Seven simple tips for a perfect cover letter

What should a cover letter look like? Career expert Charlotte Hågård, who has written, among other things, Stick Ut, Ansökningsboken and CV-boken, here she presents the best tips.

Consider the difference between a cover letter and a CV. While a CV is a presentation of your education and professional life, a personal letter is a tailored presentation to the employer. So don’t pour your CV into the letter. However, it can be a good idea to highlight qualifications from your CV in the letter that are relevant to the job you are applying for. Because you can’t expect your CV to be read if the letter doesn’t arouse interest.

2. A common mistake is to use the same letter for all applications. But it is important to explain why you want this exact job and why you are suitable for it. Just because you think it seems fun and exciting is not enough. Put yourself in the employer’s perspective, why should they hire you? To write a good cover letter, you need to find out as much as possible about both the job and the employer.

3. Sell yourself. Selling yourself can be difficult, but that’s exactly what you need to do in your letter. Make a list of all your skills and experiences and ask others what they think is best about you. Then, choose the things that are most relevant to the job you’re applying for and talk about them in your letter. Don’t forget to also mention personal experiences that can be useful in your job, such as involvement in associations or language skills.

4. Avoid this. Don’t go into detail and don’t use jargon or industry terms that ordinary people wouldn’t understand. Don’t talk about things you don’t know. Don’t tell your life story or talk about the misery of your life. Remember that this is a business letter, so speak professionally. Don’t be too hasty and skip expressions like “jingle” and “hey, hopp.” Age and marital status are also not necessary.

5. Hurry up. Many people start by telling you about themselves. Don’t do that. The introduction should be short and effective and explain what job you are looking for and why you are suitable for it. For example: “I have read with great interest your advertisement on Metrojobb.se where you are looking for a committed and independent salesperson. That is exactly what I am looking for right now. Developing solutions and presenting them to the customer in a convincing way has been my job for the past 6 years.”

6. Most people write the entire letter as continuous text, but it is not at all necessary. The introduction should preferably be continuous text, the rest can be in bullet form. You can also set up a table where one column is titled “you are looking for” and lists the criteria for the position, while the other is titled “I offer”, and shows how your skills and experience match the criteria. In terms of length, the letter should not exceed one A4 page.

7. Instead of “goodbye”, the letter should end with a call to action. “I look forward to meeting you and telling you more about myself,” for example, is an indirect invitation to call you for an interview. If it is a spontaneous application, i.e. where you have not seen an advertisement, you should clarify whether it is you or the employer who is expected to follow up. For example, “I will call you in a week.” Or “Let me know if it sounds interesting.”

What is a CV and how do you write a good CV?

“CV” is an abbreviation of the Latin “curriculum vitae” which means course of life. Do you want tips on writing a good CV?

There is really no right or wrong way to write a CV. The main thing is that the recipient gets a picture of you and your experiences in a simple and clear way. It is therefore important that you try to be clear when structuring the information you include in your CV.

Different forms of CV

When we give tips on writing a good CV, we usually recommend that you either start from a time axis or from your skills. Time axis is the most common form of CV. Here you describe your experiences under summary headings. The experiences are presented in reverse order, that is, what you did most recently is presented first.

In a CV that is based on your skills, you have the opportunity to describe the skills that you have acquired both inside and outside of professional life. How do you write a good CV based on your skills? Group your skills under themes or headings. This type of CV may be preferable if you are a recent graduate or if you are looking for a job in a new professional field.

Of course, it is possible to mix the two CV formats, and this is also becoming increasingly common. You can have the first page describe your goals, skills and competencies under a number of headings, while the second page describes what your life has been like in chronological order

Good to keep in mind when writing a CV

Provide complete contact information so that the employer knows how to contact you for a possible interview. Suitable items to include in the header or footer are: first name, last name, address, telephone number, email address and possibly date of birth.

Examples of headings in a CV
Work experience
Education and courses
Skills (language skills, IT skills, business systems)
Personal
Other qualifications

CV templates
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