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The Ultimate Cover Letter Checklist: What to Include in a Cover Letter

Peanut butter and jelly. Milk and cookies. Resumes and cover letters. Some things are just better together.

Now, it may not be delicious or sweet—or even very good to eat—but a cover letter is still one very important half of a perfect pair—at least when it comes to applying for jobs. A cover letter is a short, one-page letter that you send along with your resume when applying for a job. It allows you to showcase your skills, interest, and intent, and it is used to expand upon the information in your resume, particularly as it relates to your work experience. Crafting the perfect cover letter is extremely important because it gives you the opportunity to explain, in detail, how and why you are the perfect fit for a particular position. It also gives you a chance to show your personality and demonstrate to the employer why the company would benefit from hiring you.

The Cover Letter Checklist: What to Include

✓ The same full contact information as your resume. Include your name, mailing address, phone number, and email address and a link to your LinkedIn profile or, if you have one, your personal website.

✓ A consistent look. Make sure that your resume and cover letter match in style and presentation.

✓ Paragraph sections. Include a salutation, opening (one paragraph), main body (one to two paragraphs), and closing (one paragraph).

Salutation: This is your greeting (such as Dear Ms. Meya Fransson). Try to get an exact name instead of using To Whom It May Concern.
Opening: Briefly introduce yourself. State the position you are applying for and why you are a great fit. Demonstrate to the reader your strengths in a few powerful lines.
Main body: Get to the nitty-gritty about how and why you are best for the job. Look at the qualifications, experience, and skills outlined in the job description and show the reader how you match these. Explain some of your greatest past accomplishments. Focus on the company’s requirements and what it needs; try to do so without the use of “I” statements. When writing this section, always keep the following question in the back of your mind: Why should we hire you?
Closing: This should be a quick summary of what you talked about in the body to reiterate what you bring to the table. Thank the employer and suggest a meeting. Sign off in a polite and professional manner.

✓ The right amount of white space—not too much or too little.

✓ A length of about half a page (one full page including your contact information and that of the recipient).

✓ No spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors.

✓ Personalization. The letter must include a salutation and be addressed to the right person.

✓ Your key skills as they relate to the position being applied to, written in the same way that they are written in the job posting to increase your chances of making it through the applicant tracking system (ATS).

✓ The reasons why you would be best for the position. Include knowledge, skills, and experience as they relate to the job posting.

NOTE: Each and every cover letter you write must be tailored to a specific job and employer. You cannot reuse a cover letter or work from a template, simply changing words here and there. The more customized your letter is, the greater your chances will be of making it through the system, getting your letter read by the hiring manager, and getting an interview.

What to Omit and Avoid

✓ Avoid clichés, such as the following:

“To Whom It May Concern”
“My name is . . .”
“I am writing to express my interest in . . .”
“I’m probably not the best candidate, but . . .””I am applying for the role of [title] at [Company] . . .”

✓ Never reuse a cover letter. Start fresh each and every time. It’s okay to use a guideline, but never use the same cover letter twice.

✓ Don’t be vague. Be specific, especially in outlining your skills as they relate to the position.

✓ Don’t repeat your resume. Instead, discuss your work history and emphasize any major accomplishments that relate to the position you’re applying for. Expand on certain aspects in detail to tell a story about your accomplishments, but don’t tell the reader what he or she already knows.

Design Elements

✓ Be consistent. Make sure that your resume and cover letter match in style and presentation.

✓ Keep it short. One page, at most (about 250–350 words). The hiring manager will admire your ability to be concise.

✓ Keep it succinct. Try to use short sentences instead of long ones, and try to keep each paragraph to five lines or fewer.

✓ Use numbers and metrics. These really make your accomplishments stand out and help draw the reader’s eye.

✓ Use boldface if you want to emphasize something, instead of underlining or italics.

✓ Avoid graphics, pictures, images, tables, etc.

✓ Use a common document type. Unless the employer asks for a specific format, prepare your cover letter as a Word document (.doc or .docx). Word documents, as opposed to PDFs or other file types, are the most common and are therefore the easiest to be emailed/attached, opened, and read.

