Cover Letters Formats and Examples
Cover Letters should be Tailored to Fit Each Specific Job Applied For
Cover letters summarize your skills and experience and make them relevant to the job you want. It demonstrates your experience and writing skills. You communicate your knowledge of the company, employer, and prospective job. Cover letters show your motivation and how professional you are. It should reflect your personality, excitement for the job, and interest in the job position.
Each cover letter must be written to the specific job you are applying for. Do not use a generic letter. A generic letter ends in the reject pile. Your letter must be written so carefully, that the prospective employer will want to read more. The letter should be one page or less, and should have the look of a professional business letter. Your resume and cover letter should match in style and font size.
Calling the company of the prospective job will help you find the name of the person who is directly hiring. If you cannot do this, go on the internet and find the company's website. This will give you the correct spelling of the person and the company. Never begin your letter with "Dear Sir", or "Dear Madam".
Keep your cover letters brief. Limit your letter to one page. Do not repeat the contents of the resume. Only make the letter three or four paragraphs. You don't want to bore the reader with long flowery sentences. Make them short and to the point. The use of bullets is perfectly acceptable to get your key points across.
You want to match yourself to the job opportunity. Cover letters that are effective focus on the specific skills and abilities that fit the job. Show examples of why the employer should hire you. Show how you fit into their job requirements.
Prove your interest in the company. Briefly mention what you have learned about the company. Research the company or ask people you know who work there. Instead of using big words, use vocabulary specific to the industry. This will prove your knowledge.
Do not use the word "I". Focus on the prospective employer my using the word "you". Let them know what you will contribute to the company, rather than what you expect from them.
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Attention to detail is very important when writing cover letters. The employers are checking to see if you are a good communicator and if you have strong writing skills. If you have poor grammar, spelling, or typographical errors, your letter and resume will surely go to the reject pile.