Employment Correspondence

There are two types of correspondence that you

will create and use during your employment search:

Cover Letters and Thank You Letters

Cover Letters

When you see an ad for a job and they request that you send a copy of your resume, you don’t just send your resume. You need to create a Cover Letter to send with the resume.

The purpose of a Cover Letter is to:

Gives the employer a brief personalized introduction of yourself
If applicable, mention the person who recommended you
Express why you are interested in working there
Highlight parts of your resume that you feel make you a good candidate for the position
Request an interview

Tips for a Great Cover Letter:

1. You should always send a cover letter with a resume. Never just send a resume. Also, do NOT staple your documents together.

2. When writing your cover letter you want to emphasize all of your soft skills. You are already attaching your resume which lists your technical skills and you don't want to repeat yourself.

3. Letters addressed to a specific person have a much better chance of being read so make sure you have a person’s name. If you don’t have a name, call the company to see who you should address it to. Alternately, you can put the person’s title if you don’t have a name.

4. Your cover letter is a great way to sell yourself on paper. It should show that you are confident about your skills and enthusiastic about the position without being cocky. Try to "humble-brag" about yourself.

5. It is good to come up with your own cover letter template. This way you do not have to type the whole letter every time, you just have to change the parts that make it personal to each company.

6. You must be careful to proofread and edit each cover letter before you send it. Mistakes with spelling and punctuation will leave a poor first impression.

7. If you are submitting your resume electronically, you can copy and paste your cover letter text into the email that your resume will be attached to, or you can submit your cover letter and resume as PDF documents, which can be read by all computers.

8. If you are copying and pasting your cover letter into an email, your heading - your address, phone, email) should be below your signature.

9. When your letter is printed and signed, put it on top of your resume - do not staple it - and fold both documents together in thirds and then put it in the envelope.

Cover Letter Template

Thank You Letters

Writing a thank you letter or thank you email after an employment interview is a must. In fact, some employers think less of those interviewees who fail to follow-up promptly.

The purpose of a Thank You Letter is to:

Thank the interviewer for taking their time to interview you
Show your great manners and etiquette
Reiterate your interest in the position and in the organization.
Gives you a chance to reconnect with an interviewer and leave a positive impression
Helps you stand out from the crowd
Mention anything important that you forgot to talk about during the interview

Tips for a Great Thank You Letter:

1. Writing a thank you letter is a reflection of your good manners. This is a soft skill that employers value a great deal, especially if you are working in customer service.

2. You may either send a paper letter or an email - whichever is standard in your industry is fine. If the company does most of its contact with you through email, then you should send your thank you letter through email. If you have enough time, some industries prefer hand-written thank you notes.

3. You should write and send your thank you letter within 24 hours of the interview while the image of you and the interview are fresh in the interviewer’s head. If you are mailing it, get it out in the next day's mail. You want the employer to receive it before they make a decision about who they are hiring - it could mean the difference between getting the job or not.

4. If you interviewed with several people, you should send each person a thank you note/letter and be sure to spell their names properly. If you have a second interview with the same person, you should still send them another thank you letter/note for the second interview.

5. You can use the thank you letter as an opportunity to mention anything else you forgot to mention during the interview. This is helpful because sometimes you are very nervous and forget what you did and didn’t say. It is a nice “second chance”.

6. You don’t need to write a brand new letter each time, use a template and tailor it for each thank you letter that you write. If you need help with wording, the internet has many other samples that you can use to create your own. But really, it should be succinct - short and to the point.

7. Always have someone proofread your letter. Poor spelling and grammar will make the employer think less of your qualifications.

Thank You Letter Template