The best references to give on a job application

Your job references aren’t just warm bodies who can verify that you’re "the best employee ever, and a totally great fit for [insert job here]." If done thoughtfully, your references can help you create a specific “hire me because I have…

MS Word tips for a great-looking resume

No matter how impressive your education and career have been so far, if you can't find a polished way to put it all down on paper no one will give you a second look. Put it this way: according to TheLadders, recruiters only spend six seconds…

Why you should interview for a job you don’t want

Job hunting is a lot of work, whether you're unemployed or looking while working. You put so much effort into revamping your resume, networking in person and online, and writing cover letters with the hopes of landing something truly great.…

How to master your next phone interview

In this era of texting, when phone conversations are increasingly rare, a phone interview can be a daunting step during the job hunt process. It's hard enough to do a face-to-face interview, but in this case you have to create a rapport with…

How to spot a fake job posting

The job market is hard enough to navigate without having to worry about some posting turning out to be a scam—or even just a dead end. Save your precious time and energy by being on the lookout for these simple signs that something just isn't…

How to ask for a letter of recommendation

At every professional stage in life (job searching, job switching, promotion seeking), there will come a time when you need to ask someone to write you a letter of recommendation. Though not as common as they once were, many would-be employers…

4 questions to ask at the end of an interview

It's game time—the interview is here. You prepped well. You aced the handshake, anticipated the questions they asked, and wowed them with your smooth, competent demeanor and relevant work anecdotes. Or maybe it wasn’t your best interview…

7 steps to rock your face-to-face interview

It’s time for your in-person interview. Maybe you’re here after acing an initial phone interview, or maybe you just skipped straight to this stage. You have a suit cleaned and pressed, copies of your resume ready in a folder, and dreams…

How to properly read a job posting so you don’t apply to a terrible job

When you’re on the job hunt, it’s almost like you need to become fluent in a new language. You need to look at a job description and figure out if it fits your experience and then whether applying for the job is even worth your time. You…

Best ways to stand out when you’re applying for competitive jobs

We all know the market is competitive. Any job you apply for is probably receiving a minimum of 100 applications—with some getting up to the thousands. But someone has to get every job, right? People do make it through to the next levels of…