Is Dave asking too much to get a resume without spelling or grammar mistakes?
NOTE: Obviously a lot of people don't understand the point of this video. It's not about actual spelling ability, it's about showing care and attention to detail in your resume. And no, I do NOT reject resumes based on spelling mistakes, but it does go toward my overall appraisal of your resume, which is the *only* thing an employer has to judge you on to see if they want to interview you. Not everyone can get an interview.
Forum: http://www.eevblog.com/forum/eevblab/eevblab-3-engineers-can't-spell/'>http://www.eevblog.com/forum/eevblab/eevblab-3-engineers-can't-spell/
EEVblog Main Web Site: http://www.eevblog.com
The 2nd EEVblog Channel: http://www.youtube.com/EEVblog2
Support the EEVblog through Patreon!
http://www.patreon.com/eevblog
EEVblog Amazon Store (Dave gets a cut):
http://astore.amazon.com/eevblogstore-20
Donations:
http://www.eevblog.com/donations/
Projects:
http://www.eevblog.com/projects/
Electronics Info Wiki:
http://www.eevblog.com/wiki/
NOTE: Obviously a lot of people don't understand the point of this video. It's not about actual spelling ability, it's about showing care and attention to detail in your resume. And no, I do NOT reject resumes based on spelling mistakes, but it does go toward my overall appraisal of your resume, which is the *only* thing an employer has to judge you on to see if they want to interview you. Not everyone can get an interview.
Forum: http://www.eevblog.com/forum/eevblab/eevblab-3-engineers-can't-spell/'>http://www.eevblog.com/forum/eevblab/eevblab-3-engineers-can't-spell/
EEVblog Main Web Site: http://www.eevblog.com
The 2nd EEVblog Channel: http://www.youtube.com/EEVblog2
Support the EEVblog through Patreon!
http://www.patreon.com/eevblog
EEVblog Amazon Store (Dave gets a cut):
http://astore.amazon.com/eevblogstore-20
Donations:
http://www.eevblog.com/donations/
Projects:
http://www.eevblog.com/projects/
Electronics Info Wiki:
http://www.eevblog.com/wiki/
Hi, welcome to another Evie blabber. This one once again comes about from my hiring someone here for the lab and I'm currently going through the applications and I've already mentioned it before so I won't bother linking in down below anyway. I had. turns out I had 29 local applicants just here in Sydney and a whole bunch from overseas as well.
so thank you everyone who sent in a resume for that. It was terrific and I'll get around to it in the new year. I'm currently looking through and then we'll have interviews and you know, hopefully get someone here to help out Anyway, this blurb comes about because I tweeted the other day that I was looking through the resumes and I found one that had a spelling mistake in it. but it was a spelling mistake on the third word into the resume and you know, fail.
You know? Not a great impression at all and some people responded well. You know what's the big deal? So what engineers can't spell? You're not hiring some. you know. Literary genius, right? And what's the big deal? Hey, even I can't spell? Yes, yeah, I'm an engineer can't spell to save my life I even goofed up spelling in my own Job Description that's how hopeless I am.
But so what does it matter? Well, it actually matters a fair deal. and there's a couple of reasons why I I Am actually looking for someone who can. Potentially it's part of the job description I'm sure I mentioned in there somewhere it per tential e be able to write You know some like text blogs, product descriptions, project descriptions. You know things like that.
It's kind of. It's not really a critical part of the job, but hey, it'll be really handy if I can get someone with good grammatical and spelling skills, right? So yes, it is part of the job description. No. I'm not looking for some poet or some you know, literary genius, but hey, you know it's gonna help.
The second thing is it is the first impression. It's the first impression you get when you're reading through the resumes and like on the third word. like you know. especially like if you got hundreds of resumes right, you know you're gonna read.
Usually at the top of a resume you're gonna have like a summary of you know what you're about, you know what you're good at what you're looking for, just you know, a paragraph or two. and really, when you're flicking through employers like me I kind of flick through it and they're gonna read fairly well that first those first couple of paragraphs, that summary, and if you've goofed up your spelling or your grammar in there, it is not a good first impression. And there's another resume as well where they spelt Bachelor wrong right? They've got a bachelor's degree. they spelled it wrong Oh Like you know, you spend four years getting your Bachelor and you can't spell it Oh Kate might have been a typo I'm not think it was I think it was a genuine spelling mistake and well, that's not a great impression either.
