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Cover Letter Tips

General Tips

  • Customize your cover letter to each job.
  • Watch how many times you start your sentence with “I”. Remember, it’s not an autobiography.
  • Arrange the points in a logical sequence- each paragraph should have its own theme.
  • Tell the employer why you want to work there (don’t go overboard though).
  • Tell a story- people like reading stories!
  • Give them a sense of your personality by the way you write.
  • Don’t just summarize your resume.
  • Make sure your grammar and punctuation are perfect.
  • Focus on how your skills and experiences can benefit their company.
  • Never write more than 1 page.

Woman writing cover letter

Formatting Tips

  • Put your name/ heading at the top (match it to your resume).
  • Use business letter formatting.
  • Skip a line, put the date. Skip a line and then put their information (person to whom you’re writing, their title, company name, company address).
  • Find out to whom you are writing. Put “Dear” and then their name and a colon (Dear Mr. Michael Young:). Avoid “To whom it may concern” or “Sir/Madam”. If their name is not listed, you can try calling the Human Resources department and ask them to whom you can address the cover letter.
  • Skip a space in between each paragraph.
  • Left align all paragraphs- don’t indent.
  • Single space all text (skipping a line when appropriate).
  • End with Sincerely, skip 4 lines and type your name.
  • Use the same font type and font size as your resume. You want to make it seem like the documents belong together.