Cover Letter Mistakes that You Must Avoid

Finding a job in today’s market is tough. Although job prospects are beginning to pick up, there is a lot of competition out there. Like any other market that is saturated with product, your job is to stand out amongst the rest. What’s the product you’re selling? Well, I’m happy you asked… it’s you! When you send over your resume and cover letter for employers to review, you are giving them a taste of what you have to offer. It is up to you to make sure that it is appetizing enough to call you in for an interview. I will now share with you common mistakes that students make when writing a Cover Letter:

•  The date must be written out. E.g.: You can’t write 6/22/12. It should be June 22, 2012.
• If the job description does not supply a company contact person, then you should address the letter “Dear Hiring Manager” or “Dear Sir/Madam:” Do not write "To Whom It May Concern:". If the job description tells you the title of the person, eg: “This position reports to the Director of Accounting” then you should search the company’s website to find the name of the Director of Accounting.
• Be aware of formatting. Do not put too many empty lines between the addresses, date or paragraphs; too much empty space on the page looks wrong. On the other side of the coin, do not cramp all of the information together. Follow templates and insert the appropriate number of empty lines and spacing (i.e., double spaced between paragraphs).
• Do your best to avoid an unprofessional appearance. To justify the letter, highlight the body of the letter, hold down the Control key, then hit the letter “J”.
• Bullet points in the middle of the letter is not recommended. A letter has paragraphs, not bullet points.
• Do not use many different fonts within the letter. Times New Roman 12pt. is standard business letter font.
• Using color in the letter can turn an employer off. Some students think it will make their letter stand out if some things are written in red, or if there is a design at the top. Application materials are not the place to be creative. Employers want to know that you are familiar with standard business protocol.

Online Career Services Staff