Providing cover letter advice

[Absolutely Virtue]

Hi,

I'm reviewing resumes again this week, so I thought I'd pass along some advice about how to write an effective cover letter. Hope this helps, hope others add things I may have missed.

When should I submit a cover letter?

1. Any time they ask for it. If they mention you can/should submit one, and you don't, what does that say about you? Sounds to me like you're either lazy or don't really want the job.

2. If you want to explain something. Say your resume says you got your degree in finance, and your internship was at a bank. But you really want to get into sales, because you prefer the faster pace environment. If you're afraid the recruiter might look at your resume and wonder why you're applying for a certain job, use the cover letter to explain why. It's perfectly acceptable to want a career change- people do it every day.

3. If you REALLY want the job. This is your dream job, the one you have been dying to get. Use that letter to convey this. More on this later.

When is it okay not to submit a cover letter?

1. When it's overkill. If you're applying for a job as a bartender or an electrician, you probably don't need a cover letter. In those cases, references are really important. Find people who will be your references in advance, and provide their contact info with your resume.

2. When it's not appropriate for the industry. In some areas, especially highly technical ones (IT, science), a cover letter may not always be necessary. For example, if your resume shows you've earned a dozen certifications, or lists two huge research projects you've designed, it sort of speaks for itself. I'd say this is the exception to the rule though. In most cases, it never hurts to include the letter.

Tips for writing the letter

1. Read the job description. Read it again. Read about the company on the web (mission statement, vision, client list, etc). Read the job description again. Do some research. Read the job description again.

2. Write the following paragraphs:

-Introduction "Hi, I'm Virtue, I just graduated with a degree from here, and I saw your advertisement for (job name) there."

-Sell yourself "The job description states you're looking for entry-level sales associates with 0-3 years of experience with a degree in business. I will earn my degree on [date] and, I have sales experience through a part time job I held at [company] while attending college." You want them to know that you understand what they're looking for, and you think you can help fill that business need. Explain that you can help them by contributing the skills they say they need.

-Expand on your experience. "While working at [company], I did x, y, and z." If possible, focus on achievements and use quantitative terms. Try to be specific, using terms like "averaged X dollars in sales per hour, maintained a sales database with 10,000+ records, was twice named sales associate of the month." Close by tying this back to the job description- how the stuff you did will translate to the stuff they need.

-Closing. Do you have other things you can provide to make yourself look better? Mention them here. References, transcripts, additional information about your experience? Tell them when and how they should contact you, make yourself as available as possible. If you can start immediately, let them know. If you're willing to relocate (where applicable), let them know as well. Tell them you look forward to hearing from them. Close with "Sincerely." Sign name.

TLDR/Short tips based on my pet peeves:

Use fucking spellcheck. If you have a single typo, I'm not going to hire you. Getting a job is among the most important things you'll ever do. If you can't be bothered to check your work, why should I hire you?

Don't rely on spellcheck. Proofread for grammar and consistency. Better yet, have someone else do it. Spellcheck won't catch everything. I swear to god I read this on Friday: "I have had occasion to see members of the [my company] team at work and tit quite impressive." Our tits were impressive? Why thank you. Spellcheck wouldn't have caught that.

Don't be the thesaurus guy. If you need to find a synonym for challenges, use obstacles or barriers. Don't use hindrances or impediments. Don't be that guy. To that end, write like you talk. Be concise. This is a cover letter, not a poem. If you're trying to sound smart, you will most likely end up sounding like an idiot.

Don't send the generic cover letter. If you letter doesn't mention our ad specifically, then I know you're just spamming your resume to everyone. It's going in the trash. I don't need people who need a job. I need people who want THIS job.

Have a grown up email address. While you'll get a special place in my heart if your email address is [email protected], you will still look like an idiot. Go out and get firstname.lastname@gmail, yahoo, hotmail, etc. You can always use [email protected] for your BG account.

[Mizango]

Man, speaking of which we had someone applyrecently that used "[email protected]" a few weeks ago. So I feel you on that lol.

Good tips, thanks for sharing. In this day and time every little bit of job advice helps. On a similar note you are exactly right, we only sort through resumes that have a cover letter attached. All others are placed into the "we'll see" category.

