Cover letter to the resume: what is it and how to make it?

Today, a job application is a rather lengthy and time-consuming process. You will need to draw up a large number of documents, go through an interview (and sometimes several), internship, training, perform a test task, etc. In connection with such a strict selection, not all candidates (this applies even to highly qualified experienced specialists) can eventually get a job.

One of the innovations in employment is a cover letter. The writing of such a document raises a large number of questions and doubts among applicants (both among young specialists and experienced workers). What is a cover letter and how to draw it up correctly? What sections should be included in the structure of the document and what errors should be avoided? You will find answers to these and some other questions in our material.

Quite often, when applying for a job, the employer asks applicants for the position to provide not only their resume, but also a cover letter to it. Such a request can be bewildering both for beginners and experienced professionals who, when they joined the company, have never encountered such accompanying documents and do not know how they look. In our article we will try to clarify all the points that interest you.

You should start by asking what a cover letter is. At its core this document allows you to reveal yourself as a candidate for a position more fully, move away from the strict structure of the resume, tell the employer why your candidacy is most suitable, tell about your advantages compared to other applicants, describe your education and work experience in more detail.

Despite the fact that the cover letter has a flexible structure, do not forget that it is an official document, so it must be drawn up and drawn up in accordance with all the rules. In addition, one should take into account the fact that many employers, trying to check the attentiveness of the applicant, even in the announcement indicate all the requirements that are put forward to the letter (for example, a specific structure or even a code word must be used).

It is also important that many employers begin familiarizing themselves with the job seeker’s candidacy not by examining the resume, but by analyzing the cover letter. That is why in no case should you be dismissive of compiling a document and assume that a competently drawn up professional resume will be enough - there may be a situation where the employer will form the first impression of you as a future employee of the company on the basis of a cover letter.

Any cover letter that comes with the resume must be prepared in accordance with all the rules and taking into account all the requirements of the employer. Consider the structure of this document and understand what usually needs to be written in each of the sections.

Start your cover letter with a greeting. Despite the existence of such a rule, many applicants ignore it. Ultimately, this can be a big disadvantage of your cover letter compared to documents that were submitted by other applicants. If you do not know the name and patronymic of the person who will read your letter, then you can write a neutral “hello”, “welcome” or “good afternoon”. However, doing so is advisable only in the most extreme cases.

It is best not to be too lazy and conduct a study of the company in which you want to find a job, and to figure out exactly who will read your letter. This may be the chief and ordinary employee of the personnel department, the head of the enterprise, etc. If necessary, you can also call the organization and clarify this issue (however, this should be done delicately and with a sense of tact).

After you find out the personal data of the person who will read your cover letter, you can formulate your greeting word more personalized. For example, you can write "Hello, dear Ivan Ivanovich."

The main part of the cover letter is the most important block of this document. With its help, the employer will find out the information he is interested in about you, and you, in turn, can describe yourself from the best side.

In the business world, there is no strict structure for building this block. However, one way or another, but in this part you should answer a few basic questions.

• The first thing you need to note is where you found out about a particular job. In this regard, one must be extremely frank and honest. For example, you can write that you read the information on the city bulletin board or on the website of the local employment center. Do not hesitate to tell the truth even if friends or relatives who already work at the company told you about the vacancy.The employer will appreciate this sincerity. At the same time, one should not forget that the cover letter is a business document, so adhere to the appropriate writing style.
• Next you need to write what position you are applying for. It is important to correctly indicate its name (while focusing on the job description). Here you can describe what functions you are ready and are able to perform as part of your job responsibilities.
• When writing a cover letter, in no case should you forget about the motivation part. In it you should write about what attracted you to this particular vacancy and this particular company. In this regard, it is important to carry out thorough preparatory work - to analyze information about the company (you can use the official website of the company, as well as any other sources on the Internet). It is important that you know about the specific specialization of the enterprise, the history of its formation, the internal structure and leadership. So, if you are a doctor and want to get a job in a prestigious and modern clinic, then you can indicate that you are interested in the research work carried out by the organization.
• In a cover letter, it is important to talk about why your candidacy is the best suited for this position. In this regard, you can describe a similar work experience (for example, you have already worked as a general practitioner for 10 years in another clinic). It is also important to indicate those valuable professional skills that will help you in your work (for example, knowledge of the methodology for conducting laboratory research or the ability to work in complex specialized computer programs). In this case, for the most part, you should focus on those skills that will help you stand out from the general mass of applicants.
• Additional information can be provided at the end of the block. (for example, write about why you decided to become a doctor or talk about additional advanced training courses that you managed to take). You can also clarify the controversial points of your resume. For example, talk about why you left your previous job.

