The guide
What makes a cover letter worth reading
The four-paragraph structure
Hiring managers skim cover letters in under a minute. This structure gets your case across in that time:
- Opening: the role, and one specific reason you want this job at this company. Not a summary of your career.
- Proof: two or three of the job’s requirements, each backed by something you’ve done, with a result where you have one.
- Fit: what you’d bring to the team or problem they’ve described. Show you read the post.
- Close: a short, confident line asking for the conversation.
Length and tone
Aim for 250 to 400 words, well under a page. Match the tone to the employer: the way they write their job post is a good guide. When in doubt, confident and plain beats formal and stiff.
Common mistakes
Most weak cover letters fail in the same few ways:
- Retelling the resume line by line instead of connecting it to this job
- Generic praise for the company that could be about anyone
- Opening with “My name is…” or “I am writing to apply for…”
- Sending the same letter to every employer
Is a cover letter still worth writing?
When the application asks for one, yes, always. When it’s optional, a short, specific letter helps most when you’re changing careers, have a gap to explain, or are applying to a smaller company where a person reads every application. A generic letter helps no one, which is the case for generating a tailored one in a minute instead.