Oh No, I found a mistake on my resume after sending it out!

By Mary Gehr 

You’ve worked hard on your resume, from writing, rewriting and editing, through proofreading and a final spell-check. Then you discover a visible typo on your resume, which you didn’t catch before sending it to employers and posting it to several job boards! 

It’s very easy to make mistakes on your resume and exceptionally difficult to repair the damage once an employer gets it. So, prevention is critical, whether you’re writing your first resume or revising it for a mid-career job search. Check out how to write a resume that shouts “Hire Me” by avoiding these common pitfalls.

Proofreading Tips:

Your resume needs to be grammatically perfect. If it isn’t, employers will read between the lines and draw unfavorable conclusions about you. 

• Take your time when you proofread something;
• Try reading the text aloud. It helps detect mistakes;
• Be consistent with all the formatting;
• Never guess on spelling. Look up the proper wording to double-check;
• Take time away from the content. Don’t start proofreading right away;
• Run spell check first and then look for any accidental errors;
• Always verify any numbers;
• Proofread at least twice;
• Check for consistency in voice throughout the text;
• Always check the grammar rules when in doubt;
• Highlight all punctuation and then check each one;
• Have someone else do the proofreading.

You’ll be amazed at how many mistakes you catch (including words that are spelled correctly but used in a grammatically incorrect context.) Simply read it silently from left to right. 

Additional proofreading hints: 

• Don’t rely on a spell-checker to proofread for you.
• Be sure your contact information is 100% correct–including your email address and phone numbers! 
• Download www.grammarly.com ·Its free and instantly proofreads your texts and corrects grammar & punctuation.

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Damage Control Guidelines for Resumes Already Sent Out With Errors.

As for resumes with errors which you’ve already sent out, use these damage control strategies to get corrected copies to hiring managers and boost your candidacy:  

1. Most employer applicant tracking systems allow you to go into your profile and edit or delete your current resume. You can also do the same on job boards and search engines if you built a profile. Update it with your error free resume. They will look at it as fresh content, and you can look at it as another opportunity to connect.
2. Resend a corrected version to target recipients but don’t point out the error. If you’ve kept good records about where you’ve sent your resume, it will be easy to recall whom to send it to. Include a brief note that you can edit for each situation:

“Dear Recruiter: I recently submitted a copy of my resume for consideration of the open... (career opportunity.) Attached is an updated copy, so please discard the earlier version. Thank you.”

REMEMBER, A RESUME IS A MARKETING DOCUMENT THAT “CAN" SERVE AS A MAGNET TO DRAW JOB OPPORTUNITIES TO YOU.