"Somebody Spell Their Name Wrong": 2 Biggest Resume Red Flags, From A Recruiter

Emily Levine, a seasoned executive at Career Group Companies, has interviewed countless candidates over her 15-year career. Her clientele includes high-profile individuals who rely on her to find top-tier staff. Ms Levine emphasizes the importance of a well-presented resume, free of typos and inaccuracies. She warns that even minor errors can significantly impact a candidate's chances, as they reflect a lack of attention to detail.

"I definitely have interviewed thousands and thousands of people throughout my 15-year career," she says. She shared that each interview process starts with a resume, and she needs to be convinced why she should move forward with that candidate. 

"If the resume is not presentable," she says, that can prevent her from passing it along. Here are two of her biggest red flags.

Typos raise eyebrows. "I've seen somebody spell their name wrong," says Levine. "I've seen somebody spell the name of their university incorrectly, or the company that they worked for." Ms Levine says the typos show a lack of attention to detail that reflects poorly on the candidate.

She shared that a single spelling error on a resume can be ignored, but more than that "doesn't look good," adding "it would discourage a company from meeting with a candidate."

Ms Levine revealed that she sometimes helps candidates and gives her feedback on the typos. She recommends every job-seeker "go back and double check all the information to make sure it's accurate" before submitting anything.  

Second, a resume needs to be accurate.

"Don't try to fudge the dates [to] make a gap seem shorter" between jobs, says Ms Levine.

Don't lie on your resume. Citing an example, Ms Levine shared don't say you have a degree if you left school a few credits shy of graduating, or if you never attended at all. Some people are "embarrassed to say they don't have" a degree, she says, so they lie and say they do.

She emphasised that the truth will come out in a background check, she says, and it'll make it very hard for that prospective employer to trust you going forward.

"I've seen countless offers being pulled from candidates" who lie, she says.