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Career Skills 2

Cover Letter

Today’s lesson will focus on:Creating a Cover Letter that will earn you an interview.

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Class Agenda:

Cover LetterAt the end of today’s session, you should feel better answering the following questions:

1. Why is the Cover Letter so important?

2. How is the Cover Letter different from a resume?

3. How do I strongly convey myself through the Cover Letter?

This session’s topics will be:

• Cover Letter Overview

• Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter

• Components of a Cover Letter

• Titling Your Resume and Cover Letter

Deliverable: Cover Letter meeting Byte Back Checklist Standards

(Assignment 06-Cover Letter Standards Checklist)

Due: Monday

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Should I Send a Cover Letter?

YES!"I would rather have a determined, passionate individual with a strong work ethic on my team than an Ivy League degree without tenacity every single time,“

-Communications specialist and VP at Aesthetic Cogency

• Study: 53% of employers think a resume is not enough.

• Study: employer preference suggests 56% want applicants to attach a cover letter.

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Verdict

Send a Cover Letter always, unless specifically asked not to.

Since you don’t always know if it will be read, it is best to make an “adjustable” Cover Letter:

• Write base cover letter that address a specific company, then keep the sentence structure and change certain words:– Working for Byte Back would mean a lot to me because you

offered me so much as a student.

– Working for Google would mean a lot to me because you are regarded as the number one search engine in the world.

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Cover Letter Components

A Cover Letter Should:

– Highlight specific skills and accomplishments

that make you the best candidate

– Establish personal connections to the company

– Explain why the position it a good fit

– Justify any gaps or red flags on your resume

– Show off your proficient writing skills

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Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter

• A Resume provides a detailed list of objective facts. Such skills and accomplishments, and linking them to the requirements of the job.

• A Cover Letter shows how you are a strong personal fit into the company through discussing more personal aspects.

Resume

Main Focus on Experience (WHAT I have)

Technical

Give work accomplishments and duties

Tailor through keywords

Cover Letter

Main Focus on Fit (WHY I Work)

Conversational

Share goals and aspirations

Tailor through company information

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Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter:

The Perfect Pairing

The Resume and Cover Letter both need to complement one another, while being able

to act on their own.

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Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter:

How To Complement

Example One– Resume: Job Gap in resume

– Cover Letter: Elaborates on nature of Job Gap

Example Two– Resume: Lack of previous IT experience

– Cover Letter: Explains transition into IT and

transferable skills

Example Three– Cover Letter: “As noted in my resume…”

I love

your

hair!

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Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter:

Not a Carbon Copy

• Recruiters HATE reading a word for word

rehash of a resume in your cover letter

• To Differentiate, you can:

– Expand on certain job details to give a

clearer picture

– Repackage skills among different jobs into

one paragraph

– Give more personal motivations in cover

letter

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Differentiating Your Resume & Cover Letter:

Let’s PracticeWhere would you put the following information?

Why you want to enter the IT Field

• Cover Letter

Start Date and End Date of a Company

• Resume

Explanation of short tenure at a company

• Cover Letter

Your relation to company values

• Cover Letter

Personal Headshot

• Neither

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Research

• Look for:

– Core Values

– Mission

– Accomplishments

• You can find these in:

– Job Postings

– Company Websites

– Internet Search Results

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Format• 0.5-1 pages, if it’s over a page it’s immediately seen as too long.

• For consistency:– Use same header as your resume

– Use same font and font size of resume

Resume Cover Letter

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FormatIntroduction Ending

Date

Employee, Job TitleCompanyAddressCity, State Zip Code

Dear Mr/Ms. xyz

Sincerely,(X)(X)(X)Bock Szymkowicz

Bottom of Page:Top of Page:

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How To Address

In terms of how to address the Cover Letter to those reading it, from below is a ranking of what works to what doesn’t.

1. Dear Mr. XYZ:/Dear Ms. XYZ: (Best)– Doing specific research to find out who this letter will be going

to shoes you are serious about the job and makes the reader feel like they are being spoken directly to.