And the wife. she was reading through the resumes too because yeah, she wants to interview people as well. go figure. Anyway, she was looking through when she went. this person can't even spell Bachelor and you know she and she sorted it into the you know, the fail you know, the bad pile and that simple things like that where you go, well you know it's okay. What's the big deal right? So they can't spell and you can you know review their work before they publish it or whatever. You know, things like that, you can using use spell checkers, but it's the impression that you give. But the most important thing is it's about competition, right? I've got twenty nine local applicants just for my you know, simple job here, let alone when I've been working in the industry, interviewing people for jobs or sometimes you know, I've had like a hundred resumes to look through and well, you know you've got to stand out in some way.
And if you've got, you know. Okay, one little spelling mistake buried down in there. not a big deal, right? You know, usually you'd look faster, but you know if you spelled bachelor wrong or you just or your grammars horrible, your punctuation right, you don't get it right I can't even say that. Geez.
I know on the judge anyway if you get that sort of thing wrong and then it just leaves a bad impression. And then when you get another one which is beautifully worded, you know this person has taken care in their resume. then well, you know if you're both equal in terms of you know all your qualifications and your experience and and everything else, then you know you're naturally going to grow and the only differentiator is your spelling and grammar. Well, you're going to gravitate towards the person with a better spelling and grammar.
It's just the way it is competition in the market. It's like it's also like the way not only spelling and grammar, but the way Eurasia Mail looks as well how its presented. Some people sent in, you know, 10 12 pages. It's like that's too long.
you know. Other people had beautiful one-page summary sheet for example. And by the way, our PDF not document format. Some people even send it zipped.
Some people didn't send a resume at all, they just wrote some text in an email. Yeah, well, that's okay too. And I'm certainly considering you. But you know when you have someone with a beautifully laid out you know resume and it's got fantastic spelling and grammar? Well, you've got to compete with that.
Unfortunately, that's just the way it is, So just be careful. Next time you're you know you send out your issue mate. Just read it again and again. I Know it's hard to proofread your own work.
I Mean it's the hardest thing ever I've always said that you know you're always going to miss stuff in your own work, but really, your resume should be pretty perfect in that sort of thing and just read it over and over. Get somebody else to check it and find obvious stuff. and yeah, it's It's not that hard to get right and ultimately, you should get it right because there's your first impression before you know. Okay, yeah, you know you might be able to if you can make it to the interview. you impress and you know people have forgotten all about a couple of you. know, a problem with your grandma or your spelling or whatever. or it might not be important for the job, but most technical jobs these days are going to require. You know, decent writing skills.
they still do so. I'm in every engineering job I've ever had or interviewed for. It's a fairly. You know it's not the major thing, but it's fairly important.
If your grammar and spelling is absolutely atrocious, she should want to make up for it a hell a lot in other areas. So there you go. What do you guys think? Is it important Once again? Am I Asking too much for somebody who has proper spelling and grammar and gets their resume right and in terms of formatting as well. It's not just you know the spelling and grammar.
Let me know what you think. Leave it in the comments down below. I've been blabbing for way too long. This camera this.
Sony NEX VG 30 if you don't know what I'm shooting this with it doesn't have a on-screen timer. Hmm I don't know. Anyway, catch you next time.
Engineers have computers to help with spelling and grammar, including advanced grammar – for free, when needed. There is no excuse. Not using those helpers means the applicant does not really want that job.
Writng programming code has no time for the illiterate either. A single spelling error and your code won't compile.
Yes you do have to spell it out because many only know hands on and others just know theory. There is a level of sophistication once you know stuff like soldering and laying down a board because unless you're a hard ore hobbyist, you won't know stuff like that unless you're in college
Imagining the embarrassed person watching this video and rushing off to check if they spelled batchelor wrong on their resame
I know what you mean.
But i would think often the better people, in something like electronics, would have only real skills needed for engineering. Often they would be a basket case, at language, or communication skills.
I know its a competition, but as an employer, you should sometimes appreciate, that if your looking for an engineer, i would think alot of the better ones, will be sub standard in other areas.
I am sure you appreciate this, and i appreciate how hard it must be for employers, to find these people, especially in fields, where people often will be so focused on engineering, they will often lack real world skills in other areas, like communication, and language.
