HOW TO WRITE
A COVER LETTER
G.Bayarmaa. J.FS01
OUTLINE
Cover letter & its goal
Layout
Structure
Enclosure
Example
Reference
THE COVER LETTER
is the document that accompanies
your CV when you are applying for a
job.
is short (200-250 words), with a quite
rigid structure and has the layout of a
letter.
GOAL
is to introduce the CV, to bring to
attention aspects of your activity that
can help your application and are not
listed or not presented in the proper
light in the CV.
is to answer the recruiter’s
question:”Why should I hire this
person?”
LAYOUT (IS THAT OF A FORMAL BUSINESS LETTER)
Your address and contact details
come under your name, in the upper
right corner of the page.
SALLY B. DOE
7124 S. DeCoto Street
Any Town, Any State 36254
Telephone: (815) 879-2680
Underneaths, aligned left, the name,
function, organization and address
of the person you are writing to.
(It’s a lot better to know the name of the person
who is going to read your letter. You should address
the letter directly to him or her.)
Mr. Smith - Dir. of Human Resources
Raymond Kate Associates
524 Fair Lane Street
Any City, State 78194
Under receiver’s address, but aligned
right write the date of the day when
you are writing the letter.
(You should spell the name of the month and use
4 digits for the year . December 2, 2008)
January 30, 2010
If you know the name of the
addressee, start with Dear Mr, Ms,
Mrs, Dr, without full stop that you
might expect to follow the
abbreviation, and the surname of the
addressee, followed by comma (Dear
Dr Smith,). In this case, you should
end the letter with the salutation
“Yours sincerely”.
Dear Mr. Smith:
If you do not know the name of the
addressee, start with Dear Sirs, or
Dear Sir or Madam and close with
“Yours faithfully”. (In American business
correspondence, “Yours truly” is acceptable in both
cases.)
Do not start the body of the mail with
a capital letter, since it follows a
comma.
STRUCTURE (NO MORE THAN FOUR PARAGRAPHS.)
The goal of the first paragraph is to
specify what you are applying for and
how did you find out about the
opportunity.
I am responding to your advertisement
in The City Tribune (dated 1/20/00),
regarding the Pharmaceutical
Representative position.
Please find enclosed my resume showing
my education, experience, and background.
The second paragraph should list
your skills and qualifications that make
you the right person for the position
you are applying for. (Read carefully the
announcement, identify the requirements and see
how your skills match those required.)
Do not simply state that you have
them, prove it.
I have over 7 years experience in the sales and
marketing field, and 3 years experience as an
LPN staff nurse.
You should start from your experience
and show that how you have developed
those qualifications by doing what you
have been doing/learning.
The second paragraph should show
why you are good for the job.
The third paragraph should point out
why you want it. You should outline
your interest for the skills you are
going to learn if you get the job. The
impression left should be that you
could make a genuine contribution to
the company’s operations, while
simultaneously deriving satisfaction
from your work.
The last paragraph outlines your
availability for an interview, suggesting
in this way a concrete follow-up for
your application.
May I arrange an interview to further
discuss my qualifications? I am available
for
an interview at a mutually convenient time.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
After the fourth (last) paragraph leave
a blank space, same as you should do
in the beginning, after the salutation
(Dear..).
Write the proper closing (Yours..) and
your name.
Leave a blank space between the
closing and your name and to sign the
letter in that space. Yours sincerely,
Sally B. Doe
ENCLOSURE
Mention enclosure, or write curriculum
vitae under the heading enclosure at
the end of the letter.
Print the letter on A4 white paper same
as that on which your CV was printed,
and put both documents in an A4
envelope of matching color. (If you are
emailing it request a notification that yoour
documents have been received.)
Wait at least 2 weeks since the day you
sent your application or after the
deadline before writing again in the
case you did not get any answer.
COVER LETTER FORMAT
REFERENCE
1. www.earcmn.org
2. www.eastchance.com
3. http://www.clpgh.org/locations/pccenter/helpsheet
s/Office2007/Word/CoverLetterExercise2007.pdf
4. http://www.faculty.english.vt.edu/Collier/3764/assi
gn/exercises.htm
5. http://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Cover-Letter
6. http://www.slideshare.net/amymiddleton/prepare-
a-cover-letter-using-a-job-description
7. http://alumni.umich.edu/jobs/job-resource-
center/cover-letters
8. http://www.suite101.com/search.cfm?q=cover+lett
er&Submit.x=0&Submit.y=0&Submit=Find
9. http://www.freebusinessformsandtemplates.com/
10. http://tefltips.blogspot.com/2008/01/writing-
teaching-cover-letter.html
11. http://www.career.vt.edu/JobSearchGuide/CoverLe
tterSamples.html
12. http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverlettersamples
/a/coverformat.htm
13. http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverlettersamples
/a/cover-letter-layout.htm
14. http://www.collegegrad.com/coverletter/coverlette
rexample.shtml
15. http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverletters/Cover
_Letters.htm
16. http://www.careercc.com/resumpr.shtml#Two%20
Types%20of%20Cover%20Letters%20Specific%20
and%20General%20Examples
