One of the questions we are asked most in appointments is “Do I Need to Write a Cover Letter?” Our answer is, as with most things, “it depends”. You only must write a cover letter when the job application requires one. After that it is your choice. There was a time when it was thought that engineers and computer scientists did not need to write a cover letter. However, our recommendation is that if you really want a particular job – of course you want to write the cover letter. As my mother used to say…. “Optional is not Optional”.
AI has made it so that companies are getting more applications for every posting. A recruiter from one local engineering company told us that last spring that the company got 1500 applications in the first week after opening their internships (They stopped looking after that – which makes it clear that you must apply as close to the posting date as you can to make sure you are considered – but this is a blog subject for another day.) This leads to some companies/recruiters not reading cover letters as it is just too time-consuming and others will look to the cover letter only to explain any questions they might have based on the resume.
Since we are suggesting you should write a cover letter, what is important to include?
First, a cover letter should explain why you are interested in that job at that organization. Companies want to know that you have done your research and that you want to work for them in the job for which you are applying. Often students will write a generic version of a cover letter and use it for all things – from everything I know from being on the hiring end and everything that is being written now, an untargeted letter is not helpful. Talk about the alumni you spoke with, how the product has been useful to you, the article you read about their innovations when you were in high school that made you want to be an engineer etc. Make it personal, true and unique (that will also let them know you didn’t use AI to write the cover letter).
Next, the cover letter allows you to prove you have the skills in the job description through telling the story. Why did you decide on that project, what was innovative in your solution, why you joined the knitting club or how you learn new things very quickly if there is a part of the job you don’t yet know.
Make sure to answer any obvious questions your resume may raise. As an example, if your resume shows that you lived in California, went to school at Tufts in Massachusetts and you are applying for a job in Chicago… say why… don’t let the reader assume you don’t really want this job. A cover letter also allows you to talk about the why’s of your choices of majors and internships. It lets you to confirm this is not a random application.
You can skip writing the cover letter if the application instructions explicitly state “no cover letter” or if you are handing the resume to a friend who is going to hand it to someone else or if you don’t really have a reason to apply to that job. But if you want the job – as my son, the former recruiter wrote (with inspiration from Wayne Gretsky): “when you raise your stick to shoot at the goal — take aim at the job you want at the company you want to work for, find your balance and control the puck with your resume, put a little extra heat on the slapshot with your cover letter, and then continue to demonstrate your skill, poise, teamwork, and drive to win the during your interview.” In conclusion, do you need to write a cover letter? another quote from my mother – “it couldn’t hurt”.
