What is a Cover Letter

Never written a cover letter before? We've got you covered. In this article, we'll be explaining what a cover letter is by its very definition, and what your cover letter should consist of when you're drafting one to send to a potential employer.

# What is a Cover Letter
# What Does a Cover Letter Consist of
# Writing Tips for a Cover Letter
# How to Edit the Cover Letter Template

Cover Letter Template

This is a free cover letter template for civil engineer. Free Download and customize it according to the sample text below.

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What is a Cover Letter?

By cover letter definition, a cover letter is an introductory letter that you send to introduce yourself and provide more information. In regard to a job application, it is the first interaction you will have with your new, potential employer, and an opportunity to make a good first impression.

A cover letter varies from a CV in that, as opposed to being an outline of your abilities and experience, it's specifically written with the job application in mind. Enabling you to feature certain attributes that you have, which you think would make you ideal for the job role being offered by the company.

Cover letters are important because they convey something more than a CV does when you apply for work – the company will take in more about you, your personality, what you're looking for and why you're applying.

What Does a Cover Letter Consist of?

Cover letters consist of several things, but to make this section easier for you, we've broken it down below:

Your contact details.
The company's contact details.
The date.
The company manager's name.
A greeting.
A few brief sentences on why you're contacting the company.
The job title you're applying for.
Your current job title.
Where you found the open job role.
An example of your skills.
An example of your experience.
Skills and experience you have which you can relate to the job responsibilities listed on the job advert.
Why you're a suitable person for the position.
What you can do for the company.
Closing statements.
Your name.

Writing Tips for a Cover Letter

Now that you know what your cover letter should include, we've put together an extensive list of writing tips that you can refer to whenever you're writing a cover letter:

Use clear and prise formatting for your cover letter.
Always include your name with your address and contact information.
Always include a contact number. Employers are more likely to call you about an interview than email you.
Use a professional-sounding email address. Using an email address that you've had for several years isn't always a great thing to do, depending on what the email address is.
Always add contact details for the company. This ensures that the correct establishment receives your cover letter.
Include the date.
Update the date on the cover letter before you submit your application. It always looks a bit strange if a company gets a letter dated a week before they receive it, especially when you're applying online.
When writing a cover letter, remember to address someone at the start of the letter where possible.
If you don't know their name, don't skip the salutation. No matter what, you need to start a cover letter as formally as possible.
Research. Take the time to try and locate a contact name for the company. Addressing your cover letter to someone is preferable to addressing your cover letter ambiguously.
Try not to rewrite your CV as your job application cover letter. Your potential employers don't need to see the same information twice.
Don't use "To Whom It May Concern", there are plenty of other ways to address a cover letter.
Highlight your skills and experiences, not your education.
Tell a story of some kind in your cover letter for job application. When you're writing about your skills, use an example of a situation where you used that skill, and you either helped a customer, or made a good impression on someone.
Mention any qualifications you have that match the job or the job description. Include any specific areas of knowledge that you have which relate to the job, as well as skills and experience.
Don't apologise in your job cover letter.
When you're finishing your letter, end on a positive note, and always thank the reader for their time and consideration.
Check the spelling of their name before you send off your job application. There's nothing worse than a misspelt name to start off a professional application.
Be professional, but not stuffy. If you're using synonyms instead of the word you were going to use, you might be over doing it.

Now that you understand what a cover letter is, and what it's used for, it's time to begin drafting your cover letter for your job application. You might want to start by reading one of our other articles on cover letters, which will extensively explain various types of cover letters and how to write them. Otherwise, a quick web search never hurt anyone.

We wish you the best of luck in your job application.

How to Edit the Cover Letter Template

After knowing what a cover letter is, you probably want to prepare a beautiful cover letter. You can download the PDF cover letter template in this page and edit it with a proper PDF editor, PDFelement. This tool can help you edit and customize the template to fit your own resume.