Careers Page Design: How to Build a Careers Page That Attracts Better Candidates

In this guide, we at Talha Aslan and team walk through the order we follow when we build a careers page from scratch. You will see which sections matter and why. You will also learn how to write a job page, which form fields to ask for and how to become eligible for the job experience in Google Search. Along the way, we share the mistakes we see most often.

Why does a careers page deserve its own section?

Many companies post open roles only on job boards and leave a one-line "join us" note on their own site. However, wherever candidates find a job ad, they usually check the company website before they apply. If they land on an empty page, their trust drops.

A dedicated careers section therefore does three jobs at once. First, it shows that the company is real and runs in an organized way. Second, it keeps the job text under your control, so you never fight a platform character limit. Third, it lets you add structured data that can surface your jobs in Google Search.

On the other hand, a careers page is not only for large employers. For example, a dental clinic that hires two people a year also benefits. In a small business, every wrong hire costs more, so you need to give candidates more information up front.

Which sections belong on a careers page?

When you design a careers page, it helps to order the content by the questions in the candidate's head. A candidate first asks "what work is here?", then "what kind of place is this?" and finally "how do I apply?". So we recommend that you place the sections in that order.

• A short intro that explains what the company does and why it is hiring.
• An open roles list that people can filter, with each row leading to a separate job page.
• Working conditions, such as the work model, hours, benefits and location.
• Team and workplace, with real photos and short quotes that employees approved.
• The hiring process, from application to offer.
• The application form plus a clear privacy notice for candidates.
• A general application option or job alerts for times with no open roles.

We cover each of these sections below. In short, the goal is simple. Candidates should find answers to all their basic questions before they close the tab.

How should you organize the open roles list?

The open roles list is the heart of the careers page. Even if the list is short, every row should show the job title, team, location and work model. That way, candidates can skip roles that do not fit them without clicking.

As the number of roles grows, add filters. For instance, team, city and remote options usually cover most needs. However, if you only have five jobs, filters add clutter, and a plain list works better.

The most important rule is this: every job needs its own URL. Each row in the list should lead to a separate page for that job. Putting all jobs in accordions on one page may look practical at first. It is also easy to maintain. Still, this setup makes sharing harder and conflicts with the single job page requirement in Google's documentation. We return to that point in the structured data section.

Also, do not leave closed roles in the list. If candidates find out later that they applied for a closed job, they lose time and think less of the company.

How do you write a good job posting page?

The job page is the most read part of any careers section. For this reason, we suggest that you write it like a letter to the candidate, not like a policy document. Keep the job title plain, and leave internal codes, dates and title decorations out of it.

In the body, you can follow this order: why the role exists, the work in the first months, the must-have skills, the nice-to-have skills, working conditions and application steps. For example, phrases like "dynamic and able to work under pressure" appear in almost every ad and tell candidates nothing. Instead, describe a real week in the role.

1. State the purpose of the role in two sentences.
2. List concrete responsibilities as bullet points.
3. Keep must-have skills short, and move anything optional to a plus section.
4. Name the work model, location and schedule clearly.
5. Explain what happens after someone applies and which steps follow.

Whether you share pay is the company's decision. However, if you do share it, give a real range. Never add an estimated or misleading figure.

How do you show your employer brand on a careers page?

Your employer brand is the image your company has as a place to work. On a careers page, you show it with evidence rather than slogans. So instead of "join our family", you show how the team works, how people make decisions and how they grow.

You do not need a long manifesto for this. For example, three short headings may be enough: how we work, what we care about and how you grow here. Under each heading, add two or three sentences and, if possible, a real example scenario.

Meanwhile, your employer brand should not contradict your about page. If you tell the company story there, link to it instead of repeating it. We explain how we structure that text in our guide to writing an about us page.

Honesty is your strongest tool here. If a role has hard parts, such as field work or shifts, say so openly. As a result, you receive fewer poor-fit applications, and your hiring team saves time.

Why should team photos be real?

Candidates notice smiling office photos from stock libraries. They may have seen the same image on other sites. Therefore, fake warmth costs you more trust than having no photos at all.

A professional shoot day is ideal for real team photos, but you do not strictly need one. Still, follow a few basic rules: natural light, real workspaces, unposed moments and clear consent from everyone in the frame. Moreover, written consent makes it easier to remove a photo when someone leaves.

Remember to write meaningful alt text for each photo. For example, "software team in a weekly planning meeting" says far more than "team". That way, candidates who use screen readers also understand the page. For the broader principles, see our article on WCAG standards.

In addition, compress your images and serve them at the right size. Candidates often open careers pages on their phones, and a heavy photo gallery slows the page down.

What should the application form look like?

The application form turns a candidate's interest into a real application. That is why shorter forms tend to work better. For most roles, the first step only needs a name, contact details, a resume file and an optional short note.

Do not ask again for details that the resume already contains. For example, making candidates type their education, work history and references field by field wears them out. Instead, you can collect those details at the interview stage.

