What a covering note is for
A cover letter is not a prose version of your CV. Its job is to carry the context the CV cannot: why this organisation, why now, and how to read the document that follows. When it repeats the CV, it wastes the one chance you have to say something in your own voice.
Structure that holds up
Open with the specific reason you are writing — not “I am writing to apply for”. Give one concrete piece of evidence that maps to the posting. Address the obvious question (a gap, a pivot, a location) plainly rather than hoping it goes unnoticed. Close with a clear next step.
- One page, four short paragraphs
- The employer’s own vocabulary where it is accurate
- One specific example rather than three general claims
- Gaps and pivots addressed in a single factual line
- No restating of what the CV already says
When to skip it
If a portal makes the letter optional and gives you no field for it, a strong CV plus a two-line message often does more than a padded letter nobody asked for. We will say when that is the case.
No promises about outcomes
We do not claim that any of this will get you hired. Hiring depends on the market, the role, the other applicants and timing — none of which we can see. What we can do is make sure your documents are not the reason you were passed over.