Free Resume Cover Letter Samples
How to write powerful cover letters
for resume enhancement.
What are the secrets of our free resume cover letter samples?
Before examining the resume cover letter examples below, you need to be sure you understand the purpose of the letter.
So, what is a cover letter anyway?
It is the introduction segment of your application. It's basically a letter introducing yourself to the employer and showing yourself to be a good fit with their requirements.
What should it say?
The biggest mistake people make when writing cover letters for resume use is to simply restate all the highlights of their resume.
This is not the purpose of this letter.
(In the resume articles on this site, we warn that you should never copy specific details from an ad or job description onto your resume.)
However, the advice is very different for resume cover letters.
The cover letter is the place to restate details from an ad or job description.
This is the place to specifically point out similarities between yourself and the job posting.
In fact, the more references you can make to their job description, the more "hits" your cover letter will get in the screening process, and that will give it a higher ranking on the interview list.
Check out this sample for a good example of how to draw from the job posting and highlight your compatibilities (click on the image for a larger version).
In this sample, the list of items under "your requirements" was taken straight out of the job posting. The candidate then created a second column, clearly indicating how his background answers the employer's specific needs.
Not all resume cover letters will take this form.
It's impossible because you won't always have a detailed job posting which lists specific requirements the employer is looking for. But when you do, take full advantage of the opportunity to point out your compatibilities.
This will do several very positive things:
- It demonstrates that you have carefully read and respect the employer's requirements.
- It demonstrates a keen self-awareness, an ability to identify the strengths you have that will best benefit the employer.
- You are doing a lot of the legwork for him, by giving him exactly what he is looking for upfront, rather than making him look for compatibilities.
When you don't have the benefit of a detailed job posting to work from.
Some job postings are very vague, with little to draw from in the way of identifying employer requirements.
This is often done deliberately to attract only candidates who are already familiar with the industry or job title. It's also a technique to weed out those who lack the initiative to do their research and get informed.
You will then need to use your common sense and background knowledge to highlight yourself to the employer.
If it's an industry that is unfamiliar to you, do some research.
Get informed.
Then you can take it upon yourself to highlight skills that you believe will resonate with the employer.
The second of our resume cover letter samples does this well.
Note the phrasing. The candidate states "Here is a list of my qualifications as they relate to my perception of your requirements."
"...my perception".
This is great. It explains everything. He did not have a detailed job posting, so he took initiative to understand the requirements, and he built his case from there.
NOTE: Both of the resume cover letter samples above succeeded because they were each customized to a particular job opening.
Don't miss the importance of this point!
Never, ever, send out resume cover letters that are generic and non-specific. Instead, write specific cover letters for your resume that tie yourself and your abilities to the job opening(s) you are targeting.
This will make you stand out from the crowd as the "best fit" for the job.
Networking letters are a whole different beast.
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