Meet the Professionals Night

Directories - CDO

Who to contact

Career Development Office

Using Directories

A directory contains names and addresses of organizations, names and titles of people in those organizations, and sometimes includes additional information about each organization. Using directories to identify potential employers is a common way of applying for jobs. You can expand your job prospects by identifying organizations that interest you, and contact them directly, without knowing whether or not they have any openings.

Applicants often misuse this approach by assuming that all they have to do is to find a list of names and addresses (like those found in a directory) and send a resume and a cover letter to as many organizations as possible. This "mass mailing" approach has been proven to be the least effective way to find a job. Using directories as a job search tool can be an effective strategy only if you have clarified your current career goals and done your research.

First, identify occupations of interest and learn as much as you can about them. Use the resources on the career information shelves in the CDO, and talk to people doing the work you're considering. Use the Interviewing for Information handout, for suggestions. Assess your strengths and weaknesses related to what you have learned about each occupation or career field. Then, using directories, identify prospective employers for those occupations and learn as much as you can about those organizations. Use the Researching an Organization handout, to help you with your research. If you have done all of this "homework," you will be able to be specific about what you are seeking and where you "fit" in each organization when you contact them for the first time.

Your first contact may be for the purpose of getting information (see Networking). Or, using the information gathered through your research, your first contact (write, call or visit) may be to inquire about current openings that match your career goals. Contacting the manager or supervisor in the department or function in which you're most interested is the most effective way to use this approach.

The CDO has a variety of employer directories. What follows is a partial list of current directories and where they are located.

Geographic Directories Shelf

  • American Jobs Abroad
  • The Atlanta Job Bank
  • The Boston Job Bank
  • Careers in World Affairs
  • The Carolina Job Bank
  • The Cleveland Job Bank
  • The Pittsburgh Job Bank
  • The Metropolitan Washington Job Bank
  • Syracuse: Chamber of Commerce Business Directory
  • Rochester Business Journal of Lists
  • The Top 25 - Business First of Buffalo
  • The Upstate New York Job Bank
  • The Virginia Job Bank
  • Washington Job Source
  • Work Your Way Around The World
  • World Chamber of Commerce Directory

Business and Industrial Directories Shelf

  • Job Seekers Almanac
  • The Biotechnology Industry Guide
  • Bradford's Directory of Marketing Research Agencies and Management Consultants
  • Hidden Job Market
  • Hoover's Handbook of American Business
  • Hoover's Handbook of Emerging Companies
  • O'Dwyers Directory of Corporate Communications
  • Hoover's Handbook of Private Companies
  • Job Bank Guide to Computer Companies
  • Job Opportunities for Business Majors
  • Job Opportunities for Engineering & Computer Science Majors
  • The Pharmaceutical Industry Guide
  • Sports Business Directory

Education Directories Shelf

  • Directory of Public Schools Systems in the United States
  • ISS Directory of Overseas Schools
  • New York State Directory of School Administrators
  • Teaching English Abroad
  • Private Independent Schools
  • Schools Abroad of Interest to Americans

Government Directories Shelf

  • Applying for Federal Jobs
  • Book of U. S. Government Jobs
  • How to Find an Overseas Job with the U.S. Government
  • NYS Association of Counties Directory
  • The New York State Directory
  • Political Resource Directory
  • Government Job Finder

Health, Human Service and Non-Profit Directories Shelf

  • AHA Guide to the Health Care Field
  • Alternatives to the Peace Corps
  • The Best Hospitals in America
  • Caring for Kids with Special Needs
  • Directory for Exceptional Children
  • Good Works: A Guide to Careers in Social Change
  • Guide to Human Services in Chautauqua County
  • Job Opportunities for Health and Science Majors
  • Now Hiring: Outdoor Jobs
  • The Job Bank Guide to Health Care Companies

Arts and Media Directories Shelf

  • The Design Firm Directory
  • Gebbie Press All-In-One* Directory
  • Hoover's Guide to Media Companies
  • International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses
  • Literary Marketplace
  • New York Casting and Survival Guide
  • Recording Industry Sourcebook
  • Regional Theatre Directory
  • The SHOOT Directory for Commercial Production and Postproduction
  • Songwriter's Market
  • U. S. Directory of Entertainment Employers

TIPS: Check the internship and summer employment directories to identify possibilities for job prospects. The organizations listed also hire full-time employees.

Some of the books on the career information shelves also contain directory information that can be used to identify potential prospects.