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What are your recommendations to have in a cover letter?

What information should be included, how long should it be, and what is the main goal? #resume #cover-letters

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Laura’s Answer

Hello Sabine, the scope of the cover letter is to tell to the employer why he should pick you, why you are the best option for them.
The cover letter should not have more than 5 phrases and it should be personalized for each position. It's normal, because each position has its own particularities.
Think that at least another 100 people like you will apply to that job and you need to stand up.


In the first phrase you may add some information about yourself and your academic background.
You should include also your strenghts and the most important achievements in exact figures (ex. I have increased the sales by 20% in three months I have reduced the back log by 30% in 2 months and so on, etc).


Hope this helps you and wish you best of luck !
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Jenna’s Answer

What you SHOULD include: (make sure everything is a high level summary - you can share more detail in your resume, or during the interview)
your experience that is relevant to the role you are applying for.
Names/high level projects that you have worked on in that area.
Make it role specific - pull buzz words from the job description of the role in which you are applying.
Accomplishments - use quantitative data to show your impact (if applicable)

What NOT to include:
Personal information (SSN, hobbies, etc.)
Not too many soft skills
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Simeon’s Answer

Honestly, cover letters aren't usually necessary. It's main goal is to summarize why you want the job and why the company should want to hire you. It's best to keep these short and to the point. Try to keep these at four to five sentences at most.
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Kiyoshi’s Answer

Hi Sabine,

The main goal of your cover letter is to expand on your resume and articulate why you are a good fit for the role that you are applying for.

It should be less than one page in length. Your opening paragraph or sentence should explain why you are interested in the role. The body of you cover letter should articulate why you are a good fit for the role. Your closing should always end with a thank you and closing statement reminding them why you are an outstanding candidate.

When thinking about what you should include in the body your cover letter ask yourself these two questions:

- What skills and abilities are needed for this job?
- What skills and abilities do I have that fill these needs?

After you have thought about these questions, it is time to start putting them down on paper in the form of your cover letter. You have identified several abilities/skills needed for the job and matched them with the skills/abilities that you possess to fill these needs. Take the the top two or three of these skills/abilities and write a short paragraph stating what their (the company's) need is and how your experiences and abilities helps to fill that need. When writing about your experience leverage the real life examples that you have included on your resume including previous work experiences, volunteer work, school work, and community activities to articulate your skills.

Close your cover letter with one final sentence with why they bring you in for and interview. Don't forget to always thank the recruiter and hiring manager for the time they have taken to review your cover letter and resume.

Hope this helps!
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