How to Find the Job That is the Right Job for You:
A Pathfinder
by Barbara Scheibel, Librarian
This pathfinder is designed to help locate materials
useful in exploring different careers, job hunting, resume writing,
interviewing and civil service test preparation. These materials can be
located in the OCPL system, electronically and at local employment assistance
agencies.
Directories will give basic information on employers, such as addresses and phone numbers, and often compile information in useful
ways, such as by specific career types, or size of companies.
National
Job Bank - Includes major US employers by state and brief
descriptions, training programs, job categories and fringe benefits. Industry cross index included.
The library has a large
collection of in-library use civil service study guides to help
study for civil service job tests.
The library also has circulating
civil service test preparation booklets designed to help prepare for NY
State and local government civil service examinations. These booklets contain sample questions in a
variety of areas that have been the subject of previous examinations.
Videos
OCPL has a wide variety of circulating videos to help the
job-hunter, including these selected titles:
The library subscribes to many career and employment journals, including:
Career
Opportunities News This journal provides information on trends in hiring, careers, salary information, on-line
resources and job searching tips.
For an index to articles on job-hunting, see OCPL’s Online Databases. Here you can access magazine and journal articles, newspapers, and reference books 24 hours a day using your OCPL library card.
For in-library use of the online databases, please see a librarian.
The library subscribes to many on-line databases, where users
can locate basic and detailed information on companies. All of these databases can be accessed from
the library, and many can be accessed remotely through the library webpage:
Business
and Company Resource Center - Company profiles, brand information, rankings, investment
reports, company histories, chronologies, and periodicals, including detailed
business and industry news and information. 1980-present. Hoover’s Online – Comprehensive coverage of public, private, and
non-U.S. companies. Includes profiles, news, key people, and in-depth financials. Reference USA – Business and residential phone numbers, addresses, and other
directory information. Reverse phone number lookups; advanced mode searching by
yellow page heading, business SIC code, zip code, SMSA and more. Learning Express Library - Online practice for job-related and academic exams, including the GED, SAT, AP, ASVAB, civil service, U.S. citizenship, and reading, writing and math skills improvement practice. Ferguson’s Career Guidance Center -
Detailed and up-to-date descriptions of more than 2,800 of the most popular jobs in 93 industries.
Newspaper Databases: Newspapers contain valuable articles on businesses and employment.
NewsBank: – Full text of the Syracuse Post-Standard from 1986-present, the Rochester Democrat and
Chronicle from 1999-present, and the Utica Observer-Dispatch from 2003.
OCPL
Job Information Webpage contains many useful links to a wide range of
job search and career websites, both local and national, and are broken down
into the following categories:
Civil Service Jobs
Local Resources for Job Seekers
General Job Listing Sites
Resume Writing
Careers
Part-time Careers
Test Guides & Resource Booklets for Local Examinations
New York State now has a number of civil service study guides available online. Test Guides are published by the New York State Department of Civil Service and are generally targeted to entry-level occupations. These test guides contain no material to study or learn in preparation for any specific test. They are developed to provide candidates with a general description of the subjects on the examination and sample questions. Guides are in PDF format.
Additionally,
the following 2 websites are good
general starting points for the online job searcher:
Job Hunters Bible
This site is brought to you by Richard Bolles, author of the well-known
book What Color Is Your Parachute? With over 30 years experience in the
job hunting field, Mr. Bolles has some interesting advice for the online job
searcher, and by starting at his site you will know just where to focus your
search.
The Riley Guide
From Margaret Dikel, author of the Riley Guide, this site has links, advice
and all you should need to steer you in the right direction with your online
job search. Margaret Riley is a librarian who has spent years working in the
job-hunting field.
*Ask your librarian to help you locate these or other relevant materials in the library.
There are several agencies that provide employment counseling and assistance in the central New York area:
CNY Works
NY State Job Service – One Stop
443 N. Franklin Street, Lower Level
Syracuse, New York 13204
315-473-8250
CNY Works offers a dynamic range of cost-freeservices for the job seeker, including:
Career Planning
Job Search Assistance
Individualized Skill Assessment
Resume Development
Computer and Internet Access
GED Preparation
Interviewing Skills
Job Corps
Syracuse Office:
224 Harrison St., Suite 212
Syracuse, New York 13202
315-478-5529
1-800-375-8056
Job Corps is a no-cost, federally funded job training and education program for income-eligible young adults ages 16-24. They provide:
Hands-on training in more than 60 career areas
Industry-recognized certification in many career areas
Computer training
GED program
Drivers education
College level courses
Other job and education training programs
JobsPlus
677 S. Salina Street
Syracuse, New York
13202
315-442-3242
JobsPlus is a partnership between Onondaga Co. Community College and the Onondaga Co. Dept. of Social
Services. The program is designed to help make the transition from welfare to the workplace. Services include:
Job Search and Readiness Workshops
Individual Case Management
Community Work Experience Program
Child Care Reimbursement
Transportation Assistance
Interview Clothing Closet
Computer Classes
Other Specialized Programs
Women's Opportunity Center - Displaced Homemakers Program 770 James Street
Syracuse, NY 13203
315-446-0550
www.womensopportunity.org
The Women's Opportunity Center now runs the Displaced Homemakers Program, a free service offered to displaced homemakers. Services include:
Job Readiness Workshops
Computer Skills Training
Resume and Cover Letter Assistance
Interviewing Techniques
Local, Regional and Out of Town Newspapers – Many are available in print and the library. Others may
be found online.
Syracuse.com – The local Post Standard job listings can be accessed on this web site.
OCPL Library Website – Jobs Link - Will
link you with many local and national online job listings. You will find links to sites like
Monster.com and DaVinci Jobs.
There are internet computers and computers with word processing capabilities at most
of the OCPL libraries. Please call ahead for availability.
