Where to look for jobs

I write a lot about different jobs, what people like and don’t like about their jobs, and what their career paths looked like. But where can you actually find these jobs? Here are some resources —  places where you can look for your dream job. 

Broad searches 

Linkedin: By LinkedIn I don’t mean networking, I mean their job board (look for the little briefcase icon at the top of your page; that’s the place). The job boards on LinkedIn are seriously active. According to LinkedIn’s own statistics, millions of people have gotten jobs they’ve applied for on the site. 

A few months ago, I attended a talk by a hiring manager at a big pharmaceutical company who mentioned that, in recent years, the biggest fraction of their new hires applied for or found the job through LinkedIn, eclipsing standard job sites such as Indeed.  

Like any big job site, however, LinkedIn’s job board has ghost jobs (jobs that are not real; they are posted for a range of reasons and are at least part of the reason that only 40% of postings on any job board result in hiring someone), but it still may be your best bet of the big job sites. 

With LinkedIn, you can apply right on the site for some jobs. You can upload a new resume or choose from previously uploaded resumes. For other jobs, it directs you to the institution’s site to apply. 

You can filter location and key words on LinkedIn and set up alerts for jobs you might be a match for, and you can track the jobs you’ve applied for. In my anecdotal experience, if you set up the right keywords, the suggested jobs they email you are pretty accurate. 

Another advantage of searching for jobs on LinkedIn? Many small startups don’t have websites yet, but they do have a LinkedIn presence. 

Traditional online job boards: For broad job searches, another option is sites such as Indeed, ZipRecruiter, Monster and CareerBuilder (which just combined with Monster). Redundancy exists among all these, and in my experience a higher percentage of job listings send you to recruiting firms than send you to a specific application, but they still are treasure troves of jobs.  

Narrower searches

Recruiting companies: Field-specific recruiting companies such as Stratacuity, Commonwealth Science, Kelly Science and BioTalent offer services to job hunters like uploading a resume, creating a profile of your skills and interests, and working personally with recruiters. 

And a word a here: A recruiter can potentially get to know you and match you with a dream job that you didn’t even know was available.

On the other hand, working with a recruiter is one more step in a complicated process. They don’t have the final say over who gets hired, so no matter how much a recruiter likes you, you still might not get the job. They might not give you all the information about what jobs are available or even what companies are hiring. Also, you can be ghosted by recruiters.

Note: You should not have to pay to work with a recruiter. If a recruiter is asking you for a fee, it may be a scam.

State biology nonprofits: State organizations supporting the life sciences such as MassBio and GeorgiaBio have career centers that can match job seekers with employers through job boards, and resume banks. 

Professional societies: ASBMB, the National Association of Science Writers, the National Intellectual Property Law Association and other such groups all have job boards (some only available to members). Most professions have societies, and most societies have job listings.

Chronicle of Higher Education: Nearly all academic institutions advertise their professor positions here.

USA jobs: USAjobs.gov is the one and only site where you can apply for government jobs. Sometimes the jobs are listed elsewhere, but you will always be redirected back here. The search function is not the best, but if you can figure it out, this is where it’s at for government jobs. They also have a career explorer, where you can take a survey and they will match you with jobs you might like. 

Scientific journal jobs section: Many scientific journals still have a classified section at the back where people post open positions, largely in academia, including postdoc and professor positions.

Niche searching

Individual companies’ and schools’ websites: I found my current job by looking on the websites of institutions I was specifically interested in. That might seem like a long shot, but it works. Big companies such as Pfizer and Novartis always have jobs posted directly on their sites. Magazines, journals, companies, schools and societies, usually have a jobs section. If you happen to look at their job page while the position is open, you’re in luck. 

I know of a few instances when jobs were posted only on the institution's website to avoid getting hundreds of applicants. So, it isn’t always just a smaller pool of jobs compared with the bigger job sites. Sometimes, it’s a unique pool of jobs.

Your alma mater’s alumni or career website: College and university websites often have career centers where jobs and internships are posted for students and postdocs. In addition, some colleges have a section on their alumni pages where alums post job ads for other alums to see. Depending on how the sites are set up, this can give you the advantage of having an institution in common with the person advertising the job. 

Social media: It’s common now for people to share job ads on social media when their company or group is hiring. Searching for jobs on X or Facebook isn’t as efficient as on a real job site like LinkedIn, but don’t overlook it.  

Local newspaper: What century am I living in suggesting you look for a job in the classified section of the newspaper? But if you live in a rural area or small town, you still might find a job in the local newspaper and/or on the town message board.