Cover letter writing(1)

Cover letter writing (1)

1. The format and content of the cover letter: The writing format of the cover letter generally consists of seven parts, namely title, title, beginning, body, Ending, signature, date, attachments. The content generally includes:

1. The origin of the job search - at the beginning, where did you get the recruitment information; your motivation for seeking the position and the reason for joining the company.

2. Job search goal - what position do you want to apply for.

3. Job application requirements - introduce yourself, explain the position you are suitable for applying for, and propose what you can do for future employers, rather than what they do for you; briefly highlight your relevant characteristics , that is, why you are more suitable for this position than others, emphasizing the training you have received, your experience, skills or achievements.

4. Job search attachments - materials. At the end, leave a phone number or address where you can be contacted at any time and express your gratitude.

2. Things to note when writing a cover letter In the West, a cover letter is as important as a resume. In our country, although some employers do not require a cover letter, some headhunting consultants or corporate recruiters do not have time to read the cover letter carefully and only need a resume. But the role of the cover letter should not be underestimated. From a recent online survey on China Talent Network: "Human Resources Manager, how much do you pay attention to cover letters?" 34 HR managers who participated in the survey said they attach great importance to cover letters, and 54% said they regard cover letters as an important reference. Only 1 1 HR managers don't read cover letters at all. So pay attention to writing a good cover letter.

(1) Several principled issues

1. Highlight the pertinence of the cover letter.

(1) Introduce the pertinence of your conditions. Put yourself in someone else's shoes, consider the problem from the perspective of the employer, and provide your own background materials in a targeted manner for a certain recruitment position in a certain recruitment unit. Irrelevant others will not be interested and may even become a burden. For example, I often say that I love sports and am the main player of the department's team at school; I like literature and art and am a member of the XX chorus team; I am outgoing, have a wide range of contacts, and have friends all over the world... If you are looking for an office job For work, or technical development work, such characteristics may not be beneficial, and the other party may even suspect: This guy is a restless person, so he is not suitable... In short, it should be based on the needs of the position, write what is beneficial, and do not write what is disadvantageous.

(2) Targetedness for different positions. It also requires that every time you apply for a different job, you should carefully rewrite a cover letter to show that you are sincere about applying for this job. Don't write a cookie-cutter, generic cover letter, then copy it in large quantities, cast a net everywhere, bombard it, and post it everywhere. The results are likely to fail everywhere. A securities company once came to the school to recruit salesmen. However, the job application intention written on the resume submitted by a graduate was "machinery manufacturing", which was completely irrelevant and ridiculous. Even at the same recruitment site, you should write different applications for different positions to be targeted. Special reminder: clearly state the job-seeking unit and job position on the cover of the job application materials and in the upper right corner of the cover letter. Use this form to strengthen the pertinence of the job search. This may make you more popular with recruiters.

2. The content should be short and concise. The theme closely focuses on "I meet the requirements, I am definitely qualified, and I am sincere in applying", and try to make the recruiters feel that they need you. Avoid lengthy articles and complete them in one page or two pages at most. Remember you only have a few seconds to entice your reader to keep reading. Be concise and to the point, don't cover everything. The function of a cover letter is just to get you an opportunity to participate in an interview. Don't think that you can find a job that you are satisfied with just by relying on a cover letter. This wrong mentality will make the cover letter you write wordy. Recruiters have a heavy workload and their time is precious. If a cover letter is too long, its effectiveness will be greatly reduced. Data from a test report by the Harvard Institute of Human Resources in 1992 also proves this, that is, if a cover letter contains more than 400 words, its validity is only 25%, that is, the reader will only leave an impression of 1/4 of the content.

3. Use measured words. Be neither humble nor arrogant. Being too humble will give people the bad impression of mediocrity; being too arrogant will give people the bad impression of being frivolous and exaggerated. The language should be concise and the phrasing should be as professional as possible. 4. The page (handwriting) must be neat. Nowadays, typed manuscripts are generally used, but if you have clean and beautiful handwriting, it is the best "letter of introduction" in itself, and it is easy to leave a good first impression. However, handwriting is prone to typos or grammatical errors, so be careful and don’t let a small mistake make a big mistake. Today’s young people’s writing skills are not very good, much worse than in the past. ⒌Write down your contact information. The cover letter must include clear contact information. Including mailing address, postal code, telephone number (preferably mobile phone), e-mail, etc.

