Yes, You Absolutely Need a Professional Email Address for Your Job Search. Here's How to Make One.

If you have started your job search it is probably obvious that employers and job sites like Jacksonville Works are pretty interested in your email address. It is difficult, if not impossible to apply for a job online these days without an email address. The reason is simple, email is the way that employers and job sites prefer to keep in contact with jobseekers. 

In fact, when you're looking for a job, these types of communications and more may land in your email inbox:

• Job alerts from job sites that you have joined.
• Confirmation that an employer received your application.
• Invitations for interviews from employers.
• Job matches from job sites.
• Status updates from employers.
• Even employment offers!

So yes, your email address is a critical part of your job search. And you probably already have an email address. But here's the question. Is the email address you have appropriate for a job search?

Employers see your email address. Probably before they call you or even finish looking at your application or resume. For that reason, whatever you choose as an email address should represent you in a professional way. Your resume and job application is not the place for the fun email you may use to send messages to friends or sign into social media accounts. The goal is for the email address they see and use to communicate with you, to feel like they are emailing a colleague. 

It is perfectly fine to have an email address for personal communications and another for professional purposes. So keep the fun, cute, sassy email address for personal use and have a refined, professional email for work.  Now let's get your email address that you’ll use in your  job search in shape. 

What to Avoid in Your Professional Email Address

Before we go further, let's point out a few things to avoid using in your professional email address. There are basically three things to leave out of the email address you’ll use for your job search. 

• Anything that reveals your age. That includes using your year of birth and year of graduation from high school or college. It's really easy to guess your age if you include these types of details.
• Profanity and vulgarity. It may be funny, but not so much when you're trying to get hired. Keep it clean. 
• Things that reveal your parental status. For example, Jadensmommy@emailprovider.com would not be a good email address to use for job search purposes. 

In fact, when searching for a job, we recommend keeping your professional email simple and boring. 

The Super Simple Way to Create a Professional Email Address for Your Job Search

The super simple method we recommend is just using your name. That's it. 

Think about it. When you email someone at their job, their email address is usually some format of their name. Employers are familiar with this format. Adopting this same format immediately gains some points in your favor. And we’re all about that when we’re trying to get the job.

You can use this email format even if you have a common name. Here are some ways you can use your name to create your professional email address to use for your job search. 

Professional Email Formats

To keep it simple, we recommend using your name in your email address. There are several ways that you can do this even if your name is pretty common. Here are some example formats.

Use Your First and Last Name

Separate your first and last name with a period, like this.

👉[First name]. [Last name] @ [email provider].com

Example: Beth.Smith@gmail.com 

You could also try this variation.

👉[Last name]. [First name] @ [Email provider].com

Example: Smith.Beth@gmail.com

Or, leave out the period and just use your name all together. 

 👉[FirstnamLastname]@[emailprovider].com

Example: bethsmith@gmail.com

This also works using your last name first, like this.

👉[Lastname][Firstname]@[email provider].com

Example: smithbeth@gmail.com

Include Your Middle Initial

If you have a middle name, that gives you even more options for possible email addresses. Unless you have a really short name, we don't recommend using your full middle name. An initial will work just fine.

👉[First name][Middle initial][Last name]@[email provider].com

Example: bethvsmith@gmail.com

Use Your First Name Initial

👉[First Initial][Last Name]@[Email Provider].com

Example: bsmith@gmail.com 

👉[Last Name][First Initial]@[Email Provider].com

Example: smithb@gmail.com

Add a Number

Finally, if you get to the end of this format suggestions and no combination or name is available, try adding a number. Just remember not to use your year of birth. Also avoid the year you graduated from high school or college. 

👉[First Name][1][Last Name]@[Email Provider].com

Example: beth1smith@gmail.com

Sources for Free Email Accounts 

Before we wrap up, we also want to leave you with a few email service providers. All of these (as of this writing) offer free email addresses. We are partial to GMAIL. But that's because we create a lot of resources using Google Docs and Google Sheets, so if you already have a Gmail account, it makes getting these resources super easy. But with that said, any of these will fit the bill, so go with whichever you like best. 

• Gmail
• Yahoo!Mail
• AOL
• Outlook
• Mail.com

It should only take a few minutes to set up your professional email address. After you’re done, be sure to come back and  set up a job alert with your new email address.

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