✓ Format appropriately. Use a standard business letter format, listing your name and address, the date, and the recipient’s name and address first, followed by the salutation and substance of the letter. The main body of your letter will vary from industry to industry, but a rough outline looks like this:

Opening
- State the position you are applying for, including any job posting numbers.
- This is where you hook the reader in.
Main body
- This should be one or two paragraphs in length.
- How do you fit in? What do you bring to the table? How do your skills match those required for the position?
Closing
- Thank the reader.
- Show enthusiasm for the position.
- Restate the best way(s) to contact you (phone, email).
- Ask for an interview.

✓ Include white space (or negative space). This refers to margins (the areas between the main content and the edges of the page), gutters (the vertical space between columns), and the spaces between lines of type and graphics or figures. Having a balance between white space and content will keep your cover letter from looking cluttered.

✓ Use an appropriate font style, size, and color. Use a font that is easy to read and that doesn’t distract from your message. Fonts such as Arial, Calibri, Verdana, Times New Roman, Georgia, Lucida, Tahoma, or Trebuchet were designed for the web and are commonly accepted. The font size should be between 10 and 12 point, and the color should be consistent throughout (black).

✓ Use one-inch margins all the way around your cover letter. This will ensure that no information gets cut off if a paper copy is printed.

Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation

✓ Attention to detail. Spelling and grammar are important indicators of a candidate’s attention to detail; they highlight defects instead of spotlighting qualities. It is nearly impossible to recover from spelling errors in your cover letter.

✓ Action words. Use words that convey action, such as advised, examined, oversaw, prepared, resolved, and compiled.

✓ Consistency. Be consistent with your punctuation throughout. This includes using only single or double quotation marks, using the serial comma consistently, and using only straight or curly quotes.

✓ Acronyms. Always make sure to spell out any acronyms in full upon their first use, followed by the acronym in parentheses.

✓ Editing. Make sure to take the time to thoroughly edit and proofread your cover letter. Even the smallest spelling mistake can have a disastrous effect, so pay extra attention when reading through this document. You may even want to use a professional editing service to have an extra set of professional, discerning eyes catch any errors you may have missed. A hiring manager who sees mistakes in your cover letter won’t take you seriously and will think you are lazy, which also makes it more likely your application will be rejected.

✓ Punctuation. Make sure to use punctuation marks properly. Know the difference between a hyphen (-), an en dash (–), and an em (—) dash; when and how to use a semicolon (;); how to use a comma properly (,); and that a period (.) goes at the end of each complete sentence.

✓ Capitalization. Capitalize words correctly. Do capitalize names; proper nouns; names of cities, states/provinces, and countries; languages; company names; brand names; and months. Do not capitalize job titles (unless they come before a name); college/university majors; important-sounding career words that aren’t proper nouns; seasons; or directions.

✓ Style. Be formal in your letter, but don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through. Be true to yourself in your language and tone.

Bonus Tips for an Awesome Cover Letter

✓ Get to know the company’s culture (read its website; look at its LinkedIn page) so you can write like one of the team members and show that you’d be a perfect fit.

✓ Regardless of whether you’re fresh out of university or 10 years into the workforce, try to focus on your work experience, not your education.

✓ Be a storyteller. If possible, tell a story. Explain how you came to learn about this company; what brought you here? Try to connect in a way that makes you stand out from the rest.

✓ Show your future employer that: a) you’re going to excel in the position; b) you’re friendly and likable, and you get along well with others; and c) you’re going to be a great fit.

✓ Write like a real person—don’t be robotic and overly formal, but also don’t be super excited and so over the top that you seem disingenuous.

✓ Read over the company’s website and try to write in its “voice.”

✓ Show interest and enthusiasm about what you have to offer and what the company can offer you.

✓ Stay positive and focus on your strengths; don’t apologize for not having the right experience or exact educational background.

✓ Use an active voice instead of a passive voice.

✓ Be yourself, not fake or too formal. You want to appear sincere, approachable, and real, so make this come through in your writing.

