Cover letter is a letter that you send to accompany your CV when you apply for job, whether advertised or when you are sending an unsolicited application. It should answer the question - Why should I hire you? It should grab the employer’s attention and point out why you, above all other applicants, should be contacted for a personal interview. There are two types of cover letter hard copy correspondence and e-mail.
Cover letter should:
1. Explain why you are sending a resume
2. Tell specifically how you learned about the position or the organization
3. Convince the reader to look at your resume
4. Call attention to elements of your background
5. Reflect your attitude
6. Provide or refer to any information specifically requested
7. Indicate what you will do to follow-up:
¨ In a letter of application — applying for an advertised opening — applicants often say something like "I look forward to hearing from you." However, if you have further contact info (e.g. phone number) and if the employer hasn't said "no phone calls," it's better to take the initiative to follow-up, saying something like, "I will contact you in the next two weeks to see if you require any additional information regarding my qualifications."
¨ In a letter of inquiry — asking about the possibility of an opening — don't assume the employer will contact you. You should say something like, "I will contact you in two weeks to learn more about upcoming employment opportunities with (name of organization)." Then mark your calendar to make the call.
Tips to Make Your Letter Professional
1. Research the company and the specifics about the position so you can tailor your letter to the needs of the organization.
2. Avoid using too many sentences that start with "I" or writing in the passive voice (ex. "This experience enabled me to..." or "Through my internship, I was responsible for..."); instead, make yourself the subject of each sentence and use active descriptions (ex., "In this internship, I demonstrated sound judgment and problem-solving skills on a daily basis.").
3. Do not use contractions (I'd, didn't, it's).
4. Spelling, grammar, or punctuation mistakes are out of the question! Cover letters are a reflection of your writing skills, so make each cover letter an example of your best work.
5. Be sure to sign your letters. (Black ink is suggested).
6. Keep your letter short and simple. This is not the time to tell your whole life's story.
7. Have a Career Specialist review your cover letters during drop-in hours: Monday-Friday 1:30 – 4:30 and Wednesday 8:30am – 11:30am OR you can make an appointment anytime. Use good quality paper that matches your resume paper
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hi sayeeda,
ReplyDeleteI read your blog on cover letter. In your blog it tells you why we should write a cover letter, how it helps our employer understands our motive for the job along with the resume. It also gives them the idea how I will keep contact with them and just not keep calling them with out any notice. this blog also made me clear of how to write a cover letter like what kind of sentences we should use and which one not to use and so on. So in general I think this blog will help others to understand a cover letter.
i undertsand where you coming from but in my opinon does it really makes difference at the end of the day its all about your resume and what you can bring to the table.
ReplyDeleteHello everyone,
ReplyDeleteFirst I was surprised to have comments on my blogs. Thank you guys.
I'm glad that my posting was useful for you Vir. Regarding Jessy, I never heard of cover letter until I came here, hhhhh. I believe that sometimes, cover letter might be helpful.
This is the perfect guide to writing a cover letter. Yes, cover letters are RARELY ever read and the resume does count. However, I can tell you instances that the cover letter is good:
ReplyDeleteSpecific jobs, ie:
Technical writers - this is a job where resumes may be submitted by technicians or people with CIS background and resume experience may vary in different levels of IT. However, they have to tie this all together in a cover letter and explain why those experiences give them enough knowledge to be a technical writer etc. Technical writing is not something that a person with an english degree can do. In this case, you would need a cover letter (job specific)
Another case is from people who are doing an industry change. Let's say someone has a finance background and then went to pursue a master's in marketing and have only one internship on their belt. Upon reading thier resume I would know this candidate is bright - let's say they went to UPenn and worked in Goldman Sachs and then pursued a masters in Marketing and Entrepreneurship in Yale and are not applying for a marketing position. I would obviously know this is a smart person but I would be hesitant based on their resume having mostly finance experience - in this case I would REALLY want to see what they have to say on their cover letter about relevant experience.
**are NOW applying for a marketing positon. Typo sorry.
ReplyDelete