Advice for the job hunter

I’ve done a lot of hiring in my career, sifting through hundreds of candidates for dozens of jobs. Quite a few things can get your résumé tossed in the recycling bin (virtual or blue-with-symbol). There was the young woman whose mother called us to recommend her. There was the person applying for an epidemiologist position whose application misspelled epidemiologist. And then there was the otherwise qualified candidate who misspelled her own name in the résumé header: The name and the email address (which contained her name) didn’t match.

So today, free advice. Read what you write. Even if it’s something you have written hundreds of times, like your email address, slow down and look it over again. Read each letter out loud and stop if something seems off. You can fool yourself into thinking it’s fine when it isn’t.

We who have worked in fields starting with the word “public” need to guard our Ls fiercely. When relating the value of ethnic diversity, try to leave the N in. And show that you care enough to notice if you attended a unviersity rather than the more common institute of higher learning.

Today’s job hunter often has native skills in online communication, skills that help mission-driven organizations convey their messages to their audiences. But the proliferation of writing by everyone* has exposed a tendency toward the careless. Be the person who shows care and attention to detail. At the very least, you’ll avoid the automatic no.

*To the unfamiliar: Before circa 1994, most of us saw the writing of our close friends and polished formal writing. Then the World Wide Web exploded, and even non-English-majors noticed comma misuse.