So may issues and so many questions, so how can you see the forest for all of the trees?
Fortunately, the Internet has given us an extremely powerful tool for making sense of the jungle out there as you work on making your next move. Of course, you still need to exercise common sense, as there are many pitfalls for the unwary, and even if you do find a resource which is helpful, you may need some guidance to make sure that you get the very best deal for your skills and experience in terms of remuneration, benefits, and working conditions.
Many Internet resources are simply very basic and glossy store fronts for recruiters who will do nothing more than fire your resume around the market in the hope that an employer will like it. These recruiters get paid a commission or a fee if you land a job, and in many cases, they're doing nothing more than selling your resume to third parties. That's right, your resume is a valuable document — not only to you but to others as well — and it is worth real dollars to certain companies and individuals.
That said, a good website will allow you to manage and manipulate your resume so that you will be in full control of your resume in terms of who gets to see it and what version of your resume is available for employers to look at. Your resume is probably the most important weapon in your armory when it comes to getting yourself before a potential employer. So, are you confident in your ability to prepare a resume which will get you noticed? Are you using several versions of a resume so that different skills and experiences that you have highlighted will better match a potential employers requirements? And, if you are doing this (which is good idea), how are you going to get the information on what an employer is really looking for in a candidate?
When you start asking yourself these kinds of questions, you'll start to be able to assess the real value of a web resource and whether or not it is simply a waste of your time, energy, and even money.
Many websites simply act as advertisers of vacancies on behalf of employers, yet at the same time claim to be offering a highly comprehensive listings service. You, as an individual job seeker, don't have to pay a fee, but what exactly are you getting for free? In all likelihood, you're getting a listing service that will not be comprehensive because unless every employer is prepared to pay to be advertised, they are simply not going to be capturing all of the vacancies on the market — and you will not be seeing what is available from that market.
So what's the alternative? Find portal websites which aggregate all the information that is currently available from job and recruiting sites as well as traditional media such as newspapers and trade journals. Portal aggregators provide users with instant and current information on vacancies, whether you're looking for new positions or specialist vacancies. The downside is that although the employers will not be charged for such a service, you as an individual job seeker will be charged a fee. This is a worthwhile expense, though, given the comprehensive nature of these resources as well as the increased exclusivity provided by the fact that the information is not accessible to many of your competing job seekers.
A good portal site will provide you with a free-of-charge trial to test the service before you part with any money, and if they don't, you're advised to avoid using them.
Ensure that the web site you are using is actually offering a genuine service — websites can be put together very quickly and easily, and the uninformed can easily be deceived. Check the ''Contact Us'' section of a web site to see if there is a landline telephone number and a physical mailing address — if they do not have either of these, it's recommended that you avoid using them. You can also check a website's credentials and reputation by looking at the various discussion boards and forums that populate the Internet. If a website offering dental jobs listings is receiving favorable comments, then this is the best recommendation for their service that you will be able to find anywhere.