Ask HN: Writing cover letters for tech jobs

Now as someone involved in evaluating tech candidates for my company, I find cover letters helpful. First off, it shows that the candidate took additional time to research the company rather than just looking for any job.

Second, I get a better sense of how the candidate's skills fit into the job we are filling. Bullet points on a resume are helpful but leave a lot unexplained. A cover letter can fill that gap.

Third, communication skills are incredibly important on my team. Even in tech jobs, we need to write documentation, email customers, and explain our thought process. Reading a cover letter helps me understand the candidate's writing style better.

Overall, if you are given the change to write a cover letter, write one.

The basic format for a cover letter should be:

- Letter head with your name and contact information

- Date you are applying

- Company's address

- Salutation to the specific hiring manager

- First paragraph explains how you heard about the company, which position you are applying for, and why you are a good fit

- Second paragraph elaborates on a specific tech project that demonstrates that you can do the job well

- Third paragraph explains another reason why you are a good fit for the job. It could be a past tech project you completed, a side project, or something that demonstrates industry knowledge

- Closing paragraph explains how they can contact you and thanks them for reading

- Valediction with your signature and name

There is a good example of a cover letter here: https://www.careerperfect.com/examples/letters/ceo-cover-sam.... (I have no relation to that site and only found it on a Google search now. Trust anything else on that site with a grain of salt.)

Good luck!

In my experience, odds are good your cover letter won't get read or even make it to the right person. So I don't spend too much time writing them. However, a well written cover letter will help you and could be the difference in getting a callback.

My recipe for a cover letter; rewrite their job description with your work experience. Take each bullet point and tie it to something you've done. It shows how your skills fit their needs in a way resumes don't. Bonus if you do some research on the company (something not mentioned in the job description) and also match that to your skills or interest. Also, keep it to less than 1 page.

I like cover letters. They're an opportunity for you to tell me how your skills transfer to the position, why you're interested in it, and that you can communicate clearly in writing.

The transferability piece is important because it's rare a candidate has all of the bullets in the description, but we all know critical thinking and tech skills are broadly applicable - or at least I know that, but I need to know that you're looking at it that way. It also helps you avoid the HR filter with me (more on that in a bit).

Your interest is important because I think there's a lot of flexibility between tech skills and subject matter/domains. The issue is, we all like some and all hate some, so tell me why you like this one. This is sometimes a tough one because HR job descriptions sometimes are generic and don't explicitly provide this info. In that case, take a broad view and tell me what domains are interesting to you. If it doesn't align with your interests, you may get rejected, but do you really want to end up in a role working with subject matter you can't stand?

The cover letter as a writing sample is also great for me because we email a lot. We write user stories. We document testing. We IM. I don't necessarily need to hire Shakespeare, but I'd love for you to be able to communicate your thoughts clearly and with an appropriate level of polish.

Now, on that HR filter, I don't know how common this is but I ask my recruiter to pass through any application that includes a cover letter. So at least for my vacancies, a cover letter guarantees the hiring manager will directly review your materials. I think that provides an opportunity to candidates who don't check all of the boxes, but might have some transferable skills to consider.