• Mark required fields clearly and keep their number low.
• State the accepted file types and size limit next to the upload field.
• Show error messages beside the field and say how to fix the problem.
• After submission, show a clear thank you message and the next step.

We cover the effect of field count and order in our guide to booking, quote and demo form design. The same principles apply to application forms.

How do you add a privacy notice to the application form?

An application form collects personal data such as resumes, contact details and sometimes photos. For that reason, you should place a link next to or right below the form. It should lead to a notice that explains why you process the data, how long you keep it and what rights candidates have.

The most common mistake we see is linking the general privacy policy to the application form. Yet the purpose and retention logic for candidate data differ from customer data. For example, if you want to keep a rejected candidate's resume for other roles, you need to state that separately.

Also, avoid asking for sensitive data you do not need. Remove fields like date of birth, marital status or photos when the job does not truly require them. This way, you reduce your data load and raise candidate trust at the same time.

We explain the general framework in our guide to building a GDPR compliant website. Note: this section does not count as legal advice, so we recommend that you prepare your notice with a legal advisor.

Which careers page setups can you choose from?

You can build a careers page in several ways, and each one brings a different maintenance load. The table below compares three setups we meet often. It does not rank them; the right choice depends on how many roles you post and how much upkeep your team can handle.

For most mid-sized companies, the second setup strikes a good balance. If you would like us to build your careers section this way, you can request a quote through our web design service.

What is JobPosting structured data?

JobPosting is the Schema.org type that marks up a job's title, description, posting date, employer and location in a format search engines can read. Google may show eligible pages with this markup in the job experience in Search results.

According to Google Search Central, the required properties are the job title (title), the full description (description), the original posting date (datePosted), the hiring organization (hiringOrganization) and the workplace location (jobLocation). Fully remote jobs can use an applicant location requirement instead of a location. You can find the details in Google's job posting documentation.

Recommended properties include the expiry date (validThrough), the employment type (employmentType), the actual base pay the employer offers (baseSalary) and an internal job ID (identifier). However, the pay field should only hold the real amount the employer sets, never an estimate.

If the basics of structured data are new to you, we suggest that you start with our article on what schema markup is.

How do you prepare a careers page for Google for Jobs?

The job experience in Google Search lists eligible jobs in a special view. Do not assume that this view works the same in every country. Google's documentation notes that availability and appearance vary by region, so check the current coverage in the official documentation.

Page structure is the first condition. Google asks you to use JobPosting markup only on a page for a single job. A job list or a search results page should not carry this markup. Consequently, the one page per job setup we recommended earlier pays off directly here.

In addition, the documentation says you should not require candidates to log in to see the job details, and you should not charge them to apply. The page must also offer a way to apply. A career fair invitation or an event notice does not qualify as a job posting.

Rather than writing the markup by hand, you can start with a generator. For instance, you can build the basic structure with our schema generator tool and then check it with Google's Rich Results Test.

Which JobPosting mistakes cause problems?

Google's job posting content guidelines clearly prohibit some practices. Knowing them helps you avoid lost visibility and more serious issues. The list below sums up the main points from the documentation in plain words.

• Writing incomplete or misleading descriptions, or posting a role that does not exist.
• Entering misleading location data.
• Marking up an ad or a service promotion as a job posting.
• Publishing text full of keywords or with poor grammar.
• Marking up a page only to collect resumes when no role is open.

In practice, the title field causes the most trouble. For example, we often see company names, job codes or words like "urgent" in the title. Google's documentation asks you to put only the job title in that field. So move those extras into the body text.

Also check that the visible text matches the markup. If you place a fact only in the markup and not on the page, you create a trust issue.

How should you remove an expired job posting?

A closed job that still looks open is the most common mistake we see on careers pages. Google's documentation describes several ways to handle expired jobs and asks you to apply one of them. According to the documentation, leaving expired jobs live can lead to a manual action.

1. Set the validThrough date to a date in the past.
2. Or remove the page entirely so it returns a 404 or 410 status code.
3. Or remove the JobPosting markup from the page.
4. Then notify Google; the documentation prefers the Indexing API over sitemaps for job URLs.
5. Remove the closed job from your careers list too, and update internal links.

For candidates, the best experience is a short "this role has closed" note on the old job page with links to similar open roles. However, in that case you must remove the JobPosting markup.

That way, you do not send candidates down a dead end, and you leave a clean record in Search. We recommend that you tie this step to a calendar reminder, because teams often notice a forgotten job only months later.

What should a careers page show when no roles are open?

A bare "no open positions right now" message makes you lose candidates. Instead, keep the rest of the page live: the team, working conditions and hiring process sections. That way, candidates keep getting to know the company.

You can also offer two options. First, candidates can leave an email address and hear about new roles. Second, you can provide a general application form. However, if you accept general applications, state clearly that this is not a job ad, and do not add JobPosting markup to that page.

For general applications, also mention the retention period in your privacy notice. For example, a line such as "we consider your application for similar roles for a set period" tells candidates what to expect. Set the period based on your company policy and your legal advisor's view.

In short, a quiet hiring period is a good chance to strengthen your employer brand. Short posts from the team, workplace photos and a clear process description keep the page alive.

