Using the Internet
Using the Internet in your Job Search
The Internet offers teacher candidates a wide variety of helpful resources for finding a position in education. If you have access to the World Wide Web at home, you can search for information and make networking or employment contacts any time of the day or night. This is an important benefit when you are juggling student teaching, family and the job search. Following are some ways you can use this powerful tool:
- Look for job vacancies. You can locate education vacancies through online searchable Web sites, listserves, and newsgroups. College career services offices, school districts, state departments of education, and commercial operations are all posting positions online.
- Search for information about school districts. When preparing for an interview, you can go to a school district¯s web site and find out about its philosophy, demographics, individual schools, and much more. The Web is also invaluable if you¯re considering relocating.
- Apply for a position online. Use the Lower Hudson Valley On-Line Teacher Application System (OTAS) to apply to 10 participating districts for a $15 initial fee. Additional transmittals are $10 each for up to 10 additional districts. Link to the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES On Line Application System (OLAS) web page at http://www.olasjobs.org/. The advantage is that districts see your name and qualifications in one more database. The disadvantage is that all the applications look alike and you lose the marketing advantage of a resume, so you should probably also send a hard copy.
- Bring yourself up-to-date on educational issues. Use the Web to prepare yourself to talk about special topics like team teaching or using technology to enhance instruction. Many sites on the Web discuss pedagogy and current issues in education., including New York State standards.
- Make direct contact with educators. Education web sites often have e-mail addresses and even complete profiles of teachers and administrators. You can use these addresses to find out about the district or school, get advice, or discover openings.
- Get job search advice. The Web is there even when the Center for Career Development is closed.
SUGGESTED WEB SITES
Education Based Sources
- School of Education, Manhattanville College. The latest news, plus answers to your frequently asked questions about state and New York City certification.
- Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES Job Vacancies in Education. Includes both jobs at BOCES and in local districts, updated weekly. A contact and address list is also available with links to district web sites. www.pnwboces.org/jobs
School Districts
- Locate school districts through the WWW.
- Schools Registry's K-12 school sites at web66.coled.umn.edu/schools.html. You will find all schools with Web sites in the United States as well as a variety of other information that will be helpful your job search.
- State Level Education Web Sites. Locate state departments of education at http://wdcrobcolp01.ed.gov/Programs/EROD/org_list.cfm?category_ID=SEA. State departments of education sites include certification requirements, school program initiatives and job lists.
- ERIC. The ERIC home page at ericir.syr.edu/ contains several helpful resources. It connects you to the online ERIC database of education research.
- There are many other sites, both educational and commercial, which include private school listings, foreign employment opportunities, and other education information. For a complete listing, contact Jean Halajian in the Office of Career Services, (914) 323-5484 or e-mail halajiaj@mville.edu.
(This article was adapted from "Using the Internet for Your Education Job Search" by Steve Head, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1999 Job Search Handbook for Educators, published by the American Association for Employment in Education, 3040 Riverside Drive, Suite 125, Columbus, OH 43221-2550 Phone: 614-485-1111 Fax: 614-485-9609 Email: aaee@osu.edu website: www.aaee.org)