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Margaret Riley, Frances Roehm, and Steve Oserman
The Guide To Internet Job Searching
VGM Career Horizons, 1996
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Margaret Riley, Frances Roehm, and Steve Oserman
The Guide To Internet Job Searching
VGM Career Horizons, 1996
Reviewed by Jane A. Stein
This review is also available in French. Ms. Stein's review has been translated into the French by international human resource consultant André Locas.Bookshelves are sagging under the plethora of books in print about job searching on the Internet. Many of these volumes have catchy titles, colorful covers, and cutesy cartoons to intrigue the reader along the way. The current fad of cybersearching for employment is luring many to the bookshelves in order to find out how to conduct their own searches.
A word of caution: if you are looking for a job, the Internet should only be one part of a comprehensive and diversified strategy. Seeking employment is serious business. With this in mind, my first recommendation is to read The Guide to Internet Job Searching.
Remember the old days of the 1960's, 1970's, and 1980's before the information revolution and Internet reached the general public? Remember the long days of researching a topic, the endless hours in the book stacks? How did you conduct your search? Very likely, you began with a trip to the library, and called upon your public librarian for help to get you started.
As much as things have changed, much also remains the same. When in need of information, even through the digital wires, you'll want to turn to the librarians for help again through The Guide to Internet Job Searching.
The book project is endorsed and supported by the Public Library Association, which immediately establishes its credibility. In addition, career professionals across the United States evaluated vast amounts of information to help the authors determine the value of various employment sites on the Internet. The authors are librarians themselves, so they've been professionally trained in the science and art of finding and cataloguing information. The new medium of the Internet, while unruly at times, has been tamed by the professionals who have produced this guide.
The Guide is a no-nonsense book about what to do and how to do it. It opens with a chapter on "Using the Internet in Your Job Search." This section quickly establishes the Internet as a valuable job search tool. It tells how to get connected and covers the basics before suggesting additional readings for more in-depth coverage. The authors waste no time on commercialism or boring technicalities. Another brief section on replying to job advertisements follows, before they present the "meat" of the book, which is a detailed guide to the resources that are available.
The section "Pounding the Virtual Pavement" provides the best nuts-and-bolts information I have seen on this topic. Of particular value for extracting information about employment opportunities is Craig Gibson's IBS, which stands for "inquire, browse, and search." Mr. Gibson was formerly with the Washington State University Libraries, and is now Associate Director of Libraries at George Mason University. His system offers an invaluable electronic strategy for "newbies" and frequent flyers as well. Also, throughout the book you'll find tips by one of the pioneers of the electronic job search, the book's senior author, Margaret Riley. The authors list job sites which are known to contain authentic position announcements and timely career information.
The middle section of the book is dedicated to an evaluation of special interest sites, such as Jobs in Business, Jobs in the Humanities, Science, Engineering Technology, Environment etc. One section breaks down job sites for employment in federal and state and local government, with web sites for individual states listed. The "International Opportunities" section cites some remarkable locations that have been well-researched with solid commentary provided on each site. The Canadian sites are particularly valuable.
The final section of the book details locations which are traditionally associated with the job search. Issues such as career information, outplacement, support groups, readiness skills for the resume and interview, and relocation information are presented. One section is devoted to the executive search, which is particularly timely for "downsized" management, and includes a discussion of appropriate resume techniques.
Overall, I rate this book to be the best of it's kind, because of its straight-forward organization. The authors fulfill their mission to provide an informative guide. The assistance they provide through this publication is well-researched, and information is logically classified and clearly presented. It makes sense out of the chaos on the Internet and relieves the burden of information overload.
Do not be fooled by the simplicity of this Guide. It is an effective and powerful tool for the job search. It has everything a job seeker needs to know, all provided by career experts and your friendly librarians. Once again, these dedicated professionals in information retrieval come to the rescue of inquiring minds, providing the answers to all of your Internet job search questions.
February 28, 1997
Jane A. Stein, Director
Career Planning & Placement Center
Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, Texas USA
E-mail: jane@intcomm.net
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