At the job post · 6 min read
How do I look for a new job while I still have one?
How to search for a new job without your employer finding out: what to keep private, when to interview, references, and fitting it around your week.
The short answer
Look for a new job while employed by keeping it private and steady: use your own devices and email, apply outside work hours, ask new employers not to contact your current one until an offer, and book interviews at the start or end of the day. Set a small weekly target you can keep, because a few tailored applications a week beat a burst of rushed ones.
Key takeaways
- Use your own laptop, phone and email, never your work ones.
- Ask employers not to contact your current employer before an offer.
- Schedule interviews early, late or as remote calls where you can.
- Keep doing your current job well; your reference depends on it.
- A small, steady weekly target is easier to keep around work.
On this pageKeep it private
Keep it private
- Personal email, phone and laptop for every application.
- No job searching on work time or the work network.
- Update your LinkedIn with notifications off, or wait.
- Use the setting that tells recruiters you're open to work, without a public banner, if you use LinkedIn.
- Don't tell colleagues until you've resigned.
Fit it around your week
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Sunday evening | Check new posts and choose two or three |
| Tuesday evening | Tailor and send two applications |
| Thursday lunchtime | A short call or message with someone in your target field |
| Saturday morning | One more application, and follow-ups |
References and offers
Say clearly that your current employer can be contacted only once you've accepted an offer. Offer a former manager or a trusted colleague as an earlier reference if needed. When the offer comes, check it in writing, then resign properly and keep doing good work through your notice.
Use the advantage you have
Searching from a job means you can be choosy. Use the time to find out what you actually want: try a small piece of a new kind of work, talk to people in it, and apply where your evidence is strong. You don't need to take the first offer.
OffLadder CV, our free Chrome extension, reads only the tab you're on, and only while the panel is open. Your CV is saved in your browser, not in your account, and goes to OffLadder only to read it in and when you tailor or draft an answer. Nothing goes into a form until you press Fill, and nothing is ever submitted for you.
What happens to the gaps
Applying shows you what employers want that you can't show yet: a must-have your CV doesn't mention, or a question you couldn't answer well. Hand the job from OffLadder CV to Laddie, our AI coach, and it turns each one into three steps:
- Learn the skill: a short lesson on what the post asks for, starting from the basics.
- Try the work: a 15-minute task taken from the job itself, so you have a real example to talk about.
- Practise the interview: a five-question mock interview for that role, weighted to the parts you're least sure of.
The conversation stays in your OffLadder account. Once you've done the work, add it to your CV in your own words, and the next post you tailor for can point to it.
Questions people ask
- Can my employer find out I'm job hunting?
- They can if you use work devices, work email or work time, or if you change your LinkedIn profile visibly. Use personal accounts, turn off profile change notifications, and keep it to yourself at work. Most employers won't know unless you tell them or a reference request arrives.
- Should I tell recruiters I'm employed?
- Yes. Being employed is normal and often a strength. Tell them you'd like the search kept confidential and that references from your current employer can only be contacted after an offer. Most recruiters do this as standard.
- How do I get time off for interviews?
- Ask for early, late or remote slots first. If you need time out, use holiday, flexible hours or a short personal appointment without detail. You don't have to say why you need the time.
- Should I hand in my notice before I have an offer?
- Usually not. Wait for a written offer, with any conditions such as references and checks completed or close to it. Then resign, and work your notice period as your contract sets it.
Exercises are practice, not evidence of career fit or a qualification. How to read our guides and report a correction.
Sources
- Handing in your notice · GOV.UK
- How to write a CV · National Careers Service (England)
How this page is written
Sources support the factual background, not a guarantee that an exercise predicts career fit. Fictional practice material is labelled. Dates record content updates; no independent expert review is implied. More about OffLadder.