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Ways to Narrow Down Your Job Search Results

narrow-down-job-search-resultsBy Adrienne Erin
Online Career Tips Contributor

There can be too much of a good thing when it comes to the wide range of jobs available. You may think that keeping all your options available when using online search engines and aggregators is ideal. In actuality, many of the jobs found by online searches won’t work out for one reason or another. A job may be too far away, or it could have requirements that you don’t meet. Avoid the hassle of disappointment by learning how to narrow your job searches the right way.

Take Travel Needs into Consideration

When preparing a job search, first have a general distance in mind regarding how far away from home you are willing to work. Do you have a car or access to public transportation? If not, it doesn’t make much sense to expand your search to job postings 50 miles away. If you do have reliable transportation, this is definitely something to consider when thinking of how to narrow your job search in terms of distance.

The time it takes to arrive to work on time and get home at a decent hour are important factors. You should also consider whether or not heavy traffic will be a problem. Some people cannot cope with the stress of hours in traffic. If that’s the sort of stress you wish to avoid, factor it into your job search.

Gas mileage is another issue. You may have found a nice Amish furniture store where you’d love to work, but if it’s going to drain your wallet in terms of gas just to get there, you may be better off sticking close to home.

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Specific

Sometimes when we are looking for jobs, we use vague terms in hopes of finding work. “Office work,” “clerical,” and “administrative” are often substituted for “administrative assistant,” “medical receptionist,” or “paralegal.” If you have a specific job title in mind, start with that and then look for jobs under related jobs. Even then, be careful to look at jobs with requirements and needs that fit your abilities.

When responding to jobs online, it’s also good to avoid being too specific. For example, if you are an administrative assistant who enjoys working on college campuses, it may feel like a good idea to say, “college administrative assistant,” but depending on where you are, this could severely limit the number of job openings that show up in searches. If you require something that specific, it may be best to contact colleges in the area directly with regards to available work. But as for your initial search, stick to simple yet direct job titles.

Avoid Anything Suspicious

Some of the biggest time wasters when it comes to job searches are false ads. Work at home opportunities promising thousands of dollars a week to stuff envelopes should raise all sorts of red flags. Also pass on anything that says “National Company” where they are looking for someone anywhere in America. The more general the ad, the more likely they’re looking to sell you something rather than offer you a job.

And some spammers are not above disguising “take a survey, earn a penny” ads as job advertisements. Try and look for jobs from companies or individuals who are clear about who they are, what they need and what they are willing to pay. When you avoid the vague and the too-good-to-be-true, that’s more time you have as a result of less time wasted. Remember, intelligent searchers still fall for job scams all the time. Be careful!

The Fresher the Leads, the Better

Conventional wisdom says to consider all jobs posted no earlier than a week before you hit the search button. The reason is that these jobs are the least likely to have already been filled. However, some job postings stay up because the hiring personnel will be accepting applications for a certain window of time. If a job posting is two weeks old, but it states that they will be accepting applications for another week, it’s safe to apply.

If you find that you continue to see the same ad pop up for a job, as if the person or organization is always hiring, treat it like a stale lead. When an organization has trouble keeping a position filled, it doesn’t bode well.

Remember that it is better to do a series of targeted, specific searches than to be too specific or try to capture everything you’re looking for in one search. Good luck with your search!

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