How to find unadvertised jobs
Some reports say that up to 70 percent of the jobs available in the workforce are never advertised. This means that if you only ever use the newspaper employment section or employment agencies to find work, you're potentially missing out on 70 percent of the action. So one of the best ways to improve your employment chances is to access the hidden job market.
How to find unadvertised jobs
It's much easier than you think to find unadvertised jobs. The four steps outlined below help you to identify the companies that interest you; and to select and research target companies that best suit your interests, skills and values.
Step 1: Identify companies that interest you
Look at current advertised jobs that interest you, and then think of some other companies that might offer similar work. You could focus on companies that operate in your industry. You could also find out about trends in the labour market, so that you can focus on growth areas or companies undergoing expansion.
Where to find information
- Through networking and information interviews
This might include talking to friends and relatives who work in the industry. - Career Resource Centre online
One useful source of information. - Where UTS Graduates Go
Find out where graduates from your discipline now work. - Libraries
For example, the UTS Library's 'Company Information Subject Guide'. - Company websites
Companies often advertise current positions or have careers information on their websites. You can use Internet search engines to find the companies that interest you. The Careers service website also has links to company websites. - Graduate publications
Provide lists of employers by area of study. - Newspapers and industry related publications
Companies often publish information about themselves in professional association or industry related publications and websites. - Professional associations
Many of these organisations have informative websites and/or industry contacts. - Directories
You can look up companies in directories like the Business Who's Who of Australia, B&T Advertising, Media & Marketing Handbook, online databases such as the Australian Biotechnology Directory and the Yellow Pages telephone book. - Labour Market surveys
These are produced by government and recruitment agencies and provide reports on labour market trends, salary information and skills sought by employers.
Step 2: Make a short-list
By now you have a long list of industries or companies that are possible employers. The next step is to select the companies that best match your interests, skills and values, and make a short-list of target companies. Focusing on a few companies is more effective than targeting too many, as you can prepare more comprehensively.
How to make a short-list
- Compare your interests, skills and values with the information you've collected about each industry or company.
- Consider additional factors like location and travel, work hours and company culture.
- Consider which factors are most important and least important to you, eg. salary level, opportunity for promotion, training, assignment overseas.
- Make an informed decision about which companies best match your needs and priorities.
- Make a short-list of these target companies.
Step 3: Additional research
Now that you've identified your target companies, the next step is to do some more detailed research. For example:
- What does the company do and how is it structured?
- How big is it (ie. opportunities for career development via overseas assignments)?
- What are its future prospects? Is it tendering for major contracts or attracting new clients?
- Does it offer a graduate program? If so, how is it structured?
- What sort of career path might a graduate employee expect?
You can use many of the resources listed in Step 1 to aid your research. It is valuable to conduct information interviews to gather more detailed information about specific jobs or occupations that interest you. Make sure the company knows that you are seeking information rather than asking about jobs. This will take the pressure off the company to 'give you a job', and allow them to help you.
Step 4: Approach your target companies
Once you've completed this research, you're ready to approach your target companies about applying for your dream job.
