Are cover letters less of a thing these days?

[Exterous]

Talking to some clients that have recently posted some high level IT positions (Director, CIO etc) and the majority of their applications are coming in with no cover letter - despite the postings usually asking for one. I was shocked as its been a long time since I've applied for a job without including one and assumed it was generally good form for most professional positions let alone a high level one.

 

[cbrunny]

I just hired a professional staff person. 94 applicants for the job. No cover letter, not even gonna bother skimming the resume.

 

[Chaotic42]

I find cover letters to be important. They provide a narrative which allows me to get a better feeling for the applicant. The interview is far more important, but not only do cover letters provide background, they also tell me what kind of a writer the applicant is. Being able to write well and communicate clearly is really important for just about every industry. Technical aptitude is great, but if you can't communicate with the end user and management, you're not going to be as effective as you could be.

I wouldn't just reject an application without a cover letter outright, but if they can't be bothered to write a couple of paragraphs, I have to wonder how much they really want this job.

Oh, pro tip - if you're going to reuse a cover letter, make sure you change the name of the company to which you're applying. I've seen several letters saying "I'd love the chance to discuss working at Company X!" That's great, I'll forward it over to them.

 

[pete6032]

They are a pain in the butt to write, but why would you not include one if it was optional? Shows some initiative that you want through job and also shows you are a good writer.

 

[Ns1]

yeah I went w/o cover letter on my last round, just seems like a waste of time

when i go into hiring manager mode, i read the cover letter if it's an excellent candidate but i've never dinged someone for not having a cover letter either.

 

[purbeast0]

How long are cover letters supposed to be? I have this one that I basically copy/paste and change a few parts of it at whenever I send it out to people. It's like 4 little paragraphs, maybe like 3 sentences each.

 

[Red Squirrel]

What I always find awkward is making sure that what I put in my cover letter is not also what I put in my email, if applying by email. I almost feel like I'm repeating myself in the email. IMO it would kinda make sense if they got rid of the concept of cover letters and what you would put in your cover letter would just be the body of the email.

And yeah if you're going to reuse a cover letter make sure you change the company name. lmao.

 

[John Connor]

I was taught this practically from day one when I went to Job Corp.

 

[Exterous]

I wouldn't just reject an application without a cover letter outright, but if they can't be bothered to write a couple of paragraphs, I have to wonder how much they really want this job.

Thats kinda my thought especially when the job description says "Include a cover letter" like several of these did. I think its a way to set yourself apart from the stack they get which can be useful when applying for heavily contested positions

How long are cover letters supposed to be?

3-4 paragraphs and probably around 2/3 of a page long.

 

[shortylickens]

I've been using cover letters for 11 years and they never helped me get a job. So I think they're not the most important thing.

 

[OutHouse]

I just hired a professional staff person. 94 applicants for the job. No cover letter, not even gonna bother skimming the resume.

i have a open helpdesk position and im the same, no cover letter = no chance.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Seems silly to completely reject an application based on some semantics. I knew an IT manager like that. If you were a female, or your name sounded like a different race, or didn't go to university, he'd just trash the resume.

 

[John Connor]

Seems silly to completely reject an application based on some semantics. I knew an IT manager like that. If you were a female, or your name sounded like a different race, or didn't go to university, he'd just trash the resume.

I've been told certain companies, namely big companies will just take the hundreds of resumes and scan them in a machine looking for keywords. Don't have those keywords and your resume is tossed.

If you're really interested in the job you'll send a follow up letter.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I've been told certain companies, namely big companies will just take the hundreds of resumes and scan them in a machine looking for keywords. Don't have those keywords and your resume is tossed.

If you're really interested in the job you'll send a follow up letter.

Yeah I would not be surprised. Then they probably randomly pick like 20 to get an interview. The rest are left in the dark forever, because they don't even bother telling people that they didn't get the job. That's the part I hated the most about the process when I was looking for a job. You apply, but then you have no clue if you should continue applying elsewhere or give more time, or what, because there's zero communication if you didn't get the job and you don't want to follow up because then you sound desperate. I got lucky that I did not have to go too deep in that process. Applied for a few jobs, went to a few interviews, and then got a good job and that was it. But it's not always that easy for everyone.

