Boolean Search in SeekOut
When you enter words or phrases into the Keywords search box, SeekOut uses advanced machine learning and search technology to surface the most relevant results. For more control over your search, you can use Boolean search syntax to define exactly what you're looking for.
For a deeper dive, check out our blog post: Boolean Search in Recruitment.
Using Boolean Syntax
Boolean search allows you to use operators to refine your results:
OR, AND, NOT must be written in all caps Example:
advertising OR marketingQuotation marks indicate multi-word phrases Example:
"marketing manager"returns exact matches, whilemarketing managerreturns profiles with both words anywhereSpecial characters like
&or-are recognized within quoted phrases Example:"pre sales"matches pre-sales and pre salesParentheses group Boolean operators Example:
"product support" AND (automotive OR locomotive)Implied AND exists between keywords separated by spaces or line breaks Example:
python geospatialis treated aspython AND geospatialLine breaks (Shift + Enter) also imply AND
💡Tip: Use Shift + Enter to add a line break in the Keywords fieldNOT must be paired with other terms Example:
backend NOT frontendis valid;NOT frontendis notMinus symbol (-) can be used as shorthand for NOT Example:
python -recruiter
Boolean Search Examples
software AND java AND NOT recruiter
→ Finds profiles with software and Java, excluding recruiter"product support" AND (automotive OR locomotive)
→ Finds profiles with the phrase product support and either automotive or locomotive"Bank of America"
→ Finds profiles with the exact phrase Bank of Americapython AND geospatial AND past_titles:(engineer OR developer) -Scientist
→ Finds profiles with Python and geospatial, past titles as engineer or developer, excluding scientist
For more examples, see our Definitive Guide to Boolean Searches for Recruiters.
Field-Based Search
Use the format fieldname:searchterm to target specific sections of a candidate’s profile. Boolean operators can be combined with field searches.
skills:java
→ Finds profiles with Java listed as a skillskills:java AND cur_title:("business analyst" OR engineer)
→ Finds profiles with Java as a skill and current titles including business analyst or engineerskills:java*
→ Uses a wildcard to match skills starting with java (e.g., JavaScript, JavaBeans)
Public Search Field Names
first_name:
last_name:
full_name:
city:
state:
country:
headline:
url:
The unique part of the candidate's LinkedIn profile URL. For example, to search for a candidate whose LinkedIn profile URL is https://www.linkedin.com/in/guptaanoop/, enter
url:guptaanoop
projects:
skills:
industry:
li_industry:
positions/description:
summary:
publications:
patents:
cur_company:
past_companies:
cur_title:
past_titles:
prev_locations:
schools:
majors:
degrees:
grad_year:
languages:
certifications:
volunteering:
groups:
courses:
interests:
honors_awards:
You can even combine these fields together to create highly-targeted searches, such as:
cur_title:finance AND degrees:bachelors AND majors:(finance OR accounting) AND NOT cur_company:SeekOut
→ Finds candidates with finance in their current title, a bachelor's degree in finance or accounting, and excludes those currently at SeekOut.
💡Tip: AND NOT can be shortened to NOT in SeekOut searches.
Expert Search Field Names
The following field names can be used in Expert Search.
full_name:
affiliations:
categories:
sub_categories:
tags:
conferences:
conf_instances:
journals:
doc_types:
publishers:
pub_years:
Advanced Boolean Features
SeekOut also supports advanced search capabilities like proximity/near searches and wildcards. To learn more, visit: Advanced Boolean Search with SeekOut.