Cover Letters That Kill

Hello my lovelies,

I'm back at it again, when am I ever going to get my uploading dates right?!

I took a long sabbatical because stuff in my private life blew up so I took time off to deal with it and now that I have I wanted to let you all know that I will no longer be posting three times a week. I found it challenging all the time, and wasn't getting out great quality content that I wanted for my online space, I have now decided to upload twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Keep up to date with what I post by following me on the various social medias -> links in the 'follow me' panel!

I have great news too and that is.. *drum roll please* I got an internship!
I was so happy that I finally landed an internship in Central London, and this comes with a handful of great blog posts coming your way about how I applied to the way I dress for work to new dining hotspots!

So what I thought was important that I know a lot of my friends don't really do is write up cover letters that go with your job application and CV. It is important to write a cover letter because not everything can be expressed with a CV or a general application, a cover letter goes more in-depth about the specific job you are applying for and the experiences that you have had and how they link together.

Golden Rules for Writing a Cover Letter

1. A cover letter should accompany your CV unless otherwise stated.
2. Never repeat your resume - Your cover letter should show personality and interest for the field you want to work in. Mention your opinion about the field and your perspective on how it might change. 
3. Less is more - I would aim for a cover letter that is about half a page with three to four paragraphs. Remember the interviewer has to read many CVs, job applications and cover pages, you need to make yours stand out from the crowd.
4. Address - If you don't know who to address it to, you can go for the generic 'To Whom It May Concern' or address it to nobody and get stuck right into the paragraph.
5. PDFs - Not all computers are able to read .docs or .pages files, and converting them is a nightmare and the hiring manager is just not going to bother opening or trying to deal with it at all and move to the next applicant. But, you can always send a PDF and anybody can open it without the result of formatting errors and can't be easily tampered with.
6. Proof read your CV and covering letter using computer spell check, but also by printing out a quick draft and reading it, a hard copy always looks different from when reading from a screen.
7. Make your cover letter individual to each application you make and make sure you send the right one to the right company or organisation.
8. Use your own words, avoid jargon and clichés.
9. If you are sending your cover letter electronically, then add it to the body of the email instead of as an attachment to avoid spam filters and security checks that lead your email to junk.
10. You don't have to disclose anything that is not legally required, such as a disability, but when asked don't say that you don't have one even though you do as you could potentially lose the job if you were found out to be lying.
11. Don't share any unnecessary personal details, they don't need to know your life story.

Example of a Cover Letter

Here is an example of a cover letter I wrote for a job application to a charity, please bear in mind that I have removed details and replaced them with 'XXX' which is where you will need to fill in the specific details:

Dear XXX,

I am writing to apply for the position of XXX as advertised on XXX.

I am studying XXX, I am in my third year at XXX University. I am looking to do a 6-month placement between February and August of next year as a part of an accredited placement module, a part of my thin sandwich placement year. I am fairly flexible willing to do full-time or part-time. I was wondering if there is any opportunity for myself to join your team, or if there are other opportunities that you would think is more suited to my experience?

I have experience in XXX from my previous 6-month placement at XXX. At XXX, I was a part of the XXX team handling XXX.

I have been involved with numerous charities in the past, having just completed my Duke of Edinburgh Diamond Award, also having completed the DofE Silver Award. Being a fundraiser for Cancer Research and taken part in their annual 5k run, in addition to raising money for XXX Universities' R.A.G (Raise and Give) charity last year.

I have become interested in your organisation and the work you do for small communities and the deep impact you leave. I think I would be a great candidate for the opportunity to be an intern at your company, I have six years background of all aspects of media and currently pursuing a degree in it as well.

I also have experience within XXX as I work as a part-time XXX for XXX constantly XXX. I am ambitious and looking forward to every task given to me and as always seeking to learn and grow. I would relish the opportunity to meet you and discuss my CV in further detail.

I appreciate the time taken to look at my email and CV that is attached.

Kind Regards,
XXX

I hope this helps you in writing your cover letter and good luck to you if you're applying for internships or any other type of job/career. Next weeks post we will be looking at CVs, keep tuned!

A x