According to the Federal Citizen Information Center:
- Every cover letter should fit on one page.
- Send your letter to a specific person rather than to an office whenever possible.
- The first few sentences tell which job you are applying for.
- Briefly explain your qualifications without simply repeating your resume. More of their advice on writing cover letters is linked to the right.
And for more detailed recommendations, see this article published by Resume Edge, an online consulting company that optimizes resumes and cover letters for job seekers: how to write a cover letter. Resume Edge also has advice on choosing the paper and letterhead for your resume and cover letter, and how to mail them. Finally, you might want to check out the sample cover letters on the links below.
Additional advice from a former hiring manager:
- The purpose of a resume cover letter is to encourage the recipient to look at your resume. That is all, so be concise and don't repeat your whole background. Your background and history over and above what is on the resume is appropriate for the interview.
- The cover letter should be targeted to having the prospective employer review you resume; your resume should have the information that convinces the prospective employer that they should contact you for an interview.
- Remember, especially in today's job market, a personnel manager may get 50 or more resumes for one job opening. I know, this has happened to me. If the cover letter is too long, contains inappropriate information, or even too much effusive Wording, the manager will readily set it aside for the next one in the pile rather than plow through a mess of Words.
- As a hiring manager, the ones that I most readily slid to the bottom of the pile were those that were so extremely generalized and filled with 'buzz Words' that you can tell that they were done by a resume service of pulled directly from the internet, often relating information that had nothing to do with the specific opening for which they were applying. So, even if you're using a service or an internet sample, be sure to change the terminology into Words that you would actually say and remove what is not to specific to the opening.
