A reader named Gautam put it better than I did, in a comment on my own article: the README is the only writing sample a reviewer gets for free.

I had just published a tally of 30 beginner job ads, counted word by word over two evenings. He read it, thought about it for a minute, and found the connection I'd walked straight past. So this piece is his point, developed, with the numbers underneath it.

The numbers, once more

Out of 30 ads aimed at beginners:

Git or GitHub used on a real project showed up in 26. One language or framework done properly, 24. A finished project you can show, 21. Clear writing — docs, updates, emails — 18. A long list of languages at once, 4. Certificates named specifically, 2.

That writing row is the one people skip. Eighteen out of thirty ads asked for it, more than four times as many as asked for breadth of languages. And here's Gautam's insight: when a reviewer clicks your project, they don't have to take your word for any of it.…