I have to hire for a position at work. It's a job that requires a lot of writing and editing so finding someone who can put together some sentences is key. What is stunning is how many people apply for a job requiring writing who can't write or proofread.
Here are tips for those applying for writing jobs to help you land the interview.
5. Pay attention to the funky symbols. Monster.com and the like all can insert weird characters into your resume that you're cutting and pasting into their system. Seriously, spend the 15 minutes making sure your bullets aren't question marks. Yes, someone really does care. Yes, it really will keep you from getting a second look if it's not right.
4. Get a friend, relative, coworker, random stranger to read your resume. Typos happen, sure, but this is your five minutes of fame. Spend the time to make sure it really is perfect. I got a resume today for someone who allegedly teachers grammar at a local high school whose resume was full of typos. (This may explain something actually...)
3. Explain yourself. If you don't live in the area or have taken time off work, explain it. Don't make me guess why you're living in Denver and applying for a job in Washington. Because that's one heck of a commute.
2. Proof your cover letter. If you're going to bother personalizing it for every place you apply, remember to actually personalize it for each company and position. Half the resumes I see are actually addressed to a different company for a different position.
1. Check your e-mail. I love that folks include their personal e-mails on resumes now since it's so easy to contact people that way. What I don't understand is why you would put "sexysusie69" on a piece of business correspondence. In this day of free Yahoo! and G-mail accounts, spend the $0 to get "susiesmith2007." I can't tell you how many e-mail addresses I see that are practically porn names.
Stepping off soapbox slowly and checking the spelling as I do.
Edited to correct the typos my darling husband and mother found for me. See, I'm not immune to typos, I just have good editors helping me.
These are great tips. I agree with them except for #3. I don't think its any employer's business why the person doesn't live in the area. If they are applying to a job in DC from Denver then clearly they are wanting to move to DC-its not the employer's business why. If you are curious about time off that can be explained in an interview--not a resume or cover letter. From an applicant's position those things are awkward to work into a cover letter.
ReplyDeleteI disagree. If you don't explain briefly why you're relocating, you probably won't get to the interview stage. All our jobs say "no relocation" so it's imperative for the applicant to say something about planning to be in the area to interview or accessibility by phone until the applicant will be in the area.
ReplyDeleteThere is no need to get super detailed here - I don't need to know about your divorce - just basically what's motivating you to come here and what your relocation plans are.
True, those are all easier to explain in an interview, but without providing some information up front, you probably get to that stage.