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 Writing a Cover Letter

Writing a Cover Letter
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   high interest, readability grades 3 to 5
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   3.79

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    resume, enclosure, opening, paragraph, email, hearing, important, working, address, certain, minutes, jobs, title, above, cooperative, impression

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Writing a Cover Letter
By Cathy Pearl 		  
1     A resume is not the only important paper you have to create to get a job. Another thing is a strong cover letter. People who are hiring today are very busy. They don't always read the resume closely. You might only have a few minutes to impress someone. You could miss out on a great job if you don't get his or her attention. One way to do this is with a great cover letter.
 
2     A great cover letter can help you get a job. A person will be more interested in reading your resume if the cover letter gets their attention. A cover letter is a way to quickly show why you are interested in the job. It also tells why you would be good at the job.
 
3     You should always talk about skills that have to do with the job. Even if you don't have a lot of experience, there is always a skill that will help you. You wouldn't be applying for the job if you didn't think you'd be good at it!
 
4     The cover letter should look a lot like your resume. Use the same paper and font that you used when you typed your resume. Make sure there are no mistakes in it, too. Start the letter with your name and address. Also, put your phone number and any other way the company could contact you. This could be a cell phone number or an email address.
 
5     Next, put the person's or the company's name. Make sure to put the full address and job title if there is one. Under that, put the name of the person you are writing to. If you have a name, start with Mr. or Ms. and the last name. If not, start with "Dear" and the name of the department you are sending it to. Put a colon after the name.

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