Oregon State University Career Guide - Flipbook - Page 26
COVER LETTERS
Your cover letter is a separate document to support your résumé. This is your chance to talk about why
you9re excited to work at the organization and what specioc experience you will bring to it. It9s not a
place to repeat the items in your résumé, but to elaborate about your top qualiocations.
As with your résumé, it is important to tailor each cover letter to the specioc position you are applying
to. Before you send your cover letter to any organization, ask at least two people to proofread it for
spelling and grammatical errors.
Cover Letter Checklist
OVERALL FORMAT AND EDITING
□ One page, 10-12 pt font, left-aligned with no indents.
□ Single-spaced, but with line breaks between paragraphs
and sections.
ADDRESS BLOCK OR HEADER (2-4 LINES)
□
Your name, phone number and professional email address,
each on its own line with no spaces between lines.
□ Mailing address or just city and state (optional).
□ Include a line of space between the header and the date
or start of the letter.
DATE
□ Date in a spelled-out month, day, year format
(September 14, 2024) at the top of the page, before the
organization9s address.
EMPLOYER/ORGANIZATION ADDRESS
(3-4 LINES)
□ Name and title (if known) of the person to whom you are
sending the letter, then the name of the organization.
□ Mailing address of the organization with city, state and
ZIP code.
□ All lines are in a left-aligned block.
GREETING (1 LINE)
□ Standard business letter greeting:
