Writing a cover letter

Hello and welcome to Top Tips: Cover Letters. Today we will cover 10 top tips for writing your cover letter. Tip 1: Define your purpose. There are broadly three purposes. The first, is as a cover letter, a one page document sent when you're asked to apply by CV. It introduces you to the recruiter and highlights the most relevant skills and experiences from your CV. Always include one with a CV unless explicitly told not to. The second, is as a speculative letter, a one page letter sent when you are writing to an organisation to ask whether they have any suitable opportunities. And the third is as a letter of support sent when the recruiter asks for a supporting statement which covers how you meet the person specification. This may be included as part of the application form or requested as a separate document. Check the application instructions carefully. What have you been asked to provide? If you have never written a business letter before, it is useful to review some examples. You can find examples on Career Service Plus and we'll talk through one in this video. On screen, you can see an example of the expected layout to begin a professional letter. Ensure your address is in the top right and the employer's is in the top left. These do not have to be added consecutively if space does not allow. Include the date and reference the position of interest, as they may have several roles being recruited for. This also means you do not need to repeat the title of the role in your introductory line and can open your first paragraph with more impact. Try to find a named contact, particularly if you are writing a speculative letter. If you can't find a name person, use dear recruitment manager or similar. In the body of your cover letter, use three to five short tailored paragraphs on one page and use a Sans Serif font like Arial or Calibri like we have done here. Avoid fancier fonts as these can be difficult to read. Many applicants start their letter the same way. For example, I'm applying for the customer service position as I saw advertised on MyCareerHub. Instead, you really want to let the recruiter know from the first paragraph why you want the job. So, for example, you could say, since successfully completing a politics degree at the University of Edinburgh, I've sought out a range of directly relevant experience which prepares me for the advertised role within your organisation. I'm delighted to have the opportunity to apply for this position and can see that I have the skills and qualities required to be successful in this role. I'm particularly drawn to a particular element about your organisation. In this example, you can see that the evidence presented is personal to the applicant and directs the reader to parts of their experience and research. This introductory paragraph can be improved by adding the job titles or employers where the range of directly relevant experience was gained. As a precursor to any information which follows about relevant skillsets and the link to the CV. Tip 4, ask yourself, "Why me?" You want to pick 3-5 specific examples tailored to the employer. What relevant skills and experiences make you a good fit? Which skills, values, company interests do you relate to? What appeals to you about this role, organisation, or sector? Your cover letter offers an introduction, it's a trailer or synopsis and should encourage the recruiter to read your CV for more information. Never copy sentences or paragraphs directly from your CV. Vary your language choices to keep the reader engaged, but ensure it sounds like you. The covering letter should succinctly answer the question, "Why me?" Employers are looking for candidates who meet the requirements of their job advertisement, so avoid focusing on what you'll get out of the job. You can mention this in relation to your interests and career objectives, but the main focus must be on your suitability so that they can assess whether to invite you to interview. Your covering letter also gives the opportunity to explain any element of your CV that could cause confusion or be open to misinterpretation. For example, a break in your career history, if you approach it positively and are open to open about explaining it, it shouldn't be an issue. Some examples for having a break in your CV might be including taking a gap year. Having children, caring for a sick relative, a medical condition, or redundancy. Seek support from the Careers Service if you're unsure how to mention these. This document offers you a chance to highlight your fit for the job. Evidence speaks for itself, so avoid listing what you have done without putting it into context or copying content from your CV. Your task is to engage the reader. Tip 5, ask yourself, "Why them?" Conduct some research to demonstrate your commercial understanding. Give reasons why you want to work for this organisation in particular. You can also cover the role and sector if relevant, but be specific, they want to know why you have selected them. Avoid vague statements which could be applied to many organisations. Consider what you're adding from their website and why. Don't copy text, lists of skills or mission statements.  