Cover letters

The purpose of the covering letter is to create a favourable impression in the recipient’s mind. It will be sent with a CV when applying for an advertised vacancy or to make speculative applications to enquire about a possible job or work experience opportunity.

Your covering letter should:

• Fit easily onto one page of A4
• Focus on the criteria from the opportunity advert or description
• Be written clearly and succinctly to highlight the most relevant skills
• Use space well and avoid very long paragraphs
• Convey your enthusiasm for the job and organisation
• Be addressed to a particular person where possible i.e. ‘Miss Brown’ instead of ‘Dear Madam’
• End with either ‘Yours faithfully’ (if addressed to Sir or Madam) or ‘Yours sincerely’ (if addressed to a named person)
• Be written in business language rather than overly-academic language, use our list of action verbs to help, in our publication, CVs and Cover Letters, and Personal Statements

Using Generative AI

Gen AI can be helpful in analysing job adverts and for creating initial drafts of your covering letters. It’s worth noting that drafts created by Gen AI tend to lack personalisation, may not showcase your experiences optimally, and may not understand the specific context of the job, employer or industry. You will need to further revise and personalise your covering letter to ensure it is effective. Look at our Generative AI pages for more information.

1. The introduction

Explain who you are and why you are writing. This will include some or all of the following:

• Where you are studying and the course which you are taking
• Your expected grade (at least if it is a good one!)
• The job/position that you are applying for, and where you saw the advertisement (website, newspaper etc.). If you are making a speculative application then state what you are looking for (e.g. vacation work) and, if appropriate, for how long you would be available
• If you have had contact with the company before (perhaps through meeting their representatives at a careers fair) then mention this in the introductory part of your letter

2. Why you want to work for them

Give the employer at least two to three specific reasons why you want to work for them:

• Tell them why you are interested in this career area and why their organisation
• Perhaps your interest developed through work experience, attending a company presentation
• Do some research to help you think about why this company appeals to you and go beyond the obvious – nearly all large employers offer ‘challenging opportunities’, ‘team-based environment’, or ‘international opportunities’.
• What are the unique features that draw you to them?

3. The ‘selling’ section

"Review this section carefully for every single application you make as the requirements will differ from employer to employer. Relevance is key to success."

This is a very important section. Think about what to highlight and make it clear to the reader why you are a strong candidate for the job. Be selective with your examples rather than trying to cram all of your experiences in:

• Summarise each piece of evidence briefly, in two or three sentences, backing up your claim of that skill, e.g. ‘I have strong communication skills, developed liaising between academics and student peers to highlight and resolve issues in my role as Year Group Representative’
• Draw on examples, where possible, from different parts of your background, for example, academic, work experience and other activities
• Review this section carefully for every single application you make as the requirements will differ from employer to employer. Relevance is key to success

4. The ending

• State that you enclose or attach your CV or application form as requested
• Mention that you are looking forward to meeting them in an interview, or a similar positive statement
• If there are certain periods when you are unavailable for an interview, let them know

Sometimes you may wish to explain special circumstances which might be important in your application, for example, grades not being as good as required, or you may wish to ask for reasonable adjustments in an interview if you have a disability.

See our Equality, diversity and inclusion page for more guidance on job applications and disclosing a disability.

As a research student or postdoc writing a covering letter, what you choose to highlight will depend on whether you're applying for a role within or outside of academia.

What to emphasise when applying for different kinds of work

Academic work

When applying for a postdoctoral or lectureship position, you may want to emphasise the following:

• Research interests and experience
• Research techniques you are familiar with e.g. subject specific lab-based, software, modelling, simulations, GIS, risk assessment, and any other analytical problem-solving techniques
• Teaching, demonstrating, tutoring or supervising experience
• Publications – papers, book chapters, peer/journal club reviewing
• Conferences – presentations, including poster presentations
• Administrative experience e.g. helping with College/Department Open Days, welcoming new students, managing Health and Safety in your lab
• Financial/commercial awareness e.g. writing grant applications/proposals, buying supplies/equipment for the lab, managing lab or other budgets

Industry

When applying for an industry based position in research, you may want to emphasise the following:

• Research interests and experience
• Administrative experience
• Research techniques relevant to the post
• Key skills e.g. project management, creative problem-solving, negotiating and persuading, achieving results
• Commercial awareness e.g. from work experience, research collaborations with industry or courses run through the Staff Development Unit for Postdocs

Sometimes, you might need to explain certain areas of your CV more fully to an employer.  The most common examples are gaps in your CV and grades not being as good as required/expected:

• Explain gaps, beyond a couple of months, in your CV, otherwise employers are most likely to jump to negative conclusions
• If the gap was caused by an accident or an illness, it is useful to explain this.
• Cite, if possible, any problems, as an example of your resilience or your ability to overcome adverse circumstances
• Explain any justification for disappointing A-level grades, otherwise your application may be rejected.  For example, illness or accidents or family problems or even a good teacher leaving can all have an impact on results which employers can appreciate
• Highlight academic achievements from your current course, where appropriate, if A-level grades are a weaker area on your CV
• Don't focus heavily on negatives, but don't give a weak excuse and don't lie! Show how you have turned a potentially negative situation into a positive one
• If the situation is personal or complicated, you could touch on it but state that  you are happy to discuss it at interview

Some students choose to discuss their disability, neurodivergent condition or other health condition in the cover letter. The main reason for this is to ask for adjustments during the recruitment process. For further information and guidance on doing this, see our page on careers and disability.