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3 More Resources to Help to Correct Resume Grammar Errors

Most people want help to correct resume grammar errors. Last month, many people liked part 1 of my recommendations of resources helpful for proofreading to find, and correct grammar errors. A resume must be typo-free, and maintain perfect grammar structure. It’s hard to find someone who has a great eye for errors, so here are some more tools to help achieve (or at least closer to) an errorless document.

Read: Five Resources to Help Correct Resume Grammar Errors

Purdue Owl

Purdue Owl, run by Purdue University offers job seekers and students a versatile, but free tool. The OWL is largely self-directed, and useful as a practical and easy grammar checker. It offers the rules for formal writing, and covers an extensive range (if not complete) of grammar rules. I absolutely love that OWL provides Job Search writing advice with sections on writing for job applications, resumes, and curriculum vitae.

OWL recently launched a blog called “grammar gang, ” for anyone including job seekers can find tools, but the blog is not as useful and essential as the flagship Purdue Owl site. Note that the main site also teaches you how to fish (grammatically speaking) by including exercises to help you improve sentence creation, structure, and other common grammar disorders.

CAMBRIDGE DICTIONARIES ONLINE

Any time you are writing important documents, a dictionary and thesaurus is a necessity. If you don’t have hardback or paperback versions, then consider the online version. What I love about this helper are the choices of American English, British English, and Business English. I played around with the dictionary is spelling the British version of organized o-r-g-a-n-i-s-e-d, and the word appeared:

organize verb ( ARRANGE )

(UK usually organise) /ˈɔː.gən.aɪz//ˈɔːr-/ [T]

Definition to make arrangements for something to happen

They organized a meeting between the teachers and students.

[+ to infinitive] UK She had organized a car to meet me at the airport.

(Definition of organize verb (ARRANGE) from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

I was quite happy that the checker differentiated intuitively between the British and American versions without stalling or returning an error.

Cambridge mobile app versions are predominately for iPhone and iPad users. Cambridge has separate apps for the dictionary, grammar, challenges, and other choices for “…a small price.”

The Grammar Blue Book

This is a site I stumbled on accidentally and appears competent compared to the Purdue Owl site. It’s comparable because of the way it provides quizzes to help you develop your grammar acumen, and its practical grammar applications for different types of writing such as resumes, and cover letters. The Grammar Blue Book site offers a paid subscription version, and of course, a book. It does not have a lot of interactive tools, but it provides guidance detailed enough to make a difference.

Finally, there are some traditional strategies that cannot be replaced. I try different strategies, and different eyes to accomplish this tedious task. I miss words and forget how many people I am talking to just like everyone. There are just a few of us who throw caution to the wind, and send our first draft resume. Get the best help to correct resume grammar errors!

The best man made proofread strategies are not new:

Read out loud
Read backwards
Print out what you created
Proofread small paragraphs at a time
Proofread over several days, several times each day
Two additional sets of eyes, preferably English-degreed individuals

Do you have other suggestions? Do you need help to correct resume grammar errors? Do you disagree? Please comment below.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers," career consultant, job seeker advocate, career writer, and founder of this award-winning blog. I help the employed, unemployed, underemployed, and under-appreciated find jobs using job search strategies to navigate the new job market. I aim to give a safe place online to those with different needs, cultures, and ethnicities to find their voice in the job market. Thousands have read my career advice throughout the web as I write about everything from job search strategies to the mobile job search. I have published more than 400 articles on this blog and some of the largest career sites such as Recruiter.com, YouTern, and Come Recommended. I've been quoted in major online publications such as Monster, TIME/Money, Fortune, Business Insider and MSN. FlexJobs, JobMonkey, Aerotek, Career Pivot, and CareerSherpa listed my podcast as one of the top podcasts to help your job search. Love for you to sign up for the weekly newsletter. I share the latest articles I've written, new podcast episodes, and answer any questions you may have. The new job search is scary and if you need help, I am here for it!

by Mark Anthony Dyson 1 Comment

5 Remedies to Fix Bad Career Advice

Nothing is worse than bad career advice. If it looks like sour advice and tastes like leather, then it’s bad career advice. If advice received from friends family sounds like a trick or gimmick, although useful at times, cannot be the pattern of your job search. Every now and then an act of boldness will stand out in a deluge of applicants, as long as the cost is minimal in the big picture.

Advice can always be modified and customized to the situation. These are my suggestions to remedy outdated advice:

1. “It’s all about perception, so you are not lying.”

Good hiring managers will sniff out illusions, especially if the resume lacks plausible claims about the experience. If your resume sounds more like a job description, then perception becomes a delusion. The Fix: Stick with the facts. The more measures and metrics offered on a resume, the more you stand out.

2. “Just show up! You don’t need a resume!”

