Job applications
Build a cover letter from three real examples
Choose three pieces of real work that match what this vacancy asks for. Describe what you did and what resulted, then add one fact about the employer that you can check. Cut any sentence that would fit another applicant or another employer.
A text to start with
I am applying for [job title] at [employer]. The posting emphasizes: [requirements]. Here are three pieces of my work: [example one], [example two], [example three], with what happened afterward in each: [results]. Here is one fact about the employer from their own materials: [fact and where I found it]. Draft an opening sentence and one paragraph per example. Use only what I have given you.
Example request. Change the details to fit your situation.Three-example cover letter plan
Role and employer: [ ] Hiring contact, if named in the posting: [ ] Opening sentence: [ ] Factual employer reference: [ ] Where I verified it: [ ] Example 1 situation: [ ] What I did: [ ] Result: [ ] Posting requirement it answers: [ ] Example 2 situation: [ ] What I did: [ ] Result: [ ] Posting requirement it answers: [ ] Example 3 situation: [ ] What I did: [ ] Result: [ ] Posting requirement it answers: [ ] Sentences cut as too generic: [ ]
Sentences that could belong to anyone
The usual failure is generic filler: enthusiasm for the company, praise for its mission, or claims of being a fast learner with nothing behind them. Test each sentence by asking whether another applicant could send it to another employer unchanged. If so, replace it with an example or cut it. Check that each example matches a requirement in the posting and that every result comes from your notes. The employer fact should appear on their own site or posting, and the letter should claim nothing about the company that you cannot verify.
Ask another agent to check the result
Read this cover letter and flag every sentence that could describe any applicant or any employer. Check that each example maps to a requirement in the posting and that no result goes beyond my notes. Mark the employer reference if it cannot be verified from the material I supplied.
Check the letter against the posting
Match each example paragraph to the posting requirement it answers. Confirm the employer fact against the page where you found it and keep the link in your notes. Check the spelling of the contact's name, title and employer, then read the letter aloud for sentences that sound borrowed. Follow any format or length instruction in the application before you submit.