How to find a job

Using BLS data in a job search

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) can help you explore occupations, glimpse job outlook, and find wage data for where you live or work. BLS information includes detail on the education, training, and experience typically required for hundreds of occupations. Read on to discover a few of the ways you can use BLS data in your job search.

Exploring careers

Learning about occupations is easy using the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH). To help you get started, the OOH homepage has quick links to hot topics like the highest paying occupations and those with the fastest projected growth. You can also select different combinations of pay ranges, education and training requirements, and projections data for a list of occupations that meet your criteria.

CareerInfo mobile app. The OOH is also available as an app for both iOS and Android. Called CareerInfo, the app has additional features such as the ability to favorite occupations, a list of the most popular occupations, and more!

The Employment Projections program produces employment projections and you can explore projections in several ways, such as: videos, Popular graphics, Tables and databases, Analyses. Check out the Field of Degree pages to see the varied occupations of workers who have graduated with a degree in those fields. The information available includes: Employment and wages by field, Majors within a field, Employment by occupational group, Occupations by field.

Career Outlook articles provide data and information on a variety of topics—including occupations, pay, and more. Career Outlook has four departments: 1) Feature articles present an in-depth look at a range of career topics. 2) You’re a what? explores unusual occupations through the work of someone in that occupation. 3) Interview with a… describes a specific worker’s career path.4) Data on display is a graphic presentation of data on employment and other topics.

Understanding wages where you live and work

The Occupational Employment and Wages Statistics (OEWS) program produces employment and wage estimates for occupations. These estimates are available for each occupation at the national, state, and metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area levels. You can use the OEWS Occupational Profiles to discover top-paying industries and geographic areas—or use OEWS estimates to explore the top-paying occupations for your area.

How much could I be earning? Using OEWS data during salary negotiations (HTML) (PDF)
Where are the jobs in my field? How OEWS can take the mystery out of your job search (HTML) (PDF)

Uncovering occupational requirements

The Occupational Requirement Survey (ORS) provides job-related information regarding physical demands; environmental conditions; education, training, and experience; and cognitive and mental requirements for jobs in the U.S. economy.

Using U.S. Department of Labor resources

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), the parent agency of BLS, offers additional information for jobseekers. For example, CareerOneStop Job Search resources can help with preparing a resume, networking, interviewing, negotiating salary, finding job openings, and more.

Suggested citation:

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, How to find a job,
at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/how-to-find-a-job/home.htm (visited November 23, 2024).

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, April 26, 2023