Yes, anyone can get an interview without a resume, but showing up without one is a mistake. Do everything you can to show diligence throughout the hiring process. The Fix: It never hurts to have your resume in tow, or easily accessible at all times. Don’t treat it like a flyer, instead, treat it more like a letter of intent.

3. “Just to need to spend some time on CareerBuilder and Monster.”

If the job hunt was that easy, then unemployment would be less than 1%. The Fix: Try everything! Networking and informational interviews will put you in front of influential people. Isn’t that the goal?

4. Any statement that anyone starts, “All you have to do…”

The Fix: You have my permission to turn his or her volume down, or turn your volume up. You can also turn them off if you can do so without violence. Any one who starts their advice offer with, “All you…” deserves it.

5. List only the years, and not the months.

This worrisome strategy triggers more questions than it answers. The Fix: Employers understand that gaps occur, and a job seeker that is forthright with correct month and dates will get the call back for interviews.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

by Mark Anthony Dyson 7 Comments

Five Resources to Help Correct Resume Grammar Errors

It is critical to correct all résumé grammar errors. Résumés, cover letters, or any job-related need perpetual scrutiny to ensure an error-free document. The below resources can help anyone achieve perfection, or at least close to it.

Grammarly.com

Grammarly is an online grammar corrector that will identify more than 150 common errors if you purchase a paid subscription. Out of the many online grammar checkers, this checker will alert the writer to plagiarism issues. Grammarly offers detailed explanations of why corrections may need to be made, plus examples to compare. I had a chance to try the paid subscription version and found it to be worth the money (ok, I was privvy’d and received an exclusive deal to try it). It catches your usual “your and you’re,” “co-workers and coworkers,” and “it’s and its” errors. I did not expect it to offer extensive synonym suggestions, and catch small article errors. Grammarly sees bullet points as errors and is perfect for bloggers who won’t have to worry about Microsoft codes from Grammarly. I was also pleasantly surprised that it caught so many passive voice phrases. I consider it a superb tool for any writer, especially for writing a résumé.

Polishmywriting.com (After The Deadline)

After The Deadline is advantageous for shorter bits of writing, and not specifically for résumé writing. Although, it would be a strong complement to using any grammar and spell check, especially in catching passive voice errors. The limited correction suggestions are somewhat comparable to Word (Oh, the check puts accents on résumé. Just saying!).

The other issue in using this checker is the word suggestions for synonyms.

In this case, “identify” was underlined and ATD offered synonym replacements: find, name, and show. I suppose if you want additional simplicity in your writing it’s helpful, but for resumes may be a hindrance for keyword usage. I would still recommend it as a way to have a second pair of eyes you normally wouldn’t have.

The Elements of Résumé Style by Scott Bennett

Many résumé writers use this constantly, and I take it almost everywhere I go. I haven’t memorized all the latest trends or practices, and this book helps as a quick reference. It contains grammar usage rules, lists of action verbs, statements, position descriptions, and words and phrases to avoid.

This week, another résumé writer that I knew asked me an opinion on a résumé of the use of italics. I verified in Mr. Bennett’s book that italics is not a correct résumé practice unless you are citing a publication. Some résumé writers whine about how résumés are not true formal writing, as the rules suggests. The truth is that résumés lean towards, if not epitomize, formal writing rules. This book helps the writer hit the mark.

Strunk and White: The Elements of Style

This book is another travel companion I take anywhere that I work away from home. Most people who struggle with condensing sentences should skip right to the “Elementary Principles of Composition” chapter. This gives you the down and dirty in trimming the excess and unnecessary words. I’ll admit it is not an easy read, which is why studying it is futile.

This book can help concisely write highly technical passages. Although technical descriptions are lengthier than ordinary descriptions, the reader doesn’t need a book to read.

Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

I recommend this publication because it is an entertaining version of Strunk & White with a palatable presentation. You can download her podcast tips on iTunes (there are at least 100 tips currently loaded). If you have high and middle school age children, they can benefit from listening to the podcasts.

The last three publications are small books you can carry around and are less than $10 through Amazon. You can find them at the library if you don’t want to purchase them, although I recommend buying each of them.

Oh Yeah, about the giveaway

Congratulations to Marlene Garth in winning a copy of the The 11 Laws of Likability by Michelle Tillis Lederman. However, I HAVE ANOTHER COPY to giveaway. You can win a copy by simply doing one of three things.

You can read my review of the book, and either comment on the review link, Re-Tweet the review link and add @MarkADyson, or post the review link on Facebook and tag me at Facebook.com/Mark.A.Dyson.

I would like to announce a new winner on Thursday’s post, so good luck to all. It is a valuable book for job seekers in expanding one’s thinking about networking for business and jobs. Being “liked” is the center of all successful transactions and partnerships, and Michelle offers workable strategies to achieve “likability.”

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Definition to make arrangements for something to happen

About Mark Anthony Dyson

About Mark Anthony Dyson

About Mark Anthony Dyson