✳flâneur — a map of the web's best reading

How (not) to apply for a software job

benhoyt.com · 2,181 words · saved by 1 readers

I review a lot of resumes and written interviews, and many of them are badly written. This article describes a few things not to do when applying for a software engineering role. I work for Canonical (see my endnote about our process), but this is advice that I believe is good when applying at any company. Most of this is writing advice, useful when writing your resume, cover letter, and any other written parts of a job application. In fact, I’d argue that most of it applies to any kind of non-fiction writing. To set the scene, remember who you’re writing for: a busy hiring manager or an engineer who’s been tasked with reviewing your application (and hundreds of others). They have to make a decision based on limited information, and they want to hire people who stand out, who’ve built things, and who can communicate well. I know it’s just a tool, but hear me out. Initially I qualified “Don’t use ChatGPT” with “or if you do, use it carefully”. But my strong recommendation is: just don’t

How (not) to apply for a software job Ben Hoyt Home Resume/CV Projects Tech Writing Non-Tech Email benhoyt.com benhoyt@gmail.com How (not) to apply for a software job September 2023 Go to: ChatGPT | Flowery prose | Tell | Generics | Buzzwords | Instructions | Resume tips I review a lot of resumes and written interviews, and many of them are badly written. This article describes a few things not to do when applying for a software engineering role. I work for Canonical (see my endnote about our process), but this is advice that I believe is good when applying at any company. Most of this is writ

Explore this link on the map →

related reading