Writing a cover letter?

Perhaps you’ve been told by a parent, friend, or other trusted source that you don’t need to include a cover letter when sending your résumé out.  “Nobody reads them,” they assure you, “and even those who do just glance over before continuing on to your résumé.”  Perhaps you will be “lucky” and have your résumé land on someone’s desk who won’t care that there isn’t a cover letter on top of it.  But for every hiring manager like this, there’s one who looks to the cover letter for several opening impressions of the job candidate. 

Indeed, though you may not intend it to be, the cover letter is quite revealing of its author, demonstrating how well you communicate, what your experience and qualifications are (briefly), your level of profession, clues to your personality, and even how oriented you are to detail.  To make that great first impression, you need to know what makes a cover letter good and put some thought into how you want to present yourself.  Something as simple as a cover letter can be the deciding factor between getting the job you’ve been dreaming about and settling for something less than perfect.

A cover letter is an introduction, a sales pitch, and a proposal for further action all in one. It gives the reader a taste of what's to come—not by simply summarizing the resume, but by highlighting the aspects of your background that will be most relevant to the reader. A cover letter also demonstrates that you can organize your thoughts and express yourself clearly and appropriately; in other words, it reflects your communication skills and, to some extent, your personality.

Cover letters, typically in one-page format, begin with an introduction where you state who you are and why you are writing.  The middle is taken up by the sales pitch, where you attempt to advertise yourself in the most successful way.  The letter concludes with your proposal for further action, where you highlight steps you would like to take and see the employer take.  Before you write, begin by asking yourself questions about your role with the employer and your plans for the future.  What does the employer need?  What do you hope to accomplish?  What are some qualities you will bring to this job?  Why do you want to work for this employer?  When you come up with good, solid answers to these, you’re ready to start writing.          

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