Before You Hit Submit: Proofread or Perish
The word “proofreading” may conjure up memories of high school essays and fervent last checks before handing in your paper. You scanned line by line, reading while not really reading, looking for glaring errors that you could catch and eliminate with liquid paper or a subtle rewrite in black ink. These moments of correction probably came in hallways, at your desk, over lunch, and occasionally on the bus. Rarely did they occur at home, or with a significant amount of time to spare.
If you were to think about past proofreading experiences, would you remember knowing which mistakes you needed to catch, and why? Did you ever sigh and ultimately surrender your essay to fate? After all, you were too close to your deadline to really make any major changes … and in twenty years, would it really matter?
When it comes to that high school essay, only you can say if your last ditch proofreading effort made a difference. However, when it comes to your career aspirations, I can assure you that proofreading does matter, and it should be a significant part of your job application process.
For many job-seekers, proofreading is something of an afterthought, especially with the rise of electronic employment materials. Applicants (falsely) assume that their computers (specifically their grammar and spell check functions) will catch their mistakes. Additionally, if they do go back for a final once-over, they do their reading on the screen because a print copy isn’t required.
Although these impulses may seem like they are saving you time and effort, they aren't serving you well in the job market. While computers may catch some grammar and spelling errors, they will not catch words that you’ve inadvertently swapped, a word choice you’ve repeated too often, a mistake regarding the company name, or whether you’ve remembered to use proper punctuation. Even if you do try your best to look for these mistakes, if you only read on the screen (and at the last minute), it’s entirely possible that your eyes will skim right over the errors.
Emilie L. Duck
Proofread is a verb.
It's time to take action.
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