(2) Several technical details 1. Quality is fundamental. All the strengths and characteristics are not as good as professionalism

An English major applied for an English editor position in a publishing house. In his cover letter, he told a short story about himself to introduce himself. : When I was in my second year of college, I saw a small translation problem with an article in an English magazine. Out of love for the magazine, I wrote a letter to the editor and provided my own translation. Half a month later, I received a reply from the editor, thanking me and giving me a translated novel. www.jianli-sky.com China Job Resume Network This candidate successfully applied for the job easily. The key was that he used stories to explain his own strengths--love to be serious and have strong professionalism. This is one of the qualities that an editor should possess. A survey shows that among the qualities that employers look for most when recruiting college students, the top five indicators are:

1. Professional knowledge and skills.

2. Professionalism

3. Strong willingness to learn and high plasticity

4. Communication and coordination skills

5. Basic solutions problem ability. The top five indicators that employers believe are the most lacking qualities of college graduates are: ⒈Professionalism ⒉Basic problem-solving ability ⒊The ability to withstand pressure and overcome setbacks ⒋Relevant work and internship experience

⒌High job quality . The survey found that "professionalism" ranks second among the indicators that employers value most, and ranks first among the indicators that employers think college students lack most. It can be seen that the work attitude, professional ethics and professional ethics of college students are a prominent issue in current higher education and deserve our serious consideration and treatment. Therefore, college students must have professionalism and must give top priority to professional ethics and professionalism. Kai-Fu Lee: I once interviewed a job applicant. He is quite outstanding in both technical and management aspects. However, during the discussion, he said that if I admitted him, he could even bring over an invention he made while working in the original company. Then he seemed to realize that something was wrong, and made a special statement: He did those jobs after get off work, and his boss did not know. After this conversation, for me, regardless of his ability and work level, I will definitely not hire him. The reason is that he lacks the most basic principles of life and the minimum professional ethics of "honesty" and "honesty." If such a person is hired, who can guarantee that after working here for a period of time, he will not regard the results here as so-called "amateur work" and turn them into "tributes" to other companies? It is impossible for a person with imperfect character to become a person who truly makes a difference.

2. Academic performance is not important. When requesting a letter, you should highlight the content that can arouse the other party's interest and help get the job, including professional knowledge, work experience, your own strengths and personality traits, etc. One thing to note is that when introducing professional knowledge and academic qualifications, you should not overemphasize your academic performance. Many people, especially students who have just left school, tend to have the illusion that society, like schools, attaches great importance to academic performance. They believe that as long as they have excellent academic performance, they will find a good career, and they even feel complacent about their excellent grades. ． This is a sign of immaturity and can easily lead to failure in job hunting. Because boasting about your own learning can only give people a childish and bookish feeling.

The employer should pay attention to experience and practical ability, so it should generally write about knowledge and academic qualifications, and focus on work experience or ability. How to write students’ practical experience and abilities? Extracurricular training, experiments, internships, serving as a student cadre, and extracurricular activities organized by the school and the class can all be written selectively, which can reflect your abilities.

When introducing your practical experience and skills, it is best to use verbs, numerals, and professional terms. For example, if you have passed the "National Computer Level 2 VB Certificate", it is better to change it to "Be able to skillfully operate drawing software AutoCAD, Adobe PhotoShaop7.0, 3dmax and word.excel and other office software"; participate in social practice and write "I will go to Keqiao to do the market" "Research", it is better to write "I organized 20 students to conduct market research at 8 companies in Keqiao for 10 consecutive days, and conducted questionnaire surveys, company visits, discussions and other activities, and wrote a paper..." Summarize the specific roles you play in various activities in concise and concise words, making it clear to the recruiting unit. What's more, some graduates even wrote that they ranked third in the county in the college entrance examination. They said that they had been praised by their parents and teachers since childhood, and they were still immersed in the glory of their youth, which became a joke to the recruiters.

3. The issue of humility: Humility is a traditional virtue, but being too modest in your cover letter will not accurately reflect your achievements and talents. You should emphasize your strengths and self-confidence in your cover letter, but avoid being too conceited.