 

[cbrunny]

Seems silly to completely reject an application based on some semantics. I knew an IT manager like that. If you were a female, or your name sounded like a different race, or didn't go to university, he'd just trash the resume.

This is entirely different than "did not put forth a strong effort in applying for the job" - if they don't even try to GET the job, how hard are they going to try to KEEP the job?

Being a discriminatory bigot is not equal.

 

[Exterous]

Seems silly to completely reject an application based on some semantics. I knew an IT manager like that. If you were a female, or your name sounded like a different race, or didn't go to university, he'd just trash the resume.

Yes - those damn cover letters are right up there with sexism and racism

 

[thebestMAX]

I was always very meticulous when applying for a position and a good cover letter was a must. Well, one day I was in a hurry, saw a job I didnt think I had a chance at and just sent a resume with a freakin return address label at the top of the first page. Got the best job of my life up until that point so I changed my thinking a little. Today anything goes and whatever works I believe what with the internet and all.

 

[urvile]

I've been told certain companies, namely big companies will just take the hundreds of resumes and scan them in a machine looking for keywords. Don't have those keywords and your resume is tossed.

If you're really interested in the job you'll send a follow up letter.

That would sound about right. That's generally how recruiters use sites like linkedin. Straight up keyword searches. They need to narrow it down somehow. Although sometimes I get irrelevant invitations to apply based on keywords in my profile. I got contacted about a DB admin position because I had SQL and SQL Server in my profile.

Back to the OPs question I haven't used a cover letter in years. I have filled out plenty of selection criterias though. I just went through the process for a senior technical position and that didn't require a cover letter or selection criteria but it did have multiple interviews. One technical with HQ which is overseas so via skype and one face to face with the guys I will be working with. So horses for courses.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I have never written a cover letter I don't think.. maybe my first job but I don't recall it... so I'm going to guess I didn't.

Either way, if a company wants my talent/skills, how about you write me a cover letter? Fuck off with childish shit that no one reads. If no one will read a god damn resume in full, what the fuck makes you think they will read an entire letter in full?

Again, skip the bullshit in life - no one wants to see it or hear it.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

That would sound about right. That's generally how recruiters use sites like linkedin. Straight up keyword searches. They need to narrow it down somehow. Although sometimes I get irrelevant invitations to apply based on keywords in my profile. I got contacted about a DB admin position because I had SQL and SQL Server in my profile.

Back to the OPs question I haven't used a cover letter in years. I have filled out plenty of selection criterias though. I just went through the process for a senior technical position and that didn't require a cover letter or selection criteria but it did have multiple interviews. One technical with HQ which is overseas so via skype and one face to face with the guys I will be working with. So horses for courses.

Heh, all I have on my Linked in are my employers and a my generic job title and I get recruiters constantly.

 

[urvile]

Heh, all I have on my Linked in are my employers and a my generic job title and I get recruiters constantly.

I tried a (free) premium linkedin account trial and it lets you see the search terms that were used to find your profile and it is actually pretty random but yeah I constantly get hit up by recruiters.Other people I know do as well. I guess they like your job title.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I tried a (free) premium linkedin account trial and it lets you see the search terms that were used to find your profile and it is actually pretty random but yeah I constantly get hit up by recruiters.Other people I know do as well. I guess they like your job title.

I'm about 95% sure it's the company name that brings them in and not the job title. I bet I could change my title to Janitor and still get the occasional one that does mass copy/paste

 

[urvile]

I'm about 95% sure it's the company name that brings them in and not the job title. I bet I could change my title to Janitor and still get the occasional one that does mass copy/paste

My favourite ones are the recruiters who add "if you are not interested then pass it on to some one you know who is" to the end of their email. It's like screw you. Do your own job you lazy ah heck.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I've gotten the oddball job offer through linkedin but it was always super low paying. "Be our main IT guy you need to know everything from PBXes to SANs and we see you have those skills! ...13.5/hour" Ya no thanks. Speaking of which I should login to that some time. I keep getting emails of people waiting for me to accept their invitations, suppose I should get on that.