Writing a good cover letter is vital for your success when applying for a job, and using ideas from existing cover letter examples simplifies the task a lot. A good or bad cover letter can be the difference between getting a chance to impress in an interview for that interesting job you'd really like to have, or to be silently ignored and left with empty hands. Your resume is of course important too, but there is really not that much you could do with your resume to differentiate you from all other applicants. Even if you have worked all over the world, hold a Ph.D and possess two Olympic medals still at the age of 25, your resume is still not (and should not be) more than a formal and clean listing of your experiences. Do you fulfill the requirements for the position? That's what your resume should verify. Also, your resume more or less looks the same for all jobs you are applying to (with small adjustments, you may want to emphasize certain experiences differently from one time to another). In the cover letter on the other hand, you should really tailor your writing for the specific job, and here is your chance to shine and make a great first impression to your soon-to-be-employer.

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But what if you'd like to write a killer cover letter but don't have clue where to start or how it should be done? An approach that has worked for me is to start with real world cover letter examples and then modify them to fit your own taste, instead of having to write everything from the beginning starting with a blank piece of paper. I find it much easier and faster to start with something real and change that, than starting with nothing. That way, you can also be sure that you don't forget to include any important details that you otherwise might have forgotten. Below is one of the cover letter examples I have found very useful to start with whenever it's time to apply for a new job. My hope is that it can be of help for anyone that need assistance in writing a cover letter of their own.

62 Bishop Allen Drive, Apt #5

Cambridge, MA 02139

USA

sarah.smith@somemail.com

October 12, 2007

North American Technology Consultants

Forest Science Park

9 George Washington Way

New York, NY 10001

USA

Dear Sir / Madam

I am writing to apply for the position of consultant as advertised in The New York Times on August 27. As a recent graduate with a Bachelor's Degree in Chemical Engineering from Boston University and with my industrial experience, I feel I can offer you what you are looking for.

As you can see from my enclosed resume, I not only specialised in surface technology and ecotoxicology at university, but these were also a major part of my work experience at Ekzo - ECA Chemicals Inc. where my dissertation project focused on XXXX. These are areas which I have found particularly interesting and I would welcome an opportunity to work with them.

Furthermore, I have shown leadership qualities both in my running of a junior football team and in my role as treasurer of the university chess club where I took responsibility for the members' subscription fees. In both these positions I was required to be reliable, work with other people and show flexibility so I feel that these are qualities which I have. Moreover, my student work at BU frequently involved projects where we had to work together as a group to meet deadlines.

Thank you for reading my application and I hope that we can meet to discuss my application further. I can be contacted at the above e-mail address or on the following phone number X-XXX-XXX-XXXX. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Faithfully

Sarah Smith (Ms)

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As a closing note, don't hesitate to be creative with your letter's layout or presentation, anything that makes your letter stand out in the pile of applications (but of course still keep a professional look) is good. The goal with your cover letter is to grab attention and spark interest to find out more of who you are, so that you will be picked for an interview. If you manage to do that, then the rest is all in your hands! Hope you found ideas to use in this small guide and good luck with your search for a new job!

If you are looking for a template instead of real cover letter examples, head over to this cover letter template!

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