Covering letter for resume

A resume however nicely prepared, is only a document without any action process mentioned. Hence it is essential to make a covering letter and attach the resume to it. (The covering letter in USA is termed as cover letter). Only then the document tells what is to bed one with the resume. Only in cases where you meet the right person and hand over the resume personally expressing what you want, the covering letter becomes not very important. In cases of newspaper ads and incases referred by somebody, covering letter is a must.



Initially the H.R. personnel will go through the resumes. If the covering letter is written for full one page, they may not get a mind to go through the resume at all. The covering letter should evoke interest to go through the resume.



At the top of the covering letter include station, date 'From' address and then the 'To' address. If you are not including the objective statement in your resume then you should specify it at least in the covering letter. Also the covering letter should include why you are applying for the position and how you feel most suitable. If it is a news paper ad, it would have been clearly mentioned to whom the application has to be addressed. In other cases, people address it to Human Resources Department or H.R. Manager. This is not at all correct. You can contact, try and get the information about whom it has to be addressed to. In many organizations there will be Chief H.R. and under him a few H.R. Managers in charge of various functions such as Recruitment, Promotions, Industrial Relations, Compensation, Welfare etc. In such a case if you send your application addressed to H.R. Manager, you can very well understand the fate of it. In case of doubt, always address to Chief H.R. He/she will mark it to the right person for appropriate action.



Always don't hesitate to phone up to as many people as possible to cull out the required information. Address the covering letter to the designation and not. the name of the person even if you know it. There are two reasons. One is by the time your application reaches, the person might have left the company. The other is, that our country's office culture has not grown to the level of western culture.



The covering letter should be crisp, brief and to the point. Don't write in it, the old usages namely "If selected I will work to the entire satisfaction of my superiors" or "I will leave no stone unturned" or "I will prove my mettle" etc.



Now let us see the core aspects of what the covering letter should contain. In short paragraphs it should include the position (designation) you are applying for, the reference namely whether it is against newspaper ad; or referred by somebody or through word of mouth; why you prefer to apply for the position; and lastly how you feel highly suitable for that position. Also state that you are enclosing your resume which gives detailed description of your qualifications, experience, skill etc. Include all the above information and avoid jargons.



Don't forget to add your signature at the end of the covering letter just above your name.