How to Write a Cover Letter

You've discovered a cool job somehow--online, in an advertisement, through a friend, and now you have your application or resume ready to go.


But, you need to send a cover letter with it. How does that work?


It's just a short letter that will be on top of your other required papers, so it's like a 'cover.' Hence the name 'cover letter.' It is sort of a formality in which you refer to what they'll be seeing in your resume and/or application. You are introducing yourself to the people who will decide who to interview, and ultimately will make the hiring decision.


For the basics of typing any business like letter, see Triogenius of March 8: How to Write a Letter.


The content of a cover letter should be fairly brief, so choose your words carefully. It may make a difference in whether they want to interview you.

It's important to follow the directions as given for submitting your application. Address it as they ask, whether to a specific person or department. If you are sending it to department (often to Human Resources), you can still begin your letter with 'Greetings' or 'Dear Sir or Madame.' It is also acceptable to have no greeting and just begin the body of the letter. You should, however, always date the letter. If they have asked you to FAX your paperwork, then FAX it. Local stores, the library, and particularly office stores will often FAX something for you for a small fee (under $2.00). If they want you to send it via e-mail, do that. Ask for help if you're unsure how that works.
But if you are writing a regular letter on paper, here's what it may look like:




January 33, 1923






Mr. David Hireme
Gravytrain Flying Corp.
90273 Progress Lane
St Paul, MN 55112




Mr. Hireme,


I am enclosing my resume and application for the position of Chief Kitemaker with Gravytrain Flying.


As you will see, I have 30 years of experience in kitemaking. I excel particularly in reading kite blueprints and drawing designs for the kite wings. I previously worked as a kite-flyer as well, so am well-versed in all things kite.


My qualifications make me an excellent candidate for this position. I look forward to scheduling an interview so that we can discuss further details.


Please contact me at: phone 345 244 4222 or you may email me at fredguppiter@gmail.com.


Thank you for considering me for this interesting position.


Sincerely,






Fred Guppiter, Kitemaker Extraordinaire
345 244 4222

The letter should be printed on a clean sheet of printer paper. You may also consider printing your own letterhead, to make your name stand out when you send your cover letter; here is one source:
https://bizcardcreator.com/free_letterhead_creator.htm


Personal letterhead just gives your letter a little more polish and makes your letter stand out from those simply printed on plain white paper. Your letterhead might look something like this:

Or like this:

After a review and using spell-check, try printing it first on ordinary paper to see what it looks like. Are the words centered on the page? If not, go into the document and add some spaces. Is the wording 'efficient' and to the point? It should be polished-looking, business-like, and not 'cute.' You can let your personality shine at the interview and when you actually get hired. For now, you want to put your best foot forward.

Fold the letter and any other papers properly, put them in a business envelope, and address the envelope to the person noted in the advertisement. If there was none, type "Human Resources" or "Hiring Committee" before the company address. You could also write "Attention: Human Resources" to the left of the address.

If there are more than three or four sheets of paper, you might need to add more postage. If in doubt, take it to the Post Office to have it weighed or simply add another stamp before you toss it in the mail box. Make sure you are available when they call to invite you to interview with them.

Good Luck!!!

How To Write A Scholarship Application Letter

In case you were paying no attention in English or Writing when this was covered, here's your chance to learn how to write a letter.

 

At the time, you probably thought, "When am I ever going to have to write someone a letter?" And then scholarships, college applications, and job applications came along and said, "Now. Now is when you need to write a letter."

You'll be writing this on a nice, clean, plain sheet of paper (aka 'typing paper' or 'computer paper'.) Be very careful that it stays clean, whether you are writing longhand or typing it on the computer. It should have no wrinkles or folds except when you fold it for the envelope.

 

In this case, we're going to assume that you're composing your letter on the computer in Word. Click on Word to begin a Word Document. There is an example of a finished letter below.



In Word, first go up to the top and choose 'design-paragraph space-no paragraph space.' This will make your writing single-spaced (no white between lines).


Hit Enter six times to move the beginning down from the top edge of the paper.


Type your name, enter. Your street, enter. Your city, enter. Like this:
James Jameson
1400 Wishful Way
Lostinspace, WA 22334 (enter twice after this)

 

Type the date. It looks like this:


January 24, 2017. Write out the month, and be sure to use a comma.

 

Hit 'Enter' two times.

 

Then type in the name and address of the person you're sending it to. If you don't have a name, do this:

 

Flaming Awesome Scholarships
24102 Dairyland Ave. (you can spell out the kind of street or abbreviate, either is OK)
Lackdoodle, NJ 13243 (be sure the two-letter abbreviation is correct).

 

Hit enter four times.

