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Researching Employers

Researching employers (companies) is a critical part of the job search process. It can be helpful for:

  • Deciding where you might want to work
  • Writing a cover letter or tailoring your resume (to figure out how to position your skills/experience to match the company's needs)
  • Preparing for a successful interview

The following resources provide easy access to comprehensive information on employers.

CareerSearch

Great for students who are not sure what types of employers are "out there." Searchabled by industry, and location, the site gives you contact information and company websites.

Accessible online, CareerSearch provides 6.5 million key contacts, including: company descriptions, addresses, names, titles and many e-mail addresses.

You will need to register with the system and create an individual account in order to use CareerSearch. For information on the Thayer-specific client referral code necessary to create an account, contact Engineering Career Services.

Once you have the client referral you can create an account.

Factiva

A good source for background reading. Great way to do your homework for an interview quickly, particularly in providing up-to-the-minute key financial performance indicators.

To access, perform a keyword search for "Factiva" in the Dartmouth's Digital Library.

Global Business Browser

The best place to quickly find recent news articles and summaries of recent company developments. Very useful in determining how subsidiaries of a corporation differ in job function/industry sector by specific location.

For a username and password please contact Engineering Career Services.

Hoover's

Wonderfully comprehensive, particularly strong in providing information that allows you to compare companies with one another.

Hoover's is widely regarded to be one of the premier resources for researching companies for both employment and investment purposes.

Dartmouth provides premium subscriber access to the Hoover's Online service within the campus network, giving you access to resources that you'd have to pay plenty for otherwise. For access, visit the Digital Library homepage and search by resources for "Hoover" (If you are off-campus, visit hoovers.com to access general site information.)

Hoover's also offers weekly e-mail newsletters with information on significant business news which site visitors can subscribe to receive.

Vault

Interesting anecdotal information. Industry overviews, interview resources and company information are invaluable but remember to take anecdotal observations with a "grain of salt."

If you choose to use this site, use it to supplement your research but don't rely on what's in the Vault alone.

Thayer Career Services has partnered with Dartmouth Career Services to offer students full access to Vault's subscription service. This service will allow you online access to all aspects of Vault's site, as well as the opportunity to download Vault publications on a range of topics—from industry profiles to interviewing resources.