Your stellar résumé is prepared and your interview outfit is chosen…now how do you find relevant job opportunities? As a job seeker your first thought is probably to search out different employment opportunities via search engines, job boards or company career sites. However, a growing trend amongst employers is the use of a .JOBS top level domain (TLD). So how does this impact your job search?

What are .JOBS Domains Anyway?

Chances are you are more familiar with websites that end in .COM, .EDU, or .GOV extensions. Similarly, .JOBS is also an extension. What makes this extension unique is the fact that only verified job content is permitted. One of the benefits helps protect job seekers like yourself from scams – which according to the Better Business Bureau was one of the biggest scams of 2011. (http://mashable.com/2012/03/10/top-scams/) Each job listing links directly to the company’s career site, without having to fill out a profile or view irrelevant content.

While .JOBS sites are being utilized by many different employers, you can also search for jobs by specific field of interest or location. If you have a specific company you would like to work for see if they have a .JOBS site by entering the company name in your browser followed by .jobs. If you have a specific field of interest, such as marketing, enter http://marketing.jobs in your web browser. For location you can search by state, city or metro like http://Indiana.jobs, http://Indianapolis.jobs or http://DCmetro.jobs.

So How Does this Benefit a Job Seeker?

1. Privacy Protected: You aren’t required to set up a user name and password to search through job openings like other job boards. Since a registration isn’t required, you don’t have to worry about uploading your resume and having it distributed to any parties that you are unaware of, keeping your personal information safe and secure.
2. All Job Seeker Focused: Each .JOBS domain is highly targeted so you no longer have to navigate through an entire website to find the careers or job section. Also, if you are searching for a specific career field, you have a variety of verified companies listed for you to search and find the job that fits your unique skill set.
3. Current Job Opportunities: The .JOBS top level domains offer companies a way to better connect with job seekers by keeping only current, legitimate job listings on each site.
4. Access to More Jobs: The .JOBS domains collectively contain nearly 1,000,000 employment opportunities from over 90,000 global employers helping create a robust network of jobs.
5. Mobile-friendly: Companies have recognized that people are constantly on-the-go and need of a way to easily search for employment in the same fashion. The .JOBS domains have been optimized for viewing and searching on a mobile device.

Whether you are a seasoned professional now looking for employment or a college student just starting your career, consider searching on a .JOBS domain to help streamline your employment search. The time you’ll save can be used on polishing up you those interview skills.