 

Then, if you do not have a specific person's name, use 'Dear Sirs.' If you do have a name, you can write 'Dear Ms. Hulahoop' or simply 'Ms. Limabean Hulahoop.'

Hit enter two times.

 

Then begin writing the body of your letter. Be sure you don't use:

• Run-on sentences
• Sentence fragments
• Statements like: 'Please please PLEASE give me this scholarship.'
• Expressions such as 'Haha,' or 'I wish!' or 'like I care.' This situation needs to be pretty formal and/or businesslike. It's not the same as writing a note to a friend of yours.
• Remember they have lots of other applicants to sift through. Be sure you let them know how you stand out, without being too boastful.
• This isn't texting: Spelling definitely matters, as does punctuation. Let them know how smart you are, starting with your letter and having your application filled out correctly.

Your first paragraph can say something like this: "I am enclosing my application and paperwork as required for the Flaming Awesome scholarship." (now hit space twice)


Your second paragraph can lightly go over why you think you should receive the scholarship: "I am a strong student, with a 3.2 GPA. I also participate in Track, Poet's Society, and volunteer at Habitat for Humanity. I work 20 hours a week, but my grades are my priority. If I am selected for this scholarship, it would be very helpful in letting me cut back on the hours I work so I can concentrate more fully on my schoolwork." Don't be overly wordy, but say what you need to say.
Hit enter twice.



The third paragraph should thank them for the opportunity to apply and indicate "I hope to hear from you soon. Please call me if you should have any questions for me." *And Answer the phone if they do call!!

Hit Enter  two times, then type a closing 'greeting,' such as Sincerely, which seems the most appropriate. Then hit Enter four times and type your name with your address and any other contact information underneath:


Sincerely,

 

Mary Foglebringer
1234 Hopeful Way
Ames, IA  35243
Phone: 535-569-8877

• The reason you left four spaces above your typed name, is so that you have space to sign it. Sign your name neatly with a black ink pen. Do not use balloons or hearts to dot your 'i' or any kind of flourishes you might do otherwise.
• Make sure your ink cartridge is full enough for your letter to print neatly. It will look less than formal and will be hard to read if it is too faint because of lack of ink.
• Take note of any smudges you might have gotten on the letter, possibly from your printer. If there are marks on the page, print it over.
• Below is a letter using the proper way to address it, and the spacing:

 

• Now that your letter is done, look at it as a whole. If the body of the letter is up too high, feel free to go in and add some 'enters' to move it down and center it on the page. If it is too long, go back and see if you can edit out some of your words. Did you repeat yourself? Did you put in something that is covered in your application, or that doesn't really matter? Use spell check to catch any spelling errors. Go to Review at the top of the document, and choose spell check, in the left corner. It will highlight possible mistakes and the corrections. After you do it, do it again.

Have someone look over your letter and be open to his or her ideas to make it look and sound better.

 

• Once your letter is ready to go, fold it in thirds so it will fit in a business envelope. Here is how:
• http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=video%20clip%20how%20to%20fold%20a%20letter&FORM=BVLH1

The envelope: You can print your envelope on  your computer. Follow the directions for how to put it into your printer: look at where you insert paper, there will be a picture of how to insert an envelope.


In Word, go up to the top where you will see 'Mailings" and then 'Envelopes.' Click on that and follow along. Be sure you choose the 'right' envelope. A standard business envelope measures 4-1/8" x 9-3/8"

• You can print your return address, which goes in the upper left corner, or you can use a return address label. 
• The envelope should look like this-notice where the address goes as well as the stamp:

If you are writing out the envelope, write clearly and neatly. The Post Office may not deliver it if their carriers or their scanners cannot read the address. Re-check to be sure the address is correct.

• If you'd like a video about typing up a letter, see this:

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=how+to+type+a+letter+in+word&&view=detail&mid=988A18BBF9D33349AB94988A18BBF9D33349AB94&rvsmid=BD06A5C5453E1B18162EBD06A5C5453E1B18162E&FORM=VDFSRV&fsscr=0

 

• FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS given by the scholarship people, if that's whom you are writing to. If it says to write anything else on the envelope, do that. Such as, "To the Attention of Bob Smith, Fabulous Scholarship" then be sure you do that. Address the envelope exactly as you have the letter that's going inside the envelope.
• They may ask that your papers are NOT folded. If so, then get an appropriate sized envelope, available at the post office, a local store such as Target, or an office supply store. Make address labels or write very neatly the to and from addresses on the envelope.
• IMPORTANT: Make sure you have added enough postage. Some applications are multiple pages, and when you add your letter and the weight of the envelope, it might need more than one stamp. If you are at all unsure, take it with you to the post office and have them weigh it. You don't want to miss a deadline just because you didn't add another stamp or two.

Good luck on landing that scholarship!!!