15 February 2006
Is it time to put the covering letter in the recycling bin?
Employers are increasingly finding that applicants no longer bother to write a covering letter to send in with their curriculum vitae or application form.
Simon Warner, business manager at Thorpe Molloy Recruitment comments: " The job market today is increasingly competitive and applicants need to be able to distinguish themselves from the competition so we have found it surprising that more and more people are turning away from writing a cover letter. It is possible that because people frequently apply for jobs via email they think that the covering letter is no longer needed but this is not the case; the covering letter simply becomes the covering email. When an employer opens a job application the covering letter should be the first thing that they see; a well written covering letter is a sure fire way of making sure that your application makes it through the first stage of the sifting process. Some employers will decide whether or not to read a CV based on the information that they read in the covering letter; it is the ideal opportunity to grab their attention and should be used to make a positive first impression."
Simon adds a word of warning: "A covering letter should not be an afterthought or something that is rushed at the last minute; sending in a covering letter that is full of mistakes or badly presented won`t achieve the desired positive first impression.
Your covering letter should be tailored for the specific vacancy that you are applying for; generic letters always come across as precisely that and can be detrimental to your application. Although the covering letter should be written for each job application there are guidelines for the information that you should be including in the letter."
Simon has these tips for writing a winning covering letter:
The opening paragraph
It is important to state the vacancy you are applying for as well as mentioning where and when you saw it advertised. Not only will this ensure that the employers know which position you are applying for it also helps them to evaluate the success of the recruitment adverts that they have placed.
The main body of the letter
You should think about the advert for the job that you are applying for and any supporting information such as a job description or person specification that you might have received from the employer; make sure that you highlight the elements of your experience and skills that are relevant to this position, you should also give brief details of why you want to work for this particular company.
The final paragraph
You should summarise your relevant skills and experience and conclude with a positive statement, such as `I look forward to hearing from you`.
Formatting the letter
- You should aim to keep your covering letter to no more than one side of A4 paper.
- The letter should be typed in a clear font and printed in black on good quality white paper.
- You should only handwrite your covering letter if this is specifically requested; if you have been asked to handwrite the covering letter ensure that it is easily readable and smudge free.
- Where possible address the letter to a named person.
- The letter should be enthusiastic in tone and as a minimum you should double check the letter for errors prior to sending. If possible ask someone else to proof read the letter for you to make sure that you haven`t missed any mistakes.
- If you are trying to get your first job bear in mind that it is extremely likely that the person reading your covering letter will be older than you and they will expect the letter to be laid out formally with both your address and their address appearing at the top of the page. You should also make sure that you finish the letter off correctly, only using `yours sincerely` then the letter is addressed to a person by name, otherwise you should use `yours faithfully`.
- Most word processing programmes have a `print preview` option, you should use this to check the layout of your letter and see how it will look when it is printed.
- Last, but by no means least, do not forget to sign the letter.
north east business directory and yearbook 2006
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