@baeksu said:Living and working in Korea, I handle a lot of applications for the few jobs in my company that require English speaking skills. Our work, though not related to software, very much requires people who can read and write in an accurate, proper, and formal style[*snip*] I don't know what they teach in American and Australian colleges, but formal English does not seem to be in the curriculum.   To be fair you would find roughly the same percentage of Koreans who are unable to write perfect Korean as you have Aussies/Americans/Britons unable to write perfect English. Unfortunately Wikipeda doesn't have any answers either way about the literacy rate. What it all really comes down to is that native speakers of a language, or long term speakers who have lived with the native speakers, are more comfortable using local jargon which in turn makes their writing style more varied and not as formal as those who learned it as a second language, whose language usage is quite dry. You will find this in any language since spoken language will heavily influence, but is not the only influence, how written language is composed. Also, may I inquire about what type of work you do exactly? The trade very much depends on the type of education that someone has had, and thus the type of language they use. I wouldn't expect someone like a truck driver or carpenter to be able to write Shakespeare, although by your description I presume it might be related to some kind of publication. I would love to see some examples of resumes which you think are a WTF.