The final part of your cover letter is quite important, because it can fix or completely destroy the employer's opinion about you as a professional that has developed with the employer after a detailed study of the main part of your accompanying document.

In the final part It is important to be attentive and polite, to show respect. So, often applicants thank the employer for their attention. In addition, a good idea to complete a business document is to offer a personal meeting that will encourage the employer to invite you for a personal interview. You can write that you are ready to answer your questions in person. Thus, you will make it clear to the employer that you are very interested in getting a position.

Farewell, like greeting, is based on the principle of personalization. Whenever possible again mention the name and patronymic of the employee who read the letter. You can also wish a good day.

End your cover letter by indicating your contact details. Wherein you should not be afraid of the fact that such information is already present in the summary. First of all, indicating personal contact information at the end of any business document is simply a rule of good form and business ethical communication.Secondly, your cover letter (provided that you followed all our recommendations) is very likely to make a good impression on the employer, he may want to contact you immediately or write your phone number on a separate list, which includes all the candidates, who will be invited for further interviews.

In this way, Indication of contact information (phone number, email, instant messengers) will greatly simplify the work of the personnel department and save their time. Accordingly, you will prove once again that you are a professional and experienced employee who will become a valuable addition to the company's team.

Remember that in a cover letter, unlike a resume, all blocks should flow smoothly into each other. You should not write their title and approach only formally to the preparation of the document.

You can correctly compose the cover letter necessary to respond to a vacancy without the experience of writing such documents. It is important to adhere to some standard rules in order to make a good impression on the employer.

• Brevity. The cover letter should be short and concise: it is desirable that its volume does not exceed 1 page. The thing is that in the process of finding a suitable candidate for the position, the employer receives a huge number of documents from a large number of applicants. Therefore, if you make a simple but interesting letter, then your candidacy will be considered.
• Meaningful content. You should not write a non-standard or original cover letter. Such a document should fulfill one specific goal - to help the employer assess the level of your professionalism and your competencies.
• Writing style. Remember that the cover letter is an official document, so the most successful choice of writing style is official business. It is not necessary to use artistic techniques of the Russian language (for example, comparisons, metaphors, epithets, etc.), and the use of colloquial words and phrases is also prohibited. When writing a document, contact the reader at "you."
• Personalization In order for you to be hired, you must send the employer the most personalized and individualized cover letter. Remember that for each company you will have to write a separate document, since in the main part of the letter you should talk about what exactly you were attracted to by a particular position and a specific company, and for this you need to do a lot of preparatory work.
• Uniqueness. Do not use cover letter templates found on the Internet. You can focus on well-designed and successful examples, but in no case do not copy them and do not rewrite them completely.
• Grammatical correctness. When sending a letter, re-read it several times, ask your relatives or friends to do this, use special services. One way or another, but you must be absolutely sure that any typos are completely absent in your letter, all punctuation marks are correctly set and all words are correctly spelled. Annoying grammatical errors will spoil the impression of you, even if you are a highly qualified specialist and fully comply with all other requirements.
• Decor. Make sure your letter is beautifully designed. To do this, use a single font and alignment.
• Recommendations You can attach the positive recommendations of employers from previous jobs to your cover letter. Thanks to them, the new leader will be able to make sure that you are a specialist whom you can trust.

When composing a cover letter It is important to avoid a number of common mistakes.

• Lack of specificity. This means that when writing a cover letter, you should not use such general phrases as “I am a qualified specialist” or “I have extensive experience”. Each phrase should be confirmed with specific data.
• Retelling a resume. A cover letter is a separate document that gives you the opportunity to reveal yourself more fully as a professional and personality. When writing it, you should not just copy the information that you have already indicated in the resume.
• Personal information. In the letter, do not retell the details of your biography. It is important to indicate only information that is directly related to the case.

Regardless of the specific specialty, you may be asked to provide a cover letter when applying for a job. Therefore, knowledge of the rules for writing it will be useful to everyone: make-up artist, clerk, flight attendant, bank employee, auditor, personal assistant, etc.

Consider a few examples of writing a cover letter. You can focus on them when compiling a personal document.