I would think you know this. But i agree, just from seeing a persons cv, you cannot really tell how competent they are, in the desired field you really want.
Thats competition for you, and why employers as business people often will make make or break decisions on who they hire.
Like i said, i am sure you appreciate that plenty of people in the field of engineering, may lack skills in other areas. Like many other areas. Like people with autism, will often be brilliant as something, and a disaster at most other human functions that people consider normal. There brain, for what ever reason, just is focused only on that area, and they can often be total disasters, in terms, of things that adult humans require in getting jobs, ie communication, and language.
Like i said, its likely you appreciate this.
It must be a nightmare, to pick correct people. Especially as so many people are bullshitters.
I always believe the biggest skill people need in adult world, is the ability to bullshit. This trait is highly desired, in the dog eat dog world, that the adult world is. If you can talk, and talk well, and convince people you know what your talking about, your adult life should be fine.
It must be a nightmare, to weed out real bullshit artists, who are all just talk.
So all in all. I think overall, you appreciate that the best people in your field, will probably be lacking in other areas. Its just the way it is, and i am sure, many careers are like this, where humans that are dysfunctional, would be better at the jobs, then people that are just repeaters. but thats life.
It's fine when you have a typo in an ordinary message, like in the comments under a video … you're not inspecting to see what your fingers and auto-correct have done. But in a job application, you should get a friend to read it over, you should use spell-check, you should look up words you aren't sure about.
Every significant job includes "communication skills" as a requirement.
pro tip: get someone to proofread your resume before submitting it
" reg ju may"? "mouldy meter"?
I see you've gotten to my application. That's OK Dave. I didn't really want to be seen working with someone who can't pronounce mouldy-meter. You know. It's a professional thing.
If language is not correct, then what is said is not what is meant; if what is said is not what is meant, then what ought to be done remains undone." — Confucius
how can i apply sir..
Of course communication always matters, for everyone., but it also shows carelessness. If you're careless doing one thing you'll be careless doing another.
Even here in the Netherlands, in my job area they specify to be fluent in Dutch, but als to be good in English (written and spoken). I'm an middleware specialist, implementing the software the programmers write for the company.
And lots of time the teams have a few expats from all around the world. So therefore the whole team speaks English even when working for an Dutch company like the Camber of Commerce. And all documentation needs to be in English so everybody can read it.
There you have it. No matter what, language skills are important.
I'm not even speaking about what Dave said about first impressions.
You heard about how easy "the wife" tossed the resume aside.
And that is how it goes.
And then there is: "what does it say about the person".
Taking care of your work!
Is he this sloppy in all his work???
And don't go talking about my mistakes. I'm not applying for an job here. Then I would have double checked and let someone else read it.
Many engineers are dyslexic which often makes them poor spellers but also makes them excellent engineers due to their brain functioning.
CORRECT SPELLING AND GRAMMAR SHOWS A REFLECTION OF WHO YOU ARE,NO MATTER WHAT TYPE OF JOB YOU ARE LOOKING FOR.IF CAN NOT COMMUNICATE YOUR IDEAS NO BODY WILL WHAT YOUR TALKING ABOUT.I THINK MANY OF THOSE PEOPLE NEED TO RETAKE FRESHMEN ENGLISH 101.
You are absolutely correct. Spelling and grammar are important. You might be a very bright engineer, but if you can't communicate your ideas, you won't get far. As an employer myself, I find sloppy resumes to be especially annoying.
If you can't be bothered to get something as easy and important as a resume right, then you probably can't be bothered to get anything else important right. Why would anyone want to waste money on you?
Who's Regi-May?
Dave's totally right here… When I was in college I spent TENS OF HOURS trying to polish my resume as much as I could (every year), even had 3 or so experienced people read through it and give me improvements. Obviously having the skills is the most important thing when applying for a job, but most of the time there are other people with the same skills. Having a polished resume might make you stand out, especially if the other equally qualified people have mediocre or bad resumes. It also shows you have attention to detail, and that you have some kind of writing/document creating skills. As Dave said, part of the job involved writing.
You typed your resume on a computer, so if you couldn't be bothered to use spell check you shouldn't even be considered.
I have never ever met a person who is sloppy at spelling and grammar being solid with everything else on the job.