How should a careers page work on mobile?

Candidates often browse jobs on their phones, on the commute or during a break. Therefore, you need to think about the careers page for small screens first. List rows need tap-friendly sizes, and you should group filters in a single panel.

On mobile, the application form causes the most problems. For example, the resume upload field should open the phone's file picker; never ask candidates to switch to a desktop. Also, use the right keyboard type for each field. A phone field should open a number pad, and an email field should open an email keyboard.

We explain the general principles in our article on mobile first design. On a careers page, we especially recommend that you keep the apply button easy to reach on every job page.

Finally, test the page from top to bottom on a real phone. When someone on your team completes a sample application on a phone, hidden issues show up quickly.

Does a careers page need to be accessible?

Yes, a careers page needs to be accessible. This page offers people real opportunities. If a disabled candidate cannot finish the application, that is unfair, and you also miss a strong candidate.

The W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the core reference here. For a careers page, a few points stand out. Every form field needs a visible label. Error messages should use text, not only color. People should also be able to complete the whole form with a keyboard.

Pay special attention to the file upload field. Some custom upload widgets do not work with keyboards or screen readers. For this reason, we recommend a solution that builds on the browser's standard file input.

Moreover, an accessible form is an easier form for everyone. Clear labels and plain error messages also speed things up for a candidate in a hurry.

How do you measure careers page performance?

Do not consider the job finished once the careers page goes live. If a job gets many views but few applications, something in the text or the form needs attention. So we recommend that you set up a few basic measurements from day one.

For example, track views, apply button clicks and completed applications separately for each job page. If clicks are high but completions are low, the form likely causes the problem. On the other hand, if views are high but clicks are low, the job text does not convince candidates.

• Job page views: they tell you whether candidates reach the job.
• Apply button clicks: they show how persuasive the job text is.
• Completed applications: they measure how easy the form is.
• Application source: it shows whether candidates came from search, job boards or social media.

You can also follow the search appearance of your job pages in Search Console. Google lists errors and warnings for pages with JobPosting markup in its rich result reports. In short, a monthly check of that report helps you catch broken markup early.

When you set up tracking, protect candidate data. Never send names, email addresses or resume content to analytics tools; track only numeric events. That way, you measure what matters and still respect the personal data boundary.

Which copywriting mistakes should you avoid on a careers page?

On the content side, the most common problem is company-centered language. Phrases like "industry leader", "pioneer" or "visionary" tell candidates nothing. Instead, answer the questions they will ask: what will I do, who will I work with, how will I grow?

The second problem is copying the same job template for years. For example, if every role shows the same requirements list, candidates skip the text. Adding two or three sentences that make each job specific already makes a clear difference.

The third problem is non-inclusive language. Needless requirements about age, gender or looks are inappropriate and push good candidates away. Therefore, ask a teammate to read the ad before you publish it, and ask, "does the job truly require this?"

Why does explaining the hiring process matter?

After applying, candidates struggle most with uncertainty. A short, step-by-step description of your hiring process on the careers page eases that worry. It also cuts down the "what happened to my application?" emails your team receives.

For example, you can describe the process like this: application review, a short screening call, a practical or technical task, a team interview and the offer. Write one or two sentences about what each step involves.

However, do not promise exact timelines. Real timelines change with the role and the number of applicants. Instead, make a promise you can keep, such as "we reply to every application", and then actually keep it.

Also send a short note to candidates you reject. Example scenario: a candidate never hears back after a screening call and months later sees a new ad from the same company. That person will not apply again and may tell others. A polite two-line email changes that picture, so keep a ready, editable rejection template in your hiring system.

What does a careers page checklist look like?

Before you go live, we recommend that you work through the checklist below in order. It sums up the topics in this guide.

1. Each open role has its own job page with its own URL.
2. Job titles contain only the job title.
3. Every job states the work model, location and process.
4. Team photos are real, and you have written consent from everyone in them.
5. The application form is short, supports file uploads on mobile and works with a keyboard.
6. A candidate privacy notice link sits next to the form.
7. JobPosting markup appears only on single job pages and passes the test tool.
8. You named an owner and a schedule for removing closed jobs.
9. The page does not go empty when no roles are open.

We also suggest that you run this checklist once every quarter, not only before launch, because photos, benefits and process details age quickly as teams change. If you share it with your team and review it before every new job, the page stays fresh.

Should you build the careers page yourself or get help?

A small company with a few jobs can build a careers page on its own with a good content management system. However, as the number of roles grows, structured data, form security, accessibility and the closed job process turn into one system that someone has to manage.

Example scenario: a manufacturing company regularly hires field staff and office employees. So far, it has posted jobs only on job boards, and its site shows just one email address. For this company, a list and job page setup, a short application form, a candidate privacy notice and a simple screen to close jobs would cover the needs.

At Talha Aslan and team, we build the careers section with the same design language and technical standards as the rest of the site. If you want to add this section to your own site, you can request a quote on our web design page. We will discuss your needs and hiring volume and suggest the right setup.