When you need to use I think, I see, I think, I think, etc. to express your opinions in your cover letter, be careful, otherwise you will leave the employer with the impression that you are arrogant and immature. feeling. Self-promotion and humility should be appropriate. Writing a cover letter is to promote yourself. It must emphasize your own achievements and your value to the chosen unit. This requires a self-introduction, but you must pay attention to skills and not talk big words. For example, if your letter expresses "the ability to create a new situation in the enterprise", it will sound harsh to others, especially fresh graduates. Apply some skills to express it, you can say: "I can use the knowledge I have learned to establish a new management plan to improve the productivity of the enterprise", "I can do some image design for the enterprise", etc. This is really a lot . Be careful not to brag too much. What you see in a cover letter is not just a person's experience, but also their character. Don't be overly modest. Wang Zhiyu, HR manager of Yuanda Air Conditioning, said that not adding water in your resume does not mean writing everything about you, including your weaknesses. Some students specifically indicate in their resumes that they are not strong in a certain ability. This is excessive modesty. In fact, not writing these does not mean that they are lying. Some job-seeking students wrote on their resumes: "I have just entered the society and have no work experience. I am willing to do any grassroots job in your company." Wang Zhiyu said that this is also a sign of excessive modesty, which will make recruiters think that you are suitable for any position. , in fact, it is not suitable for any position - Tiger Balm. For the Chinese, modesty is a virtue. A humble person can make others feel good about him. But for job seekers, being too modest will also make people think you are incompetent. Humility is not self-denial, it is seeking truth from facts and expressing yourself appropriately. Therefore, when writing a cover letter, you should follow the principle of "moderate promotion". But it depends on the circumstances. Due to cultural differences, foreign-funded enterprises can be more boastful, while domestic enterprises should be more modest.

4. Language issues

(1) Use specific titles (for example, do not write “to the person in charge”). Try to know who will receive your letter. If necessary, call the company and ask. If you still can't decide on a specific name, call him "the hiring manager," "the HR manager," or just "the manager."

(2) Be concise and organized. Use concise language to express your job search ideas and personal characteristics, and avoid piling up words. Because most readers of cover letters are heads of units, they will not waste a lot of time reading lengthy articles. The cover letter is not the place to show your literary talent. It is best to write it in a plain and steady tone.

The concise and organized language itself shows that you think clearly and reminds people that your work may also be pragmatic and organized.

(3) The words should be concise and straightforward, not too gorgeous. Some college graduates always want to show off their literary talents and find ways to pile up gorgeous and fashionable words. The result is self-defeating and offensive. Therefore, when writing a cover letter, you should be straight to the point, concise and to the point, and avoid clichés and unnecessary words. A cover letter is not about being long, but about being precise. The essence is that the content is focused and clear, the language is concise and clear, and the length is short and concise. (Our school’s competition...) "I hope for such a life, it will become the most magnificent rainbow after experiencing countless winds and rains... Please tell me the direction of the sea with your eyes..." Wang Zhiyu read this on the spot The college student's resume made all the students present laugh. Wang Zhiyu said that many college students' cover letters are too gorgeous and contain too many adjectives and modifiers. Such resumes generally do not impress recruiters. He suggested that resumes should use more sentences with a verb-object structure, which should be concise and straightforward.

(4) Use less abbreviated words and use the word "I" carefully. When you talk to people, you may be used to abbreviating your school or the subject you studied, but it is best not to use it in your cover letter. Abbreviation, because the leaders of the employer may not all know your school or major, abbreviation, and it is often easy for them to misunderstand because they do not understand. For example, "UST", does it refer to the University of Science and Technology of China or the University of Science and Technology Beijing? Professional abbreviations are sometimes even more confusing. In addition, multiple abbreviations may sometimes make people think that you have a serious student accent, or that your attitude is not cautious enough, which will affect the recruitment. In addition, when you need to use "I think", "I see", "I think", "I think" and other tones to express your opinions in the cover letter, you must be careful, otherwise you will leave the employer with the impression that you are arrogant and ideological. Feeling immature.

(5) There is no perfect draft. Keep revising. It is recommended that you make a draft first, list all your ideas in order, and connect them skillfully. Don’t send your first draft away. No matter how tight the date is, "discipline" must be observed. After some deliberation and revision, it can be sent out. Most of them need to be revised over and over again or simply rewritten. The article is revised, and the cover letter is a "small article" to write, but it is a big article that serves as a stepping stone to your career, so it should not be taken casually. There should be no typographical errors. A good cover letter can not only reflect your clear thinking and good expression skills, but also test your personality characteristics and professionalism. Therefore, you must pay attention to the phrasing and language. After writing, you must read through several articles and craft them carefully, and avoid typos, typos, incorrect sentences, and illogical grammar. Otherwise, if you encounter a serious recruiter, you may be "a mouse droppings soiling the whole pot of porridge", especially in today's "buyer's market" employment conditions.

