If you’re a student, running out of classroom, student loan, and scholarship time, you’re going to begin the inevitable search for work. And for most white collar or college-level positions (although increasingly blue collar jobs, too) you’re going to need a couple of key documents. Last week, we talked about résumés and CVs, and now we’re going to focus on cover letters.
What is a cover letter?
A cover letter works essentially as a statement of interest, a way to telling an employer in your own written voice why you’re interested in this particular job, with this company, and what your qualifications. Many jobs require it as a matter of course, so you might think about developing ‘form version’ that you fill in with details specific to each job. Because most people don’t get a job based on a cover letter, don’t worry about writing The Perfect Cover Letter for each job. It’s not a good use of your time, and even the perfect letter probably won’t get you a job. Instead, think of your cover letter as making the case that you should be interviewed.
What not to say
As we discussed with personal statements, the best cover letters will first do no harm: don’t give an employer a reason to discard your application. If you think you’re a little underqualified, you shouldn’t point this out in your cover letter, or even use it ‘defend’ your qualifications. No need to discuss the time you took off from school, or that you interned with family friend. Save details like these for the interview, when simply by virtue of granting you one, the employer has signaled that he or she will give you the benefit of the doubt.
This advice applies to the tone of your letter as much as to the content: in general you should avoid striking what might seem like a defensive or conciliatory tone. Don’t let the employer get irritated with you or not get your jokes before they’ve even met you!
What to say
Be as assertive and forthright as you can, without seeming overbearing. Express genuinely what makes you interested in this job, anything from its advantages over work you’ve done already, its aligning with your career goals, or even your native curiosity about this type of work. One of my favorite cover letters I wrote for client who was applying for a data scientist position at an online fantasy sports company, supposedly this client’s dream job, as he was a big fantasy sports player. We said as much in his letter, and at the end, I wrote that if they assigned him to write an algorithm for selecting the top draft to their company, he might not make the first round, but they’d be lining up to trade for him within a few months. He got the job, after a great interview, in which they told him that they almost offered him the job on the spot. Truly, a proud moment.
Now, not all letters can do this, but take a lesson: while a great letter can really help you, more importantly, a good letter will make the case that the employer should grant you the interview. When you’re as forthright as you can be (which, full disclosure, is a lot easier when you’re applying for your real dream job) you’ll stand out from a lot of letters that read like form letters, often copied from online formats.
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