An Analysis of Errors in Resumes and Job Application Letters: The Study of Malaysian Undergraduate Students

Abstract

Writing a resume and cover letter is essential, especially for fresh graduates, as these documents are crucial for pursuing their desired careers after completing their studies. The unemployment rate in Malaysia, coupled with the economic downturn brought about by COVID-19, is set to increase competition between new graduates and more experienced job seekers. The formatting of these documents, which must be correctly formatted and without errors, is critical because employers usually review resumes and cover letters as an initial screening for candidates. In developing the checklist for the corpus analysis for this research, the researchers adopted the Error Analysis (EA) framework by Corder (1973). The present study addresses this issue by examining the errors in resumes and cover letters produced by Malaysian undergraduates. The research employed the corpus linguistics approach by gathering 60 resumes and 60 job application letters to identify errors using the Error Analysis (EA) framework. The findings showed that students' common errors were misselection, addition, omission, blends and misordering. The most prominent error found in the data was misselection. In the context of intense job competition among recent graduates in Malaysia, this study emphasises the significance of impeccably crafted resumes and cover letters. It offers valuable insights into making job applications more effective and practical. The findings of this research have the potential to serve as a valuable guide for undergraduate students, which will allow them to develop compelling and relevant content for job applications.