Conclusion

So there you have it: the ultimate cover letter checklist. Remember, the cover letter is like peanut butter to jelly or cookies to milk—you can’t just submit one without the other when applying for a job. And, as you can see, the cover letter is a necessary (even mandatory) part of the job application process. Your resume isn’t enough, and most employers require that you submit a cover letter along with your resume to expand on your skills and to show how you’d be a perfect fit for the position. Taking into consideration things to include, things to avoid or omit, design elements, and spelling, grammar, and punctuation, you should be well on your way to crafting your best cover letter yet.

Great Online Resources for ESL Speakers

As an English as a second language (ESL) speaker, it can be overwhelming to search for online resources to help you with your grammar and English usage. The Internet is great because it provides a wealth of information, but this information is often hard to navigate. How do you know which online resources for ESL speakers will best suit your English learning needs?

Our grammar experts have compiled a list of the best tools to help those learning to speak English. To help pinpoint specific needs, we’ve broken it up into five sections: Grammar and English Usage; Spelling and Punctuation; Vocabulary and Writing; and Speaking and Listening. To help assess what you’ve learned, we’ve also included the sections Quizzes and Worksheets, Lesson Plans, and YouTube Channels.

We hope these online resources for ESL speakers will help you become confident in your English usage and that you will continue to consult them whenever you need to brush up on your skills or improve your knowledge.

Grammar and English Usage

1. Dave‘s ESL Cafe: Dave Sperling is an ESL teacher. His comprehensive website provides lessons on grammar, idioms, pronunciation, and much more for ESL/EFL students and teachers.

2. ESL Partyland: The mission of ESL Partyland, according to the website, is threefold: “provide students with the content and tools necessary to learn online; provide teachers with class materials; and allow for students and teachers to easily communicate together.”

3. Breaking News English: On Breaking News English, you can read current news stories at varying levels of difficulty. The following resources are also available, according to the website: “seven levels of free lessons, from elementary to advanced, with printable activities and handouts; lessons based on current news stories with 30+ online quizzes for each lesson; and listening files in British and North American English that can be downloaded in mp3 format or subscribed to via a podcast.”

5. ESL-Lounge: ESL-Lounge offers hundreds of exercises focused on parts of speech and vocabulary classified by difficulty, including ESL lesson plans and materials, books, talking points, pronunciation, and terminology.

6. Activities for ESL Students: Grammar and vocabulary quizzes at multiple levels of difficulty are available from Activities for ESL Students. The website also offers bilingual quizzes in dozens of languages.

7. 5-Minute English: 5-Minute English provides short and easy exercises for ESL speakers, including lessons on grammar, reading, vocabulary, listening, pronunciation, slang, and idioms. It also provides answers to students’ questions about confusing features of English.

Spelling and Pronunciation

9. TalkEnglish: English is currently the most commonly used language in worldwide business. TalkEnglish’s Business English lessons help people with office jobs communicate in such an environment. According to the website, “Each lesson contains multiple sentences that you can click on to learn how to say that sentence. You should be able to easily find what you need by the different subcategories. Repeat after the audio files and you will improve your business English.”

10. Antimoon: Antimoon’s website explains that it “provides advice and inspiration to people who are serious about improving their English. The Antimoon Method is a set of principles and techniques for learning English effectively. If you want to learn English well, you cannot rely on English classes; you have to take control of your learning. Antimoon will show you how to do it in a fun and effective way.”

11. English Zone: English Zone provides a variety of information for ESL speakers, including grammar, reading, verbs, pronunciation, idioms, spelling, writing, and conversation.

12. Learn That Word: Learn That Word “creates every session just for you. Nothing is out-of-the-box! Advance on your word journey in fast, easy steps. Focus on learning what’s important to you; we’ll manage your progress behind the scenes. LearnThatWord is a complete solution. We’re your virtual mom, catering to your every need and helping you be the best you can be.”

13. BBC Learning English: Since 1943, BBC Learning English has been involved in teaching English around the world. It is a branch of the BBC World Service, and it offers free learning materials to learners worldwide. According to the website, BBC Learning English “deliver [their] materials as full-length courses, but each component of the course is stand-alone and can be studied on its own. This means the learner can choose the best way to study for them: by following a full course or by following the individual materials most appropriate to them.”

Speaking and Listening

14. Using English: According to the website, UsingEnglish.com is “a general English language site specializing in ESL, with a wide range of resources for learners and teachers of English. The site uses different varieties of English, and there are contributors from the United States, Canada, Pakistan, and non-native speakers, but much of the site uses British English.”