5. Full of personality, contrarian thinking, and unconventional. Writing a cover letter is like carefully planning an advertisement. It does not stick to popular writing methods, but has novel ideas. It uses unique language and diversified ways of thinking to create a strong impression on the other party, attract attention, and arouse interest. A cover letter, no matter how complete the content is, will be in vain if it cannot attract the other party's attention; if the other party is not interested in your statement, all your efforts will be in vain. Not agreeing, not conforming, or following the crowd when applying for a job is a sign of being independent. One classmate wrote like this: "Actually, I don't think your company's conditions are very good. I just feel that it is more suitable for my major. And I feel that whether I can be selected in the end depends on my strength rather than luck." This kind of writing can often make the recruitment process easier. The reader's eyes light up and it has a good effect. There was once such a foreign story: A young man participated in a recruitment interview. When he arrived, there were already 20 job applicants in front, so he wrote a note. The boss laughed after reading it. It turned out that the note said : "Sir, I am ranked 21st in the queue. Before you see me, please reserve at least one spot. Otherwise, it will undoubtedly be your company's regret." Finally, the young man got his wish. (This is foreigners, Chinese people are more practical, but you might as well give it a try as appropriate. But it must be based on strength, otherwise it will be like making a fool of yourself.)

6. Determine your job search goals and be realistic.

It is not easy for a person to determine his job search goals. It must comply with the laws of supply and demand and the laws of competition in the talent market. Today, when my country implements the socialist market economy, people are not commodities, but talents can also be regarded as "commodities" from a certain perspective. The law of supply and demand in the market affects the price of commodities all the time. When supply exceeds demand, the price is higher than the value, which means it is a seller's market for talents; when supply exceeds demand, the price is lower than the value, which is a buyer's market for talents.

If you understand this rule, when you enter the job market, you will not rely solely on your academic qualifications and think about what kind of job you should get. Instead, you will have to adapt to the operating mechanism of the market. and the laws of competition. As for what price you can "sell" for, it depends on the market conditions. Today, when the number of graduates is 6.5 million per year, if your price is too high, no one will care about it (10% of the old people). The wisest choice is to follow the market and adjust prices. In the same way, if you study a major that is not popular in society, even if you are a doctoral student, you may only be able to find an undergraduate position. At the same time, the laws of market competition also restrict your choice of career. In essence, the competition for job hunting is a competition based on people's talents and qualities. Before participating in the competition, you should first have a clear evaluation of yourself, determine which level you are at, and then determine which level of position you will challenge for. Only in this way can you position yourself and set reasonable goals on the premise of complying with the laws of market supply and demand and competition. Only in this way can you make your cover letter targeted and improve your success rate.

Make connections, get interviews, don’t mention salary. In your cover letter, don’t proactively mention the specific amount of your salary. The goal of a cover letter is to establish contact and secure an interview. It is too early to talk about money at this time, there will be more appropriate occasions in the future, not to mention the amount of salary is not the main factor in your choice of career. If there are two positions at the same time, and the lower-paying position is more conducive to future development, then you should choose it without hesitation. Examples of this abound among job applicants.

Many students have doubts about whether they should write salary and treatment requirements on their resumes. Several human resources managers believe that it is a big risk to write salary requirements on their resumes. It is best to Don't write. If the salary requirement is too high, the company will feel that it cannot afford to hire you; if the salary requirement is too low, the company will feel that you are insignificant. For college students who have just left school, the salary of their first job is not important, so don’t spend too much time thinking about it. It is important that at the end of the cover letter, you should pay special attention to remind the employer to pay attention to your attached resume and request a reply to you, so as to establish the next step of contact and get the opportunity for an interview. What's more, salary is very complicated. In addition to salary, there are also insurance, free meals, housing, benefits, etc. It all depends on the total benefits.

When applying for a new job, write down salary requirements:

1. If your boss knows that your previous salary is higher than what they are willing to pay, even if you may voluntarily reduce your salary, you will not Give you an opportunity to express your wishes in an interview, because bosses are usually reluctant to hire people who earn less and less, or they may think that giving you an interview opportunity is just a waste of your time.

2. The boss knows that your current salary is much lower than what they are willing to pay, and thinks that you are a mediocre person, "Maybe you have no ability?" Some of the above questions also include things to note when writing a resume. ;