Teens face tough market for summer jobs

So how do you land a gig for the hot days of summer?

The Internet is a good place to start since there are tons of job boards that specifically place teens in summer positions. Some sites Hansen recommends include: TeenJobSection.com; JobDoggy.com and Groovejob.com.

Steven Rothberg, president and founder of CollegeRecruiter.com, offers this advice for high school and college kids to target their search. If a student is looking for a retail job in Chicago, for example, he suggests posting a resume and applying on two or three big general boards, like Monster and Careerbuilder and well as several regional or college sites.

Then, he adds, "set up job match alerts or RSS feeds so that when new matching positions are posted the sites will notify you. Apply to those jobs as they come up, but otherwise don’t go back to the sites after your initial visit."

Job boards should only be part of the "Spend the rest of your time networking," Rothberg advises. "About 90 percent of job openings go unadvertised, yet about 90 percent of candidates apply only to advertised job openings."

Since teens are the cyber networking generation, don’t forget to connect with your contacts on sites like FaceBook. Put out the word that you’re looking for work, and your online friends may be able to hook you up.

Debi Yohn, author of "Parenting College Students: 27 Winning Strategies for Success," says parents should help teens learn the value of marketing themselves.

"Have them talk to parents of their friends, teachers, and adult friends of the family. The teen can let everyone know they are looking for a job," she notes. "You might role-play this with them so they are more comfortable. But remember, let them do their marketing. Do not do it all for them. You will deprive them of the lesson."

Even though some hiring managers may think teens are slackers, one insight that emerged from the SnagAJob.com survey was that only one in five employers thought experience was the top qualification for an applicant. "Almost all of them said a positive attitude was the most important thing," says Boyer.

Show up to the interview in a jacket and tie, if you’re a guy, or a skirt or pantsuit, if you’re a gal, even if you’re applying to work at an amusement park and everyone there wears shorts, he advises.

"If you’re enthusiastic and are willing to put in the hours," Boyer adds, you’ll have a leg up.

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