Common English Mistakes in Reference Letters by Korean Speakers

This page focuses on errors typically made by native Korean speakers from South Korea when writing a Reference Letter in English.

Mistake Example #1

Confusion with prepositions ('in', 'on', 'at')

To wWhom iIt mMay cConcern,I am writing in support of Mr. Kim's application for the position at your company. I have worked with him fonr the past three years, and I can confidently say he is one of the most dedicated employees I have met. His skills in problem-solving and leadership have been invaluable into our team, and I am sure he will be a great asset ato your organization.

Text corrected by:
Gregg, Los Angeles, CA

"This needed some corrections for prepositional phrasing."

To Whom It May Concern , I am writing in support of Mr. Kim's application for the position at your company. I have worked with him for the past three years, and I can confidently say he is one of the most dedicated employees I have met. His skills in problem-solving and leadership have been invaluable to our team and I am sure he will be a great asset to your organization.

To whom it may concern, I am writing in support of Mr. Kim's application for the position at your company. I have worked with him on the past three years, and I can confidently say he is one of the most dedicated employees I have met. His skills in problem-solving and leadership have been invaluable in our team, and I am sure he will be a great asset at your organization.

Mistake Example #2

Incorrect word order in complex sentences

To wWhom iIt mMay cConcern,:I am writing to recommend Mr. Lee for the position of software engineer inat your esteemed company. His skills in programming, which he has developed over many years, are exceptional, and his dedication tohis work is always impressive. When he was working on thea project last year, henot onlyhe completed tasks efficiently but alsohe helped team members with their challenges.

Text corrected by:
Vince, United States

"Overall your writing was very good; it just needed a few tweaks to make things consistent and professional. Well done! "

To Whom It May Concern: I am writing to recommend Mr. Lee for the position of software engineer at your esteemed company. His skills in programming, which he has developed over many years, are exceptional, and his dedication to his work is always impressive. When he was working on a project last year, he not only completed tasks efficiently but also helped team members with their challenges.

To whom it may concern, I am writing to recommend Mr. Lee for the position of software engineer in your esteemed company. His skills in programming, which he has developed over many years, are exceptional and his dedication to work is always impressive. When he was working on the project last year, not only he completed tasks efficiently but also he helped team members with their challenges.

Mistake Example #3

Omitting articles ('a', 'an', 'the')

To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to recommend Mr. Kim forthe position of software engineer at your company. Mr. Kim has beena valuable member of our team, consistently demonstrating strong skills in programming and problem-solving. His dedication to work and hisability to collaborate with others make him anexcellent candidate for therole.

Text corrected by:
Miss E., Cyprus, Europe

"There are articles missing in the content, which I've corrected. For example, "for position of software engineer" should be "for the position of software engineer" and "has been valuable member" should be "has been a valuable member"."

To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to recommend Mr. Kim for the position of software engineer at your company. Mr. Kim has been a valuable member of our team, consistently demonstrating strong skills in programming and problem-solving. His dedication to work and his ability to collaborate with others make him an excellent candidate for the role.

To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to recommend Mr. Kim for position of software engineer at your company. Mr. Kim has been valuable member of our team, consistently demonstrating strong skills in programming and problem-solving. His dedication to work and ability to collaborate with others make him excellent candidate for role.