
Arizona Library Association

ARKANSAS
Arkansas Library Association

CALIFORNIA
California Library Association
California State Library

COLORADO
Colorado State Library: Department of Education

CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Library Association
Connecticut State Library

DELAWARE
Delaware Library Association

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Library of Congress
Public Library DC

FLORIDA
State Library of Florida

GEORGIA
Office of Public Library Services

HAWAII
Hawaii Library Association
Hawaii State Public Library System

IDAHO
Idaho State Library and Library Community

ILLINOIS
Illinois Library Association

INDIANA
Indiana Libraries

IOWA
State Library of Iowa

KANSAS
Kansas Library Association

KENTUCKY
Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

LOUISANA
State Library of Louisana

MAINE
Maine State Library

MARYLAND
Maryland Library Association

MASSACHUSETTS
Massachusetts Library & Information Network
Massachusetts Library Association

MICHIGAN
Library of Michigan
Michigan Library Association

MINNESOTA
Minnesota Libraries
Minnesota Library Association

MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi Library Commission

MISSOURI
Missouri Library Association
Missouri State Library

MONTANA
Montana State Library

NEBRASKA
Nebraska Library Commission

NEVADA
Nevada Library Association

NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Hampshire State Library

NEW JERSEY
New Jersey Library Association

NEW YORK
New York State Library & New York State Archives
New York Library Association

NORTH CAROLINA
State Library of North Carolina

NORTH DAKOTA
North Dakota State Library

OHIO
Ohio Library Council
State Library of Ohio

OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma Department of Libraries

OREGON
Oregon Library Association
Oregon State Library

PENNSYLVANIA
State Library of Pennsylvania

RHODE ISLAND
Library Programs: Office of Library & Information Services

SOUTH CAROLINA
South Carolina Library Jobs
South Carolina State Library

SOUTH DAKOTA
South Dakota Library Association

TENNESSEE
Tennessee Library Association

TEXAS
Texas Library Association
Texas State Library & Archives Commission

UTAH
Utah Library Association

VERMONT
Vermont Department of Libraries: Vermont Automated Libraries System

VIRGINIA
The Library of Virginia
Virginia Library Association

WASHINGTON
Washington State Library

WEST VIRGINIA
West Virginia Library Commission

WISCONSIN
Wisconsin Library Association

WYOMING
Wyoming State Library
Wyoming Library Association

Mountain Plains Library Association (AZ, CO, KS MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, OK, SD, UT)

New England Library Association (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, and VT)

Online Computer Library Center, Inc. (OCLC)

Pacific Northwest Library Association (AK, ID, MT, OR, and WA, as well as AB and BC in Canada)

Southeastern Library Association (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA and WV)

Wayne State University Library Employment Links
A good directory of job boards including a link to the Chronicle of Higher Education job postings

To locate other state jobs you can type in this web address: http://www.state.2-letterabrevation.us. For example: http://www.state.mo.us. Job openings will be listed under the Jobs or Job Opportunities links.

Recommended Books on Job Hunting

Ask The Headhunter - The Book by Nick Corcodilos. Now in its sixth edition, there are tips on knowing the best way handle situations and competitions.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0452278015/lawlibraryresourA/

e-Resumes: Everything You Need to Know About Using Electronic Resumes to Tap into Today's Hot Job Market by Susan Britton Whitcomb & Pat Kendall. An A-Z guide for finding employment and building an e-resume on the Internet. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0071363998/lawlibraryresourA/

The Everything Online Job Search Book : Find the Jobs, Send Your Resume, and Land the Career of Your Dreams-All Online! (Everything Series) by Steven Graber & Barry Littmann. A complete guide to locate employment opportunities via the Internet.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580623654/lawlibraryresourA/

Guide to Internet Job Searching, 2002-2003 by Margaret Riley Dikel & Frances E. Roehm. Co-published by the Public Library Association, this is a guide on how to locate job websites. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0071383107/lawlibraryresourA/

Job-Hunting on the Internet by Richard Nelson Bolles. This paperback  walks through the kind of job-hunting services available on the Net, giving urls and brief reviews.  http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580083323/lawlibraryresourA/
 
Job Searching Online for Dummies by Pam Dixon. Another "Dummie" book for job hunters online.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764506730/lawlibraryresourA/

Peterson's the Ultimate Job Search Survival Guide by Paul L. Dyer. A good book that guides the user via a step by step process for job searches.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0768900093/lawlibraryresourA/

Resumes in Cyberspace by Pat Criscito. This resource is packed with helpful information and information about how to create resumes that look good in various formats.  http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764114891/lawlibraryresourA/
 
Conclusion

There are many resources on the web to locate postings, apply for positions, and find information about companies and education facilities, including company websites and vendors or publishers’ websites. Many employers are moving toward the electronic access of tracking resumes to share information about potential job seekers within the company. Companies are using a variety of databases to house these electronic resumes so when a potential match is available, a resume can be reviewed and profiled.

And, if life gets too hectic and you find that even changing positions can be tiresome or challenging, you may want to change identities instead of positions. Check out the New Identity Underground website. You can locate resources on how to change identities and purchase papers to become a completely new person.