Resources & Job Tools
Real tools, outside this site.
SkillRise gives you the practice. These are the places that give you the paperwork — a skills profile, a résumé, a job opening, a funded course, a check that your pay is right. Every link opens in a new tab. Most are free.
- Trusted US providers
- Opens in a new tab
- Free to use
Career Dreamer
explore what fits you
O*NET & CareerOneStop
official US career data
Explore careers & pathways
Work out what you're already good at and which jobs it points towards — before you write a single application.
Google Career Dreamer
Build a picture of your skills from experiences you already have — school, caregiving, volunteering, part-time work — and explore careers that match. Also drafts a résumé and a cover letter from that profile.
Open Google Career Dreamer ↗O*NET Interest Profiler
Sixty questions, then a mapped list of occupations by the preparation each one needs.
Open O*NET Interest Profiler ↗CareerOneStop — Skills Matcher
Rate 40 everyday skills and get careers that fit, with local pay and demand data attached.
Open CareerOneStop ↗Occupational Outlook Handbook
The official reference for what a job pays, what it takes to get in, and whether it is growing.
Open Occupational Outlook Handbook ↗Build a résumé
Free builders, templates and feedback tools that turn your experience into something a hiring manager can scan.
Google Career Dreamer — résumé & cover letter drafts
Generates a first-draft résumé and tailored cover letter from your skills profile. Edit it in your own voice before sending.
Open Google Career Dreamer ↗CareerOneStop Résumé Guide
Free templates and section-by-section guidance, including examples for people with little formal work history.
Open CareerOneStop Résumé Guide ↗USAJOBS Résumé Builder
Free builder that produces a clean, complete résumé — required for federal jobs and a solid base anywhere else.
Open USAJOBS Résumé Builder ↗Interview Warmup
Practice real interview questions out loud and get instant feedback on the words and themes you lean on.
Open Interview Warmup ↗Find jobs & apprenticeships
Where the openings actually are, including entry-level and earn-while-you-learn routes.
CareerOneStop — American Job Center finder
Free in-person help near you: résumé review, training funds, interview coaching and local employer contacts.
Open CareerOneStop ↗Apprenticeship.gov — Apprenticeship Finder
Earn while you train in registered apprenticeships — construction, healthcare, IT, manufacturing and more, with no tuition debt.
Open Apprenticeship.gov ↗USAJOBS
Every federal opening in one place, including entry-level roles that state the pay grade up front.
Open USAJOBS ↗Indeed
The largest general job aggregator. Set alerts for a small number of specific job titles rather than browsing.
Open Indeed ↗LinkedIn Jobs
Useful for seeing who works somewhere before you apply, and for a profile that doubles as a public résumé.
Open LinkedIn Jobs ↗Courses & credentials
Short, mostly free courses and certificates that add real evidence to an application.
OSHA — Workers' rights and safety
What your employer must do, what you must do, and how to report a hazard without being retaliated against.
Open OSHA ↗FDA Food Code & food handler basics
The national standard behind state food-handler cards: temperatures, cross-contamination and allergen handling.
Open FDA Food Code & food handler basics ↗Applied Digital Skills
Free video-led lessons on professional email, documents, spreadsheets and online collaboration.
Open Applied Digital Skills ↗Be Internet Awesome & online safety basics
Digital citizenship fundamentals: privacy, phishing, tone and what you leave behind online.
Open Be Internet Awesome & online safety basics ↗Google Career Certificates
Job-ready certificates in IT support, data analytics, project management, UX and cybersecurity. Financial aid available.
Open Google Career Certificates ↗CareerOneStop — Find local training
Search community college and workforce training programs near you, including WIOA-funded options.
Open CareerOneStop ↗Khan Academy — Personal Finance
Short lessons on budgeting, interest, credit and taxes that make a pay stub make sense.
Open Khan Academy ↗Money, pay & rights
Check your pay is right, understand deductions, and get free impartial money help.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
What counts as unlawful discrimination or harassment at work, and how to file a free charge.
Open U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ↗Wage and Hour Division — workers' pay rights
Minimum wage, overtime, tipped-worker rules and how to file a wage complaint confidentially.
Open Wage and Hour Division ↗State minimum wage rates
Check the legal minimum where you live — many states and cities are well above the federal $7.25.
Open State minimum wage rates ↗IRS Tax Withholding Estimator
See whether too much or too little is coming out of each paycheck, and get the W-4 changes to fix it.
Open IRS Tax Withholding Estimator ↗Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — money tools
Free, impartial help on budgeting, debt collectors, bank accounts and credit reports.
Open Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ↗File for unemployment insurance
Find your state's unemployment office and file the week you are laid off — benefits rarely backdate.
Open File for unemployment insurance ↗Layoffs: WARN Act and your rights
Notice you may be owed before a mass layoff, plus rapid-response services that start before your last day.
Open Layoffs: WARN Act and your rights ↗Benefits.gov — check what support you qualify for
One screener across food, housing, healthcare and income support between jobs.
Open Benefits.gov ↗Bring what you find back here
A skills profile is only worth what you can say out loud in an interview. Work the pathways, then practice a shift.