You’ve written a perfect CV; it’s accurate and up to date, and gives our recruiters an insight into you, your interests, qualifications and professional interests.
Now on to the cover letter. Should you send one, or not? Our recruitment team agree sending a cover letter is almost always the best decision, even if the job application doesn’t ask for one. Plus, if they don’t need a cover letter, sending one will demonstrate you’re a motivated candidate. So ultimately, you can’t go wrong!
Your cover letter is your opportunity to help us see if your skills and experience match what we seek. More importantly, a cover letter allows you to clearly tell us why you’re the best candidate for the job.
These are our winning tips
To help you write your cover letter, we’ve put together a step by step guide:
- Address the letter directly to the person named in the job ad. If there’s no name, you can use LinkedIn to research and find the name of the relevant person, or go the classic route and call to find out.
- Introduce yourself and put the name of the position you are applying for.
- Mention where you learned about the role, and let us know why you want to work for Aurecon. Is it our projects? Our values? Our Principles?
- The next step is to summarise your main skills and experience; specify the most significant and relevant parts which you believe match the job description. Each paragraph should focus on a different aspect. Think of your cover letter as the entrée to your resume. It shouldn’t be so detailed that it replicates what’s contained in your resume, but should give your recruiter an understanding of the skills you may be able to bring to a position.
- Outline any general skills you think are relevant to the role, such as communication and interpersonal skills, problem-solving abilities and organisational strengths. Read our top five trends for millennial employability for an insight into valued soft skills.
- Use dynamic verbs such as ‘collaborated’, ‘motivated’, ‘managed’ and ‘analysed’ to help convey your points
- Finally, finish the cover letter by suggesting opportunities for further interaction: for example, indicate your willingness to meet and discuss your experience in more detail. Always finish on a positive note.
After you have written your cover letter – proofread it. And then proofread again. A cover letter with grammatical errors and spelling mistakes can lead to your application being rejected. Make sure to edit your cover letter so it’s only one-page long.
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Good luck!