15. TEFL Tunes: The TEFL Tunes website uses the principle that language can be learned through music. Website visitors can select the level of difficulty, the song’s theme, the skill they want to learn, and even the artist they want to learn from. Subscriptions to the website are £10 for an individual or £36 for a school. However, there is also a selection of free song lessons available.

Vocabulary and Writing

16. Answers.com‘s Idiom Dictionary: Learning idioms can be one of the biggest challenges when studying English. To help you keep them straight, The Dictionary of Idioms “contains idiomatic words and phrases, slang terms, figures of speech, common proverbs, and metaphors, each clearly defined and illustrated with at least one sample sentence or quotation.”

17. The Ultimate Vocabulary Resource Guide: Looking for even more great online tools for improving your vocabulary? This guide, compiled by the writers at SuperSummary, includes links to vocabulary tools, resources for educators and parents, vocabulary test preparation tips, and more.

18. Cram: Cram offers “a wide selection of flashcards for you to study, memorize, test yourself on, and more. Flashcards are effective because they are founded on the principles of rote and memorization. You can use its web-based flashcard maker to create your own set. Once you create your online flashcards, you will be able to study, export, or even share it with your fellow classmates. You can collaborate perfectly with anyone, anytime.”

19. ESL Lab: Finding the time to keep your language skills fresh can be difficult. ESL Lab’s vocabulary lists will teach you how to use vocabulary in everyday situations. According to the website, “Each of the pages on this website is designed to build communication skills and includes a listening and discussion activity. As you learn the vocabulary, try to use it in other situations.”

20. About.com English Vocabulary: About.com English Vocabulary offers resources for learners of English who are at a more advanced level, including articles, quizzes, and worksheets.

21. Vocabulary.co.il: This is a “fun educational website dedicated to helping you build reading, phonics, or English language skills. It offers free online word games, which are specifically designed to build vocabulary skills and to motivate people to learn through fun practice in spelling, phonics, and vocabulary.”

22. Pizzaz: For learning to write fiction and poetry in English, Pizzaz offers some simple creative writing activities. It also offers printable resources both for learning and teaching English writing.

Quizzes and Worksheets

23. Self-Study Quizzes for ESL Students: One of the main benefits of Self-Study Quizzes for ESL Students is that none of the quizzes require JavaScript, Java, or Flash; they are all HTML only and should, therefore, be accessible on any computer with Internet access.

24. English Club: English Club’s vocabulary quizzes offers a compilation of over 1,000 activities for ESL students pertaining to grammar, vocabulary, idioms, and more.

25. ESL Resource Center: The ESL Resource Center was created for ESL teachers and provides plenty of worksheets, tips, and lessons on grammar, spelling, reading and writing, pronunciation, vocabulary and idioms, and listening.

26. ESL HQ: ESL HQ offers free ESL flashcards, worksheets, games, activities, lesson plans, advice from teachers, job listings, and more.

Lesson Plans

27. The Internet TESL Journal – The Internet TESL Journal offers a large collection of lesson plans, articles, research papers, handouts, and teaching ideas categorized according to the skill they aim to teach.

28. Waygook.org – Waygook.org is a forum providing message boards about language and teaching. In addition to conversations between users, message boards contain lesson plans, PowerPoints, and other resources that are helpful to ESL speakers.

YouTube Channels

29. VOA Learning English: VOA Learning English allows viewers to see captioned news reports in American English at a speed that is 33% slower than normal.

30. Listen and Read Along: Listen and Read Along offers Reading Movies (Rovies) that encourage reading and attempt to make it an enjoyable experience for those learning the language.

31. TOEFL TV: According to the channel’s description, TOEFL TV is “a place to learn, share, and grow. TOEFL TV has tips from real teachers and real students to help improve your English skills. You can hear what leading colleges and universities think about the value of students who can communicate well in English in an academic setting.”

32. OMGmeiyu’s Channel: OMGmeiyu’s YouTube channel is an excellent resource for native Chinese speakers learning English and seeking to learn American English slang.

