What are the best websites to list your resume to? (I know about Monster & Career Builder, but what else is there?)
Is it worth paying to have a resume re-written proffessionally so that it has ‘key words’ in it?
Is it ever worth while when you call a head-hunter instead of the other way around?
bump (I’m allowed one)
Find a recruiter who specializes in the field you’re looking to work in. They should be able to help you.
You’re much better off to scan company and government websites for jobs than to submit your resume to general sites, IMHO. You need to figure out which companies in your town use people with your skills and then check their sites frequently. You can usually search your local classifieds online as well. Finding a job is a lot of work.
You don’t need a professional to do your resume for you. Do some googling on how to write a resume and you’ll find tons of information.
As for headhunters - you’ll have to pay one. I wouldn’t bother.
OP is looking for informed opinions rather than the single answer to specific question. Let’s try IMHO.
samclem GQ moderator
Whenever I’m in the market for employment, I hit the local papers first; then Monster and Career Builder. You never know!
It depends on your field, and the current market for your skills. I use Monster, Dice, and a few others. I also talk to people I know, and not just the ones in my industry, you never know who knows of a good opening somewhere. I also call recruiters I know from other job searches I’ve done, although I don’t recommend paying someone to find you a job, it’s fairly easy to find recruiters that get paid by firms to bring them people.
I always try to have my resume reviewed by friends with some HR experience, people I know who have been hiring managers in my field, and by whatever recruiting people I come in contact with. I also have several versions of my resumes that emphasize different parts of my skill set. The number of extra resumes tends to grow the longer the search goes on.
I’ve never dealt with a headhunter who was paid by the job seeker - they’ve always been paid by the employer after a (satisfactory) hire was made. In my experience, headhunters are always happy to talk to people in their industry - the new person might be exactly what one of their clients is looking for. I think talking to a recruiter is good advice.
Definitely talk to a recruiter. I worked for a headhunter for awhile, and we loved it when someone would send us their resume, otherwise it was my job to just hunt and peck and find people. And I have never heard of a headhunter who makes someone pay for their services, that sounds like a scam.
You can register online w/ Accountemps and USAJOBS.gov, and also AAFES.com; sadly, Monster and Careerbuilder have given me nothing but spam emails for my trouble. They also have ads that aren’t really jobs if you read the fine print at the bottom. There are more and more each week so I finally gave up on both. Evfen when you report them to the site they don’t go away, though they are clear violations of the site’s policy.
If you’ve been to college, you can still go back and talk to the advisors at your alma mater about changing careers; they may have some insight you hadn’t thought of.
If you live in the US, you should try a One-Stop Career Center. They are funded by the Workforce Investment Act, among other sources, and most services are of no cost to you. There are career counselors who can help you with some of these issues, including how your local job market is for what you are hoping to move into.
What kind of thing do you want to do? Do you know people in the area? Any articles in the paper about the kinds of businesses you are intrested in, with names?
I agree that sending your resume to the websites of potential employers is a better bet than posting it- you are pretty sure it will at least be looked at.
But talking to real people is the best bet. It is harder to brush off a voice on a phone than dump a faceless resume. If there is nothing available, at least you’ll know right away.
During the boom in my company the jobs that were listed often didn’t exist, and the jobs that we were looking for weren’t listed - not out of malice, but just because it is hard to keep up.