Job-Hunting Tools:

  Search for Jobs
  Corporate Job Sites
  Order a New Resume


  Career Tools:

  Content Index
  Career Resources
  Career Tutorials
  Job-Search Samples
  College Planning
  Job/Career Bookstore
  Search this Site


  Career Categories:

  Career Networking
  Personal Branding
  Resumes and CVs
  Job Interviewing
  Salary Negotiation

 

Dynamic Cover Letters
Job-Search Cover Letter Tutorial


 

Page 39 of the Cover Letter Tutorial: More Examples

 

Tailoring Your Cover Letter to a Job Ad: More Free Job-Search Examples

 

The ad:

 

    Administrative Assistant
    For a young, aggressive data processing company. The individual should be extremely organized, articulate, multi-tasking with office management potential. Must be able to communicate effectively and possess excellent verbal and written skills. Must have PC experience with MS Windows, Word, Excel, and Money, technical writing experience helpful. Our company provides a complete benefit package and excellent growth potential. Send resumes to: Personnel: c/o TRC: 824 Benguiat Drive, Suite 100, East Longmeadow, MA 10572 or fax 413/555-2282.

 

Now, note how the respondent picks up on the language of the ad and makes herself sound extremely well qualified:

 

    A junior at Amherst College, I am majoring in investment finance. My course load has also included several semesters of study in information technologies so that I might stay abreast of the newest developments in the computer industry. As your ad requests, I have PC experience with MS Windows, Word, and EXCEL. I am organized, efficient and possess solid communications skills.

     

     

    Your ad speaks of an excellent potential for growth in the position I am applying for. If I were writing an ad to you, it would say the same. By allowing me to join your team, I am confident that our company would grow and prosper, reaching even higher realms of success.

     

    I will call your offices soon to arrange an interview appointment.

 

More examples of effective tailoring to the job posting/want ad:

 

    Dear Mr. Royce:

     

    Your ad in the Ferry County View for an accounts receivable assistant position leads me to believe you seek a person with my ability to handle multiple tasks, including receipting rent payments, collecting various tenants' reporting requirements and assisting with clerical chores. Through my education and experience in accounting and the use of various information systems software packages, I can contribute significantly to Real Estate Investment Company.

     

    I will receive a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting with an information technology minor from Whitworth University in May. I am well-accustomed to multi-tasking, having worked for Safeway as a back office cashier balancing receipts at the end of the night. I also collected payments of bounced checks. As student director of the cafeteria for Whitworth, I delegated work for my student managers and front-line workers, as well as handling payroll for each month.

     

     

    Dear Ms. Hummelman:

     

    My experience and background with an international culture coincides remarkably well with the details of the communication skills and customer service position that you recently advertised in HospitalityJobs.com. Having come from Costa Rica, a tourist-oriented and service-dedicated country, I am well versed in customer service.

     

    I am prepared to meet your customers' needs. I am fluently bilingual in English and Spanish, and I have communicated effectively while working at many bilingual restaurants and at processing plants in Costa Rica and Alaska.

 

The ad this student responded to asked for a manager that could thrive in a fast-paced atmosphere and possessed good communication, teamwork and interpersonal skills:

 

    Dear Mr. Jarvis:

     

    I couldn't agree with you more! A traffic/planning manager must thrive on a fast-paced atmosphere. I personally love the fast-paced lifestyle. In fact, for the past two years I have maintained a 3.4 GPA while keeping actively involved in many campus activities and holding a part-time job. Obviously, I can successfully manage a fast-paced working environment. I am the perfect selection for the traffic/planning manager position.

     

    Like me, every person that applies for this position will meet the technical and distribution experience qualifications that this position demands. However, I also possess all of the intangible qualifications that you mention in your ad.

     

    The courses that I have taken have helped me to develop exceptional oral and written communication skills. As well as having these courses under my belt, I also have the advantage of being from the Charlottesville area so I will be able to identify with the contiguity of your customers, so I can establish effective communication links with them.

     

    I have developed excellent team-working skills through my work with various charities and my executive roles in many campus organizations. My leadership in these diverse groups demonstrates my passion for working with and learning from people and that I am an effective team player.

 


 

If you have not done so already, see additional samples of tailoring to job ads in the two previous sample cover letter tailored to a job posting #1 and sample cover letter tailored to a job posting #2.

 

 

Lost? Check out the Map to the Cover Letter Tutorial... or go to the home page of the Cover Letter Tutorial for Developing Stunningly Effective Job-Search Cover Letters.

 

 

Have you checked out the rest of the great free career and job-related tutorials offered on Quintessential Careers?

 

Maximize your career and job-search knowledge and skills! Take advantage of The Quintessential Careers Content Index, which enables site visitors to locate articles, tutorials, quizzes, and worksheets in 35 career, college, job-search topic areas.

 


 

Quintessential Resumes & Cover Letters

 

Find a New Job