Graduates: 5 Tips On How To Use Job Boards Effectively

By Scarlett @BubbleJobs

So you’ve graduated and had your summer fun but it’s probably time to start looking for a job! There are lots of new things that you’ll need to learn throughout your job search but an important part of finding a job requires you to use a job board.

Not sure what a job board actually is? In simple terms it’s a website that employers use to advertise their job vacancies. You’re probably beginning your job search and have come across quite a few jobs boards to say the least – which may have left you feeling slightly overwhelmed by the whole thing. After all – finding a job in the first place is stressful enough, but now you’ve got to try to understand the world of job boards as well!

There are loads of job boards available to you – some very general ones and others that are specialists in certain industries – like Bubble (we specialise in advertising digital jobs). Whichever job board you choose to use, it’s important that you use it properly. If you use a job board well it can really help increase your chances of bagging your perfect job and it can also make your life a lot easier.

To help you out, we’ve put this blog together on our top five tips to help graduates use job boards effectively.

1) Don’t Just Use The Big Job Boards

With there being so many job boards out there for you it’s very tempting to only use the big boys. However if you’re looking to go into a certain industry –there will also be jobs boards that will offer specialised advice and the exact roles that you’re looking for. So make sure you look out for the right job boards – because you might just find the job for you by narrowing your search a little bit.

2) Set Up Alerts

If you set up alerts this is a sure fire way to get all your possible job opportunities sent to you! You simply need to set up an account and state your job categories that you’re interested in and in which area/s. This saves you trawling through all the sites and looking at roles that are completely irrelevant to you. But make sure you select the most relevant job categories and the key words you put in are correct – otherwise you may find yourself receiving emails about jobs that you have no interest in at all and missing out on the ones that would be perfect!

3) Make Sure Your Personal Details Are Correct

This seems like a really obvious one but it’s really important to make sure all your contact details are all there for your employer/recruiter to contact you on. If you haven’t bothered to put the correct details in then they might think you’re a little bit sloppy and not necessarily get in touch. So make sure your personal details are all up to date to avoid missing out on your perfect opportunity.

4) Use The Resources On The Website

A job board can be so much more than just a platform that advertises jobs – many offer free specialist advice about applying for jobs, interview stages and much more(like this very blog!) – so it’s worth having a look through. Remember they’re the people that talk to the employers – so they know what they’re talking about. If you’re looking for a career in digital or just need some more general career advice we’ve got loads of blogs that you can have a look through.

5) Make Sure Your Most Recent CV Is Uploaded

I know you’ll probably be chopping and changing your CV every two minutes to make sure your CV is perfect – which is a really good thing to do. But it’s really important to make sure you update it on the job board – you don’t want to be missing key experiences out that could’ve potentially got you the job. Employers aren’t psychic so make sure you keep your profile nice and up to date. If you’re struggling to decide what to include on your CV then have a look at this post. Remember you want to stand out from the crowd and if you haven’t updated your CV to show that then you’re not going too!

So there you go – five top tips to help you graduates use job boards effectively. This will hopefully save you time and help you bag your dream graduate job!