They know these. Focus on how you relate to them. Think carefully about what appeals to you about this employer. Is it the company culture? Is it the training opportunities? Is it projects you'd be involved in or those that have taken place? The covering letter really should answer this question of, "Why them?" "Why this company?" Again, the employer is looking for the right candidate for their job and company, so they want to know that you've done some research and have made an informed decision to apply to work for them. Instead of, I need or want this job, think about specifics and what sets you apart from other applicants. Does the mission statement resonate with you? Do you share the same values or objectives for your career? Avoid copying and pasting texts from the employer's website. This is a waste of your available word count. Focus on connecting with the research you've completed and show you have read and understood how they operate, what their values are, and how they are different from competitors. And mention how you relate and what appeals to you. Tip 6, offer a strong positive conclusion. Reaffirm your suitability for the role and interest in working there. You've already mentioned in your three to five paragraphs what you're interested in and what you can bring. So now is a good time to show that you are genuinely interested in this role and would like to hear more about it. For example, you can say, "I'm available for interview at any time, please contact me if you have further information." Or what about, "Thank you for taking the time to consider my application. I look forward to discussing it with you further." Or, "I would be delighted to provide additional information should you require it, and look forward to hearing from you in the near future." The conclusion is the last sentence the recruiter reads, so it should be positive and affirm that you're interested and available to discuss your application in more detail. Don't worry about including an electronic signature. There's no need to print it off unless the recruiter has specifically asked for a printed copy, and this is extremely rare. Tip 7, Review and redraft. There are some important things to watch out for. One of them is negative tone. Using phrases like "I had to" or "I was required to." Also sentences like, "Although I've never done this before, I have this other experience." You might be able to see how this term tone can be pervasive if it comes across in your entire application. Instead of that negative language, think, "What have I actually gained?" And, "What do I bring to the table?" That might be, I'm ready to work with customers in a similar busy, fast paced environment after working in a café. That's a positive spin on, I don't have the exact experience that you're looking for as you're offering transferable experience. Which is valuable because you don't have to have the perfect set of attributes or experiences. Employers are looking for skills and how you've developed them. Introducing uncertainty is, unfortunately, prevalent in CVs, and it comes from a place of humility, which is an excellent trait. But it does also undermine what you've said. If you're not showing that you're competent to do the things that you've said you can do by using, I believe or I feel I can, then you're introducing uncertainty and making the reader question whether you're giving an opinion. Are you competent to do this? Do you feel confident that you can. Take these expressions out. Avoid repetition. Starting every sentence with I am or I can is not interesting to read. Add variety, and avoid directly repeating things from your CV. Expand with details about your examples in your cover letter. You've got more words to use. Why not use them?  Linked to the first point about negative tone is passive voice. Take ownership of your successes. You were responsible for developing your communication skills. The opportunity only helped. So don't say, "My communications were strengthened by," say, "I strengthened my communication skills by." Evidence speaks for itself. Be confident about what you have to offer. This isn't arrogance. Statements backed up by facts and examples prove you have the skills you say you do, so use this approach. You're trying to sell yourself and what you have to offer. Tip 8, proofread, and then proofread again. Check your finished cover letter carefully for spelling and grammatical errors to avoid making a poor impression. For example, if you said, "I enjoy cooking dogs and interesting people." If you've missed the comma, what you should be saying is, "I enjoy cooking, dogs, and interesting people." Another error is spelling errors. "Highly adept at multi-tasting." Obviously, you mean multitasking, but you've made a typo. Or, "I was responsible for fraudulent claims." This makes it sound like you were the one that was responsible for committing the fraud. What you might want to say instead is, "I was responsible for processing claims that were fraudulent," or something to that effect. Check and double check to avoid errors which could get you discounted straight away. Take a fresh look the next day and think about whether it would be helpful to get a trusted friend, family member, or colleague to have a look at it before you send it. Tip 9, write a new cover letter. Ensure each application is unique and tailored to the role and employer. You can use your last covering letter as a starting point and or draft a copy to keep as a template so that you're not starting from scratch. But always adapt it to meet the requirements of the new opportunity you are applying to. Focus on the essential skills listed in the advert and cover desirable skills where possible. Some letters can sound robotic, as they are a carbon copy of the previous one with a few words tweaked or a sentence changed here or there. Every application should have a unique letter. Remember that the employer will be reading lots of cover letters, so make it as unique as possible by tailoring.  Tip 10, use the Careers Service. A huge range of information is available on the careers service website. It's a great starting point and it's available 24/7. Remember to check MyCareerHub regularly for job postings, including internships, information about events and workshops, employer information and resources around career planning and interests. If you want to speak to a careers consultant, you'll need to book an appointment through MyCareerHub once you've drafted your cover letter. We also offer a drop-in service that you can find on MyCareerHub as well. To summarise, tip 1, define your purpose. Tip 2, use a professional business style layout. Tip 3, pay attention to your introduction. Tip 4, ask yourself, "Why me?" Tip 5, ask yourself, "Why them?" Tip 6, offer a strong positive conclusion. Tip 7, review and redraft. Tip 8, proofread, and then proofread again. Tip 9, write a new and unique cover letter every time. And tip 10, use the Career Service.