33. English with Jennifer: Run by an experienced ESL teacher, English with Jennifer “will introduce new content to some and serve as a review for others.” Both students and teachers can also leave comments and questions that Jennifer will address.

Top 5 Human Resource Tools

HR tools can reduce your hiring and staff management costs

Few small businesses can afford the overhead of a dedicated HR department. Although the absence of this admin function from the office is a cost saver, it does mean that small businesses often fail to plan their HR requirements properly and can create ill will among staff through the haphazard treatment of HR functions such as pay and sick leave. Incompetent HR management can lead to production limits and uncooperative staff. Fortunately, there are a number of online HR tools that can help the busy business manager cope with the demands of HR needs. Here are five of the best HR tools currently available.

1) The Resumator

The Resumator automates the hiring process. It integrates with your email system, enables you to post job vacancies on a list of well-known employment websites, and then reads through and parses arriving resumes sent in PDF or Word formats. You can also post jobs on social media platforms through this HR tool or have your own jobs webpages, which The Resumator will host for you. The system also sets up workflows, which give you a schedule by which to complete the necessary steps the hiring process requires. However, you would need to have a fast turnover of staff or operate an employment agency to justify the cost of operating The Resumator. The system is available only on a monthly subscription; therefore, if you hire only one or two people a year for your small business, you probably wouldn’t require the unlimited capacity this HR tool offers. If you do have a regular staff intake, you can add “onboarding” and training modules to the basic HR tool for an additional fee.

2) Zenefits

Zenefits covers the operational aspects of HR. It keeps employee records, calculates payroll, and manages tax, insurance, disability, and compensation payments. The system records time sheets and logs employee attendance. Payments to employees can include a range of benefits, such as stock options. As you would expect with all that operational data going into the system, Zenefits is also able to produce a range of reports to help you file taxes and analyze resource utilization. This is a very comprehensive HR tool, but it is specifically written to comply with US taxation and employment law, so Canadian, British, or Australian readers are unlikely to benefit from Zenefits.

3) Upwork

Small businesses need to be quick on their feet. Web-based companies often have short-term requirements for programmers and content creators that do not justify hiring long-term employees. Rather than paying top whack for a consultant, you should check out Upwork to source specialist skills from freelancers. Many of the skilled workers who work through Upwork live in remote locations and like to telecommute. The benefit of this method of employment to you is that you don’t need to provide equipment or office space for these short-term workers. You don’t have to worry about the overhead cost of bringing in a specialist from far afield, either. This HR tool is more than just a job board; you can track goals and work hours through the system and even make payments to the freelancers. Upwork charges freelancers 10 percent of their fees, and you don’t have to pay anything for the service.

4) Staff Squared

The payroll functions of Zenefits are specifically written to cater to a US customer base. Staff Squared is very similar to Zenefits, but it does not cover payroll. Therefore, it is suitable for use by companies both outside and inside the United States. This is a cloud-based HR tool, so you don’t have to worry about losing data if your system crashes. The remote storage of your HR records also means that you can access your HR files from anywhere, so if you take a day working from home, you can still perform all your HR tasks. Staff Squared has an employee interface that mediates requests, such as vacation and shift change requests. The requests get directed to the relevant manager via email for approval. The system is charged on a subscription basis and is US $4.50 per month, per user. Unfortunately, because every employee needs to access the system for functions such as time-off requests, every staff member is counted as a user; thus, if you have a lot of staff, it could get pricey. You can try this HR tool for free for 14 days.

5) Jobatar

If you are fully stretched running your business, you may not have the time to dedicate a full day to interviewing applicants for a vacancy. Jobatar has a solution to this problem. This HR tool is an interviewing scheme. You record questions for interviewees and then send them invites to access the questions and record answers. The interviewees are recorded through the webcam of their PC or laptop, and then you can view each respondent whenever you have the time. You don’t have to be in the office to review the interviews because the system can be accessed from tablets and smartphones. Therefore, if you are always on the move in your job, this HR tool should tie in with your lifestyle.

HR solutions for small businesses

These new HR tools mean that small business owners can better manage their HR functions themselves without needing to have an HR manager on the team. After reviewing each of these HR tools, consider whether any of them could help you manage your own staff more effectively.