Writing a Cover Letter and Résumé

Cover Letters and Résumés

A cover letter and résumé are living documents that tend to change as your interests and skills evolve. They are very important documents when you apply for jobs or career opportunities because they provide brief snapshots of who you are, what you have accomplished, the skills you have acquired, and how you can impact an organization or company. In high school, you will need to give your cover letter and résumé to your teachers so they can use it as a reference when writing your letters of recommendation. You can also use your cover letter and résumé when applying for scholarships and as a part of your college admissions documents.

Two important documents that you must compose when applying for a job, school, or organization are the cover letter and résumé. The advantage of these documents is that you compose them yourself, so they can highlight your strengths and give a great impression of you as a professional. However, you must take care to compose cover letters and résumés appropriately. Take a moment now to view this presentation for an overview and examples of cover letters and résumés. Click the player button to begin.

View a printable version of the interactivity.

Proofreading Your Work

After composing your cover letter and résumé, you need to ensure that there are absolutely no spelling, punctuation, or grammar errors. These documents are a first impression of who you are, so allowing errors in your cover letter or résumé signals to your employer that you do not care about the position and will not do a good job. If you do care about the job, show it to your potential employer by submitting a pristine cover letter and résumé. To achieve this, follow the recommended steps below:

• Proofread your cover letter and résumé on your computer screen and correct any errors that you find. Try reading your them aloud to make sure your wording has a smooth, natural flow.
• Once you can read your cover letter and résumé from start to finish twice without finding any more errors, print a hard copy of them for more proofreading. By reading a hard copy of your cover letter and résumé, your eyes have a chance to "reset," and you may be able to find additional errors that you had inadvertently glossed over while proofreading the documents on your computer screen. While you are holding the hard copy in your hands, pay attention to the overall look of your résumé to make sure it is presentable and attractive.
  
• Finally, ask at least one peer, teacher, or parent to read over your cover letter and résumé, and ask him or her for suggestions. Even professional writers will make mistakes and have other people proofread their work before publication because no one can be perfect all the time. Compensate for your natural human tendency to make mistakes by seeking out help from others in finding errors in your cover letter and résumé. It is better that your friend or family member find a mistake than your potential employer. Make any corrections to the errors that your reviewer has found and print out a final hard copy for yourself to check over one last time.

 

Cover Letters and Résumés Review

Now that you have explored how to write cover letters and résumés, review your knowledge in this non-graded activity. First, label the parts of a cover letter by dragging and dropping the labeled parts on the blanks provided. Then, read each statement about cover letters or résumés and decide whether it is true or false. Click the player button to get started.