Cover Letter

Purpose

A resume is only one portion of the correspondence you will need to prepare for your job-hunting campaign.  A well-written cover letter is necessary for introducing the accompanying resume.  Knowing this, you should expect to devote some serious thought to organizing and developing a personal cover letter.  Although you need to write cover letters for individual school districts instead of mass-producing them, you may prepare a "generic" letter of introduction and amend it for specific positions or employers.

A well-written cover letter does the following:

• Personalizes and targets the resume

• Directs attention to the specific skills of the candidate

• Demonstrates the candidate's fit for the position

• Opens the door for further communication

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Tailored to Individual Employers

How can you tailor your cover letter to specific districts and positions?

       Here are some questions to consider:

• Are there critical issues that the school district is addressing within the community?

• What are the key issues or buzz words in the district?

• What can you glean from the school district website?

• Does the district distribute a newsletter to parents and/or the community?

• Term plans?

• What technology does the district or particular school use?  Regarding your certification area, how is technology integrated into the curriculum?

• How diverse is the school district population?

• What are the specific growth patterns or significant demographics in the district?

• Are there special needs related to students whose first language is not English?  Do they have an ESL program?

And related to all of the questions above...How can YOU assist with meeting these needs?

• What relevant experiences do you have to assist with the needs of the district or a particular school in the district?

• What knowledge can you contribute to the solution?

• What are the personal skills or interests you bring to the classroom?

• What specific teaching skills or qualities have your co-op or college supervisor recognized as your strengths?

• How have you effectively engaged students in the learning process?  What are some examples of this using technology, hands-on learning, or real world situations?

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Cover Letter Checklists

Overall impression:

• One page in length, clean copy, easy to read

• Key accomplishments accented--skills match resume and job requirements

• Emphasis is on what you can contribute, not what you hope to gain

• Avoided re-writing resume

• Familiarity with school district apparent--you've done your homework

• Honest, positive representation of yourself

• Written communication skills are flawless

• Communication conveys professionalism and genuine interest

The Details:

• Dated with timely submission

• Addressed to an individual, not a title

• Name of individual spelled correctly

• Colon follows the salutation

• Name of specific position applying for is present

• Limited use of "I" and "my" at the beginning of each sentence

• Error free--proofread several times--not dependent on spell-check

• Verified correct grammar, syntax, punctuation, and capitalization

• Easy to read and scan, 11 or 12 pt. Times New Roman, Arial, or similar "no frills" font

• One-inch margin, single-spaced with double space between paragraphs

• Consistent format throughout; block style is preferred

• Printed on resume paper using a high-quality printer

• Signature at appropriate location

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Sample Cover Letters

Cover letter formats vary depending on the information you are highlighting.  Here are some sample cover letters for your consideration.  Please contact Education Career Services (drsnyder@gcc.edu) for more information and to receive feedback on your cover letter.

Sample 1

Sample 2

Further information is available in the 2011 Job Search Handbook for Educators, pp. 39-41.