Cover letter: structure, examples and short templates

Do you still need a cover letter?

Many online application forms make it optional, and some hiring managers skip it. It still matters when the job ad asks for one, when your background needs explaining (career change, employment gap, first job), for a speculative application, or when the role involves a lot of writing.

Its job is not to repeat your resume. It links a few specific things you have done to what the role needs, and shows you know who you are writing to. A generic letter sent to ten employers does neither: a short, tailored note is better than a long, interchangeable one.

A simple four-part structure

In the US and the UK, cover letters get to the point quickly. Careers advisers commonly recommend three to five short paragraphs on no more than one page, along these lines:

1. Opening: the role you are applying for, where you saw it, and one sentence on why it caught your attention.
2. Your fit: two or three experiences or skills from your resume that match the duties in the ad, with a concrete result when you have one.
3. Why them: what you know about the company (a product, a project, a market) and what you would bring to it.
4. Close: restate your interest, mention your availability and ask for an interview.

US letters tend to be slightly more assertive, UK ones a little more measured, but the logic is the same. Other countries have their own habits: a French letter often follows a "you / me / us" order, and a German "Anschreiben" follows a standard layout. Check local conventions before applying abroad.

Short email version or formal letter?

The short version keeps the same logic, with roughly one sentence per part. It is often read precisely because it is short.

Tailoring the letter to the company

• The exact job title and company name, and the hiring manager's name if the ad gives it.
• One specific fact about the company: a product, a project, a market or a stated value that genuinely appeals to you.
• The duties in the ad, in its own words, tied to what you have already done.
• One example from your resume, with a number if you have one: it makes the letter credible and gives the interviewer something to ask about.

It is the same work as tailoring your resume to a job: read the ad, spot the requirements and pick what in your background answers them. Nothing you write should go beyond what you have actually done.

Three cover letter templates

These templates are fictitious. Replace every detail with your own experience and what you know about the employer: a letter copied word for word is easy to spot.

Subject: Application — Junior Data Analyst (ref. DA-24)

Dear Ms. Carter,

I am applying for the Junior Data Analyst position advertised on your careers page. Your plan to bring all store performance reporting into a single dashboard is exactly the kind of project I want to work on.

I recently graduated with a degree in economics. During a six-month internship at Fictivia Retail, I built weekly sales reports in SQL and Excel and automated a manual stock check that the team had been doing by hand.

I would welcome the chance to discuss how I could help your team. My resume is attached.

Best regards,
Jordan Lee
(555) 010-0000

Dear Hiring Manager,

I am writing to apply for the Customer Success Associate role at Fictivia Software. Your focus on onboarding every new client personally, rather than leaving them with a help center, is what drew me to this position.

For the past seven years I have been a secondary school teacher. That role taught me to explain complex ideas clearly, adapt to very different audiences and follow up patiently until a problem is solved. I recently completed a customer success certificate and, as a volunteer, I now run onboarding sessions for new users of our local library's online catalog.

I believe this combination of teaching and customer support experience would help your clients get value from your product faster. I would be glad to explain this further in an interview.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Taylor Morgan

Dear Mr. Patel,

I read that Fictivia Foods is opening a second production site next year. Growth of that kind needs maintenance teams who can keep new lines running from day one, so I am writing to ask whether you will be recruiting maintenance technicians.

I have spent five years as a maintenance technician at Fictivia Packaging, working on automated production lines in a shift team. I carry out preventive and corrective maintenance, and I introduced a preventive maintenance schedule that reduced unplanned stoppages on my line. I hold a current electrical safety qualification.

I would be happy to meet to discuss your current or future needs. I am available for a conversation at a time that suits you.

Yours sincerely,
Sam Wilson

How long should a cover letter be?

A formal cover letter fits on one page: three to five short paragraphs with white space between them, never a rewrite of your resume. In an online form, respect the character limit and prefer complete sentences to a text cut off halfway. A short, specific letter beats a full page of generalities.

Common cover letter mistakes

• The wrong company name after reusing an old letter: the quickest way to be rejected.
• Telling your whole career story: that is what the resume is for. The letter picks two or three points.
• Talking only about yourself: what the job would do for you matters less than what you would do for them.
• Empty adjectives ("hard-working, passionate, detail-oriented") with no example to back them up.
• Claiming what you have not done: every sentence can come up in the interview.
• Typos: read it aloud, or ask someone to proofread it.

Sending your application by email

• Subject line: "Application — job title — reference number". The recruiter should know what it is without opening it.
• Body: the short version of your letter, or three lines introducing your application if a formal letter is attached. Some advisers suggest pasting the letter into the email body rather than attaching it.
• Attachments: PDFs with clear names, such as "Resume First Last.pdf" and "Cover Letter First Last.pdf".
• Sender address: a plain personal address with your name.

Note the date you applied: if you hear nothing after one or two weeks, a short, polite follow-up is perfectly normal.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Prospects — Cover letters
2. Harvard FAS Mignone Center for Career Success — Create a resume/CV or cover letter