Using Newspapers To Find A Job

So which job news newspapers should you look at? Well, there are local, regional and national newspapers and each has its particular benefits. Note that the number of positions advertised on job pages usually reflects the newspaper's popularity or the size of the area it covers.

If you want to stay in the area you currently live in, local and regional papers can be very helpful. There tend to be more unskilled and part-time positions advertised in these papers than in national newspapers, but local companies do also advertise and like to be seen to be offering opportunities to the local community.

For jobs around the country and even abroad, the nationals are your best bet - look in the broadsheets rather than tabloids. According to Park's survey 'Graduates in the Eyes of Employers', carried out in 2006, the best papers for finding jobs are The Guardian, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Times, The Independent, The Observer, The FT and The Sunday Telegraph.

Because of the huge numbers of advertisements these papers need to print, they tend to advertise particular jobs on particular days. In The Guardian for example, jobs within PR, marketing or media are advertised on a Monday, while jobs in education are advertised on a Tuesday.

Generally speaking, the bigger the ad, the bigger the company advertising. The BBC usually advertises jobs over two pages but small publishing houses and PR companies can't normally afford such extravagance. This can be a helpful indicator to you if you know what kind of company you'd prefer to work for.

Small companies may offer less money, but they can be a good place to start and learn before going for the 'big boys'. There will probably also be less competition for jobs with lesser known companies and they may be more flexible when it comes to recruitment requirements.

Be wary of jobs that are too good to be true - these adverts could be scams to try and get you involved in something dodgy. And avoid the inevitable ads compelling you to go on this course and that - while many of them are reputable, some make their living from cajoling unsuspecting readers in search of a job into signing up.

But you don't just have to look at the job listings - there may be useful leads in the rest of the paper. There will always be articles relating to the sector in question each day, so read between the lines and try to find out what's going on in the industry, which companies are doing well and which are not. Use this information to your advantage and be creative - if you guess a company is about to recruit, contact them first and you'll be in with a good chance of a job.

And why not put an ad in yourself? Local papers usually have a 'jobs wanted' section, so, if it's not too expensive, give it a go. Then you can sit back and let them come to you!