2. Dear Hiring Manager:– This is okay, but slightly unspecific as not everyone will have

the title “Hiring Manager.” Only use this if you cannot find the name of the person.

3. To Whom It May Concern/Dear ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’ (Worst)– To unspecific and overused. Gives impression of lack of effort.

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Introduction

• Grab attention right away

• I am applying for the Executive Assistant

Position with Byte Back.

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Strong Openers (IT)

Still reference the company and position, but relate them to your:

Skills

• Because of x and y, I hope to support your company.

• A role that combines my 10+ years of customer service and passion for helping others is my ideal, and I am confident I can contribute these skills to benefit Byte Back as your IT Assistant

Accomplishments

• I’ve accomplished this, and hope to accomplish similar things at your company

• My knack for communicating with people has allowed me to accomplish tasks such as developing 25 vendors annually, and I 1d love to bring this skill to the IT Assistant position at Byte Back to serve your customers.

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First Paragraph: Example (IT)

1. Strong Opener

– Mention Customer Service experience and technological savvy.

2. Why are you moving into the IT field?

– Want more of a challenge and pursue passion of technology.

3. What have you done to prepare yourself for the IT field?

– Take ITF class.

4. Why are you interested in an entry level IT role in particular?

– Perfect way to apply skills and enter into dream career.

5. Why are you interested in this company in particular?

– Appreciate company’s core values of service and diversity.

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First Paragraph: Putting It Together (IT)

My 2+ years of customer service experience and familiarity with computers make me perfect fit for Byte Back’s IT Assistant. My decision to move from retail to IT was because in the IT field I could combine my need for a challenge with my deep passion for technology. This is why I pursued IT Fundamentals Certification, where I learned how to set up workstations and networks. To apply these skills as your IT Technician would be the perfect application of my training. Like Byte Back, I strongly value service and diversity. I hope to contribute to Byte Back’s mission of bridging the digital divide.

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Tailoring to Company

• My 2+ years of customer service experience and ability

to work in teams to meet company goals make me

perfect fit for Byte Back’s Administrative Assistant

position – My 2+ years of customer service experience ability to work in teams to

meet company goals make me perfect fit for Meridian’s Help Desk

Associate position.

• Like Byte Back, I strongly value service and

diversity.

– Like Meridian, I strongly value integrity and innovation.

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Second Paragraph

Purpose: Elaborate on main

skills/accomplishments that would make the

company want to hire you.

1. Relate it to position requirements

2. Give concrete examples

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Second Paragraph: Example Bullets (IT)• IT Knowledge: I’ve recently been certified in IT Fundamentals and A+

where I’ve completed tasks such as setting up networks. My current plan is

to pursue further certification in Network+ and Security+.

• Proactive: I strive to exceed expectations, as demonstrated by my 5 awards

of Employee of the Month for WMATA, and my current pursuit of MOS

Excel and A+ certifications through Byte Back.

• Attention to detail: Maintained accurate store inventory of 166 mattresses

and managed 5 employees schedules and payrolls.

• 4+ Years’ Customer Service Skills: All of my positions have had me work

with a wide diversity of customers. At each I exceled, receiving recognition

with 6 customer service awards and positive customer feedback.

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Third Paragraph

Purpose: Give thanks and wrap up letter concisely.

1. Say Thank You

2. Suggest Next Steps

– Too Passive: “Please feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience.”

– Too Aggressive: “If I don’t hear from you in a week, I will call you.”

– Just right: “I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you to further discuss how

my qualifications will be beneficial to Byte Back’s success.”

3. Add any additional requests from the job description

– Some job descriptions ask you to put salary requirements in your Cover Letter

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Class Review:

Cover Letter How do you feel about answering the following

questions?

1. Why is the Cover Letter so important?

2. How is the Cover Letter different from a resume?

3. How do I strongly convey myself through the Cover Letter?

Please turn in your resume and cover letter, meeting all checklist standards, by Monday before

class starts