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How Do I Use Boolean Operators and Advanced Candidate Search in Recruiting?

In Candidate Search, you can apply Boolean Operators and use the Advanced Search option.

Table of Contents

This article is for administrators and staffing users.

 

Get started with candidate search

Recruiting includes a strong search tool that helps you look through all candidates in your database. You can search by name, stage, tags, application answers, and more.

  1. Go to People > Hiring > Applicant Tracking.
  2. Select the Type a Search box, then select Candidate Search.
    A Paycor Recruiting search box is open with options for Candidate Search and Job Search.
  3. In the Search field, enter the name of the candidate.
    1. Note: Change the All Stages filter to narrow the search results.
  4. Select the magnifying glass icon to run the search.
    • Notes:
      • Use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard to search part of a name.
        • Example: Enter Jon* to find names like Jonathan.
      • Search uses OR logic for Name, Resume, Application and Comments.
        • Example: A search for Jason finds candidates with:
          • A name containing Jason
          • A resume containing Jason.
          • An application containing Jason
          • Comments containing Jason.

Use the advanced search

  1. Go to People > Hiring > Applicant Tracking.
  2. Select the Type a Search box, then select Candidate Search.
  3. Select Advanced Search under the search box. The Advanced Search fields display on the left. 
    1. Example: Search for Brian in the Name field and FL in the state field.A Paycor Recruiting candidate search screen shows Advanced Search filters with ‘Brian’ in the Name field and ‘FL’ in the State field, and two matching candidates listed on the right
  4. Use any combination of fields to find the candidate you need. You can also search Candidate Metadata fields.
  5. If you want to remove any fields, select the Gear icon.A Paycor Recruiting candidate search screen shows Advanced Search filters on the left and an Advanced Search Fields pop‑up on the right

Choose data shown in search results 

  1. Select the columns icon.
  2. Select the columns to show, clear the columns to hide.
  3. Select Done.
    1. Note: You can sort by any column and change the column width by selecting it.A Paycor Recruiting candidate search screen shows a Column Chooser pop‑up with options for which columns to display.

Export results

Important: You must be an Administrator to export candidate search results.

 
  1. Select the download icon. 
  2. Select EXCEL or CSV.A Paycor Recruiting candidate search screen shows two candidates listed and an export menu with CSV and Excel options.

Using boolean search operators

Important: Boolean Operators must be typed in all capital letters. Type AND, OR, NOT (do not type and, or, not).

 

Boolean Operators are words and symbols you add to your search to narrow or expand your results. They help you search a databse in a smart way.

Recruiting supports these Boolean Operators in all Advanced Search fields:

AND
  • AND narrows a search by combining terms.
  • Results must include both terms.
  • Example: engineer AND "senior developer" finds results with both the word engineer and the phrase senior developer.
  • This is case sensitive. You must use AND.
OR
  • OR broadens a search.
  • Results include either word you enter.
  • It helps with different spellings or similar terms.
    • Example: Analyst OR Analysis
  • It helps when only one match is needed.
    • Example: hospitality OR catering OR hotelier
  •  This is case sensitive. You must use OR.
NOT
  • NOT removes results with a word you do not want.
    • Example: architect NOT "software architect" 
      • This finds results that contain the word architect but not the phrase "software architect".
  • This is case sensitive. You must use NOT.
" " Quotation Marks
  • Search exact words
  • Use quotation marks around a phrase to search exact words in the same order.
  • Example: 
    • Sales manager finds results with “sales” and “manager”‘, but not together.
    • "Sales manager" finds the exact phrase.
* Asterisk
  • Wild card option
  • Use an asterisk (*) to search for part of a word.
  • It helps you find different endings of a word.
  • Examples:
    • Program* finds programmer, programming, program etc.
    • Govern* finds govern, government, governing, governmental, etc.
( ) Brackets / Parentheses
  • Use parentheses to group terms.
  • They help you build longer search strings.
  • Example:
    • NOT (Kansas AND employer) avoids results with both words.
  • Parentheses help when building long OR lists.
    • Example: IBM OR Oracle OR "Red Hat" OR Microsoft
    • Example of titles: "Manager" OR "Director"
  • Combine them: 
    • ("Manager" OR "Director") AND (IBM OR Oracle OR "Red Hat" OR Microsoft)
    • The order of each group does not matter.
  • More examples:
    • "JavaScript OR (C++ and SQL)" finds JavaScript OR both C++ AND SQL
    • "(JavaScript OR C++) and SQL" finds JavaScript OR C++ AND SQL

Updated: March 16th, 2026 6541 views


*This content is for educational purposes only, is not intended to provide specific legal advice, and should not be used as a substitute for the legal advice of a qualified attorney or other professional. The information may not reflect the most current legal developments, may be changed without notice and is not guaranteed to be complete, correct, or up-to-date.

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