Yes, this is a bit tedious, but if you want to beat out your competitors, You have to do more than your competitors and you have to do it better.

When your cover letter meets or exceeds employer’s expectations, you will know that following a cover letter checklist like this one was truly worth it.

  • Is your letter customized to the specific requirements of the vacancy that you are applying for? (No generic letters!)
  • Is your letter one page long?
  • Have you used single line spacing, short sentences and short paragraphs?
  • Is your font clear and easy to read? Does the general appearance of your letter make a good first impression?
  • Is your letter concise / focused / to-the-point?
  • Have you highlighted the best and most relevant parts of your CV while avoiding unnecessary repetition?
  • Have you addressed your letter to the most appropriate person by name?
  • Will your introduction get the attention of the reader?
  • Have you responded to the job advertisement and linked your skills and abilities to the job on offer?
  • Does your letter demonstrate that you have researched or have prior knowledge of the organisation you are applying to?
  • Have you focused on what you have to offer the organisation, rather than on what’s in it for you?
  • Does your letter conclude positively – without being too passive or too pushy?
  • Have you referred to other documents such as your CV or Academic Transcript that are enclosed with your letter?
  • Have you proof-read your letter? Don’t rely only on your spell checker. Any spelling, word-order, or grammatical mistakes could sink your application on the very first page!
  • Have you attached the right cover letter to the job you are applying for? (Sadly such mistakes are not uncommon!)
  • Have you saved this copy for your future reference? (It will come in handy at the time of interview)
  • Have you named the document appropriately? (It could be “Your Name_Cover Letter_Company’s Name” or “Your Name_Cover Letter_Job Title” or “Your Name_Cover Letter_Job Reference Number”) (E.g. John_Cover Letter_ABC Ltd”)
  • Have you changed the property setting of your document? (Title should be “Cover Letter”, Author should be “your name” & under comments you should mention “your contact numbers and email address”)

Cover Letter Writing Assistance

  • Feel free to fix up an appointment with your Employment Consultant for assistance
  • Get writing tips from your Consultant
  • Bring in your cover letter for review by your Employment Consultant

Raj Singh & Kathryn Lovelidge
Employment Consultants
iCareer Ltd
Division of Cornell Institute of Business & Technology, Auckland
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