SNET Internet : Features : Misc : www.workingworld

75 PERCENT OF CLASS OF '99 USING THE INTERNET TO SEARCH FOR WORK

May 13, 1999 - College students always have been at the forefront of the online revolution. Today, the Class of 1999 is tapping the vast sources of the Internet in unprecedented numbers to gain their place in the working world.

According to a survey of 1,238 SNET Internet Service customers released today, 75 percent of collegians who graduate this spring and summer will use the Internet to search for job openings or information on careers, and 54 percent will actually email a resume to prospective employers.

According to SNET Internet trends expert Barbara Brown, initiating contact with prospective employers by telephone and through the mail are fast becoming back-seat techniques for finding jobs. Graduates - and employers - are taking their respective missions to the fast lane of the Information Superhighway.

"The Internet is arguably the most immediate, convenient and comprehensive resource for college students and other employment seekers to research careers and prospect for jobs," Brown said. "They can email their resume to employers, research different careers through online career data banks and newsgroups, and learn about specific companies by visiting corporate Web sites any time of the day.

"This survey is yet another illustration of how mainstream the Internet has become and, in fact, that it is a technology people rely on daily to improve their lives." The survey also revealed that:

74 percent of 1999 spring/summer graduates will use the Internet to research a specific career or job.
69 percent will research a specific prospective employer on the Internet.
65 percent will use the Internet to search for a job in a specific geographic location.
57 percent will post their resume through an online job service.

"The incredible number of collegians and other professionals using the Web to enhance employment opportunities is hardly lost on corporate America," Brown said. "Job seekers can find openings ranging from sales rep to CEO on the Web.

"More and more companies are turning to the resources of the Internet, including their own Web sites and job listing sites such as The Monster Board (www.monster.com) to recruit job candidates," Brown added.

Brown also said that according to Forrester Research, classifieds will make up 27 percent of all online advertising by 2003. To help propel the last collegiate classes of the century to a successful start in the working world, SNET and Snap.com, the Internet portal service from NBC and CNET, are offering easy access to all kinds of employment opportunities and information through a new Career Center. Resume and interview tips, job listings, job fairs and information on career development and employee benefits are among the featured online resources.

Research avenues are abundant, but once you're ready to apply, following online "application etiquette" is important to turning an opportunity into a paycheck, Brown said. Following are tips for emailing resumes:

Format your resume sensibly
Format your resume in plain text, which is universally compatible, avoiding boldface type, underlining and bullets that could be transcribed as garble at the receiver's end. Use asterisks, plus signs, dashes and capital letters to separate sections on the resume and add a little bit of flavor.
Avoid using "extras"
Special effects such as sound samples, graphics, photos and even video can make your resume unique, but they may not work on a potential employer's computer or network. Keep it simple.
Make your resume stand out
Just as with hard-copy resumes, you should use the first 20 or so lines to grab the employer's attention. Lead with your skills, qualities and experience. Also, with electronic resumes, you can break the one-page rule.
Don't send your resume as an attachment
Paste the contents of your resume into the body of an email message. Many employers are cautious about viruses and don't want to waste time with files that their computers can't translate.
Be professional when using email to send your resume to a prospective employer
Even though email is a more casual form of communication, make sure your message is professional in both language and format.
Always include a cover sheet
Send a cover letter with your resume just as you would in sending it as a hard copy, making sure to be as specific as possible as to what position you are applying for and in what location.
Be particular about where you post your resume and its content
You can post your resume on your personal home page, an employment database or a newsgroup, or you can email it to a prospective employer. However, remember that in posting a resume on the Web, you are making it public information. You may want to include your name, phone number and email address but omit your home address.

Brown also urges college students graduating this spring and summer to not rely solely on the Internet for their job search. "Using the Internet to hunt for a job will increase your visibility to prospective employers, but not every company is online and many still use traditional methods to fill positions," she said. "So use all the resources available to you to find the job you're looking for, including the Internet."

Links:

SNET Internet Job-hunting Tips

Snap Career Center