[MrW]

This is great advice. I'm always so paranoid about my resume. I usually have like 27 people look at it.

I got a resume the other day and the email address was: [email protected] ... was worth a good laugh. Too bad he wasn't applying for the circus :/

[Faris]

fucking awesome, i say sticky this!
thanks alot

[Absolutely Virtue]

A second tip, about writing samples:

If you're asked to submit a writing sample from school, think about the subject of the paper. Many professors ask you to write about controversial or difficult subjects, because they're challenging you to tackle tough issues. That's great for a college campus. But the people reading those samples don't have that context.

I work for a think tank, so I get a lot of economics/sociology/psychology sorts of papers. In just the last few days, topics have included:

Winner-

A paper examining the market for sperm in the US.

Honorable mentions-

A paper arguing that if women want to be treated as equals, they need to pay half the check on dates. Otherwise, men have a right to 'expect' something in return for paying. (I swear)

A paper explaining that doctors are morally obligated to perform abortions unless their religion forbids it. In those cases, they are morally obligated to help the woman find a doctor who will perform the procedure.

All of these were well written and researched (well, except the sexist one- that was just bizarre). But none are appropriate for a writing sample. Unless you're specifically applying for a job that relates to this sort of topic, you should avoid anything that could be considered controversial. This is especially true if the subject is political, or if you have a lot of political experience (campaigned for a democrat or republican) on your resume. Most companies prefer to hire open-minded, flexible people. Unless you're applying for a place that is hardcore left or right, you're better off shooting for the middle.

So what should you use? Try to pick something relevant. If you're applying for something technical, include the most technical paper you have. If you're applying for something more general, shoot for something short and sweet that demonstrates you can quickly summarize an issue and come to a conclusion. I want kids who can tell the whole story in two pages, not twenty. Look for ways to show you can quickly sort through the bullshit and tell me everything I need to know if I ask you to take care of something.

[Mizango]

I'd love to read the one about Feminazi and them not wanting to part with their butch bucks or put out. That would be mildly entertaining to say the least.

AV you got myself and my co-workers talking earlier after you posted this and one of them reminded me of a guy we had that applied that used a WoW skin on his resume. And I shit you not, he sat in the interview telling us how he knew Tom Cruise, Kevin Bacon and other celebs lol. On the miscellaneous portion of his resume and cited that he could "eat an entire Turkey at one sitting". He stated under work experience that he owned a business but failed to mention before the interview sit down that he only managed to sell anything to one customer which turned out to be his cousin. About how his mom was a huge bitch and he needed this job so he could more out because he was catching flack for being 41 and still at home etc. It was sad.

I shit you not. We kept his resume on file, its been about 2 years since that interview. I am half tempted to darken his name and post this exquisite resume as a lesson on what NOT TO DO when looking for a job. My manager got up from the interview and left me and a co-worker in there for the duration of the process because he couldn't control the laughter anymore. We started a wordpress blog about this guy and everything.

Worst/Best interview I have EVER been a part of in my entire goddamn life.

[thatwasnifty]

2. When it's not appropriate for the industry. In some areas, especially highly technical ones (IT, science), a cover letter may not always be necessary. For example, if your resume shows you've earned a dozen certifications, or lists two huge research projects you've designed, it sort of speaks for itself. I'd say this is the exception to the rule though. In most cases, it never hurts to include the letter.

I disagree, at least for science (can't say for IT). In my experience, jobs in industry and private research both require cover letters because they allow the applicant to expand upon their resume, since so many applicants (especially entry-level) are very similar in their experience and knowledge. The cover letter is where you display that you're unique and useful, and not a run-of-the-mill, replaceable product of the educational system. If you ran a research project that is similar to what the job will require, a cover letter offers more space to describe how that experience is relevant to the job. Maybe you ran into a technical or even legal problem with your project. How did you resolve it? Troubleshooting is a very important aspect of research, and an employer needs to know if an applicant needs to be hand-held every time the slightest problem arises, or if they can take care of themselves.

Complete agreement with you on spell/grammar checks, and I think that needs to be emphasized. I'd also add that you should have one or two other people proofread your letter because they might spot things that you've missed.

[Lbelle]

What do you think about resumes that are longer than a page? Mine was two and I sent it to a guy that works for a production company and he took alot of stuff out and said that resumes should never be more than one pages, and you shouldn't list references, only say that they're available upon request.

