Main disadvantages of using the same covering letter for your job applications.


Posted May 25, 2013 by adrianlee00

A crucial part of any successful job application is a well-written, up-to-date and relevant covering letter.

 
A crucial part of any successful job application is a well-written, up-to-date and relevant covering letter. Simply dusting off the same covering letter for successive job applications can lead to outdated information being included in your job application, and simple mistakes being made, which will reflect poorly when employers are making their decision about the right candidate.

In an increasingly competitive job market is it vital that when preparing your job application you give yourself the best chance of making the right impression straight away, and this involves making sure you have a first class covering letter. Employers will be ruthless when sifting through the responses they receive to vacancies so that they can refine their list of applicants to those they wish to interview from the only insight they have into the quality of candidates available. This is done through the application form, curriculum vitae and covering letter.
A good covering letter should leave an employer keen to find out more about the applicant. It should encapsulate all of the relevant information from the applicant’s experience and skills that are directly applicable to a particular vacancy. It needs to be clear and concise and requires the applicant to make sure they understand exactly what the employer is looking for before completing their job application.

It is always a temptation to have a stock covering letter on hand to send alongside a completed job application, especially when someone is applying for a number of different vacancies in a short space of time. This may make it easier to complete applications more quickly, but comes with a number of potential pitfalls that may prove to be counter-productive in the long run.

A covering letter should be specifically tailored to reflect why an applicant is the ideal person to recruit to the position being advertised. Simply using a generic covering letter is likely to mean that the applicant is not making the most of their opportunity to make a strong first impression on their potential future employer. It also increases the likelihood of mistakes being included in a job application if certain information or keywords refer to a different vacancy, skill set or examples of experience and aspirations. It also means that any basic errors – from spelling mistakes to inaccuracies relating to personal details – will be repeatedly submitted as part of the job application process.

The importance of drafting an effective covering letter tailored to specifically support a given job application cannot be understated. Getting it right can carry the same weight as your qualifications and experience. Getting it wrong can have an equally, yet unwanted, impact if gives a potential employer the wrong impression. This is why it is important to resist the temptation of using the same covering letter for your job applications.
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Issued By adrian lee
Country United Kingdom
Categories Business
Last Updated May 25, 2013