On Tuesday, November 7, I went to the STARR Career Development Center. I signed up to the cover letter workshop.  Where students learned the importance of a cover letter, as well as how to make one. A cover letter is a one page statement that should demonstrate to an employer that you have certain necessary skills and strengths for a specific organization and a preferred position. We learned that in a cover letter that you should make it clear what your intended job will be, the skills you have gained to help you in this job, and that you will be a valuable asset to the organization or company.

Towards the end of the meeting, the advisor split us into many different groups and gave us three sample cover letters. The assignment was to read through all three cover letters and to decide which one would be the best. Every group picked the same cover letter, number 3, because it was the most formal lone. It addressed the employer respectfully and clearly articulated his skills and valuableness in the specific position he was applying for. The 3^rd letter also emphasized how appreciative he was that the employer gave up his time and consideration.  The other two letters were horrible in comparison. Both cover letters were extremely unprofessional, not even addressing the employer by his name, and were extremely short. They did not emphasize the assets they would have to the company and one even suggested that the he would schedule the interview.

I learned a lot from this workshop.  I learned what a cover letter is, as well as its importance for applying for jobs. I learned how to format and how to professionally address and employer and how to list my skills that I have learned from previous jobs. It wasso fun!