[Aerides]

What do you think about resumes that are longer than a page? Mine was two and I sent it to a guy that works for a production company and he took alot of stuff out and said that resumes should never be more than one pages, and you shouldn't list references, only say that they're available upon request.

YMMV.
If you've been working in 1 job, you're 25, and you're stretching that over 2 pages you might be padding. If you've got 20 years in 17 different jobs you should trim out the "blips" and irrelevant stuff (not all 17 jobs are going to help).

But there is no hard/fast rule on length. If every word/role/accomplishment/responsibility is helpful and non-repetitive, include it. But yes, streamline, cut filler, and get to the important stuff FAST. Jump off the page "oh yes I'll interview him" in the first half page of your resume no matter how long. (tl;dr definitely applies).

References on request is common. If they didn't ask for sure. Not sure if this is the norm in all industries.

[Crouchingllama]

If you ever get the opportunity to work with a career transition company/career coach (that's all they do, not some fake sideline), do it and keep the materials for next time you need them, you'll find a lot of the tips the OP and others posted. I got lucky enough to be connected to one by an old employer and it was a good experience.

[Azalee]

This is good info. At the moment I am 20 and jobless, and a lot of places ask for cover letters, which isn't really something that is covered in school. They pound into your brain that you need to have an impressive resume but cover letters are never brought up.

[Absolutely Virtue]

I disagree, at least for science (can't say for IT)

Perfectly willing to concede to you here. I searched BG before I made this topic, found a kinda similar one where someone made the case about not needing the cover letter for certain jobs. That's the reason I included it. In my opinion, providing the letter just shows you're willing to go the extra mile. Never a bad thing.

Also, find the people telling people that resumes should only be one page long and kill them.

When I hire people, I'm planning to enter a relationship with them that (I hope) will last for many years. I want to know as much as possible about the person. And as someone else mentioned, it is very common for senior people to have resumes that are a dozen pages longer or more, especially if they've authored a lot of publications/worked on a lot of projects/etc.

There is a logical limit to this, though. If you're a kid right out of school, it makes sense to include ALL of your job experience, including unrelated things like part-time jobs. As you get older, this stuff will fall off your resume, as you'll be able to include your more advanced work. For example, at 34 years old I no longer include that I worked at that pizza joint when I was in school. But I did on my first resumes when I was just graduating from college.

[Azkarin2]

Kind of related so I thought I would ask. I am about to send out my resume in an email to an old connection and everytime I open the file it opens and shows all the changes/edits. I'd prefer them not to be able to see those. Is there anything I can do to eliminate it opening with the changes? I've already tried saving it as a final version but it still opens that way.

[thatwasnifty]

If you're using Word, View -> Markup. That will turn off the track changes feature.

[Absolutely Virtue]

Kind of related so I thought I would ask. I am about to send out my resume in an email to an old connection and everytime I open the file it opens and shows all the changes/edits. I'd prefer them not to be able to see those. Is there anything I can do to eliminate it opening with the changes? I've already tried saving it as a final version but it still opens that way.

You can also go in using Track Changes in Word, and "accept" all the changes. See Word's help feature for more info.

[Seraph]

Also, find the people telling people that resumes should only be one page long and kill them.

Generally this mentality came from the concept of 'If they will not offer you an interview based on the first page of your resume, they will not offer you an interview period.' I have found this little joke to be quite true. I never assumed my personal resume was going to get me a job, I always just assumed it would get me an interview. The actual interview gets you the job (or at least, it should).

If you put more than one page of information in your resume, there is a great risk that people will not read it, or assume you are trying to pad/fluff your credentials. The one exception I place on that is if you are listing previous employment locations and experience on a separate page. Even that can backfire though, because what does it say about a person who keeps switching jobs?

[Absolutely Virtue]

Generally this mentality came from the concept of 'If they will not offer you an interview based on the first page of your resume, they will not offer you an interview period.' I have found this little joke to be quite true. I never assumed my personal resume was going to get me a job, I always just assumed it would get me an interview. The actual interview gets you the job (or at least, it should).

If you put more than one page of information in your resume, there is a great risk that people will not read it, or assume you are trying to pad/fluff your credentials. The one exception I place on that is if you are listing previous employment locations and experience on a separate page. Even that can backfire though, because what does it say about a person who keeps switching jobs?

This is a good way of looking at it- your resume is your foot in the door, and your interview is what seals the deal. I see your point about length, but consider this:

You're most likely going to get your next job based on what you're doing now, right? Put another way, your most recent job experience is your most relevant. Resumes should follow a chronological format, so your most recent experience is on the first page, right? So do you:

-Condense that experience so you can fit ALL of your resume onto one page?

or

-Take your time and provide enough space to talk about your recent experience, and put the less relevant stuff on subsequent pages?

It comes down to personal preference, but if I'm job hunting and I think someone might only read one page of my resume, I'd rather them see all the awesome things I'm doing (lol) right now, as opposed to two sentences from my current job and a bunch of other single sentences about jobs I had ten years ago. See what I mean? And as for overall length, I honestly couldn't even condense my job experience into one page if I tried at this point. I'm just too old.

As for switching jobs, you raise a really good point. A long time ago, staying at the same place for a long period of time was considered a sign of loyalty and dedication. And I'm sure in some industries it still is. But there is A LOT of data out there that shows that people change jobs with FAR greater frequency these days. So much so, in fact, that staying at one place for too long with little advancement can almost be seen as a weakness. Case in point: I have a buddy who has a slack job where he does almost nothing all day, and he uses his free time to read books. He's happy, and his resume makes him look really loyal. But if I read it, and saw he'd been doing the same thing for five or ten years with no big promotion, I'd wonder if he had any ambition. And I love that guy, lol.

TLDR- don't be afraid to change jobs looking for a better one. Most employers will understand this, as long as your employement has been continuous. If you have any gaps, you can explain those in the interview, or the cover letter.

[Crouchingllama]

Resume/cover letter question here:
I had five different positions within the same company in nearly 6 years, starting out as a temp administrative assistant and ending up as a Financial Analyst, so how do I NOT take up the entire first page of my resume (in a chronological format as opposed to skills format) covering the various positions, especially when one was a "downshift" ... I think i have the positioning statement blended for the cover letter/interview if someone asks me about it, but I think that I was able to move up over the course of the years said I had found the right fit, even with a bump along the way. I've been told that when you have many positions at one company over a number of years, just put the most recent one as the first entry and cover the entire timeframe you worked for that company in the Mar 2002-Mar 2009 statement etc, especially if not all the previous position at that company had bearing on new positions you're applying for (like admin. asst. vs fin. analyst). Thoughts?

[Absolutely Virtue]

Resume/cover letter question here:
I had five different positions within the same company in nearly 6 years, starting out as a temp administrative assistant and ending up as a Financial Analyst, so how do I NOT take up the entire first page of my resume (in a chronological format as opposed to skills format) covering the various positions, especially when one was a "downshift" ... I think i have the positioning statement blended for the cover letter/interview if someone asks me about it, but I think that I was able to move up over the course of the years said I had found the right fit, even with a bump along the way. I've been told that when you have many positions at one company over a number of years, just put the most recent one as the first entry and cover the entire timeframe you worked for that company in the Mar 2002-Mar 2009 statement etc, especially if not all the previous position at that company had bearing on new positions you're applying for (like admin. asst. vs fin. analyst). Thoughts?

My company formats our resumes (they're used to bid on proposals) like this-

2002-2009 XYZ Research Company, Inc

2007- Senior Researcher
2005-2007 Research Analyst
2002-2005 Research Assistant

Then the description would be your most recent work. You could even do:

As Senior Researcher- five sentences
As Research Analyst- two sentences
As Research Assistant- one sentence

Although it's sort of implied that, as you progress, you're doing all you were doing before and then some. For example, no need to put the assistant job description if you later get the job you were assisting.

Bottom line is you've got something good going- you can show that you've been working hard and getting promoted. That's always a good thing. Whatever you do, try to make sure you emphasize that your current company kept promoting you. Don't worry so much about a lateral move or demotion- that can be explained away (went back to school, company was restructuring, business was slow, etc).

[Crouchingllama]

Thanks A.V., I'm on a contract job now, but I really need to revamp my resume for when that's finished. I'll make sure to approach my previous company that way.