[mattchue]

Thanks for the response! I've been trying to do a bit of this with my cover letter: the way I have it structured allows me to write a portion of it specific to each application, and I've been including the cover letter even when not required. It sounds like you are suggesting I ditch the letter altogether for a more succinct note explaining why I am interested and why I would be a good fit in situations where it is not required. I will definitely give that a shot.

[davismwfl]

I have found that most technical people won't read a cover letter, HR will generally, but if there is an HR then it isn't an issue. Instead, use a quick 2-3 sentence description why you are applying and why you think you are a good fit.

And in the end it is a numbers game, as sebg pointed out, rinse and repeat.

I highly recommend customizing each note you send with your resume, don't ever use a "form" style. In the past I would even sometimes adjust my resume to highlight specific skills that are relevant, but that usually comes when you have a lot of varied experience and you need to draw peoples attention to specific skills.

[mattchue]

Noted. I imagine systems like Lever or proprietary hiring platforms usually appear more with companies that have HR, whereas a few sentences for a position that only accepts application materials via email will go a lot further than a multi-section cover letter. I've been trying to stay away from making my cover letter feel too much like a form, but because I'm shorter than most on experience, I feel like it's important to explain myself a bit in the cover letter, but, if it never gets read, it's kind of a moot point anyway. I've thought about switching up my resume depending on the position, but I don't really have a big collection of tools to showcase quite yet so I'm thinking its current permutation is more or less complete.

Thanks so much for your feedback!

[davismwfl]

You might try two things, just as ideas -- even just try it on a few and see if it changes responses any. Or send these to people who never got back to you the first time.

1. In your cover letter quickly describe one/two thing(s) that you have done that is relevant and might open a dialog for further discussion. Or peak someones interest at least.

2. Try reformatting your resume to be less about chronological order and more about skill set and tasks you have done. Use bullet points for libraries, API's etc to help bulk it up and make it obvious what you have worked with. Just don't ever lie.

Option #2 is what people with only a little or people with a lot of experience generally use because chronology puts an age on our head. Personally, I have seen that many people immediately calculate my age after seeing that I have been in industry for quite a while. Sometimes it is funny to watch/hear, other times it is just sad as you literally can watch their attitude flip, same goes for when you are young too. It is just human nature to some degree.

[mattchue]

I'll definitely play around with this. I hadn't considered trying to turn my cover letter into more of a factsheet, or at least formatting information about technical skill. Really appreciate the specific suggestions you're lending.

I am interested to get into a face-to-face conversation with a potential employer, because I sound significantly older on paper and I'm curious how that'll affect the interaction.

[spicyj]

FWIW: I'm an engineer and at my last employer I reviewed hundreds of applications and I'd weigh the cover letter heavily. Someone who's passionate about the job is a huge asset and can easily overcome any minor weaknesses.

[davismwfl]

I personally 100% agree with you. I always weigh the cover letter or email when I am recruiting. My observation is of lately (last few years), both the last two team leads that worked for me wouldn't read the emails/letters. And now recently I have started my own job search and not a single one of my cover letters has been read unless it went to HR first. I say this because after speaking with the hiring managers it was completely obvious they read my resume but not the cover letter sent with it. Yet the HR people had read them because they would ask me questions directly from my cover letter.

I always was trained and believe that you use the cover letter/email to highlight things your resume glosses over because none of us could describe everything we do in each tech role, or resumes would be 50 pages. So the cover letter helps to fill in the gaps, but sadly it just doesn't seem to get read now. I will say at least not consistently it doesn't get read, as I am sure there are more people like us that appreciate them.

[spicyj]

Your "cover letter" can also be a direct email to the hiring manager which mostly guarantees that they'll at least skim it.

[mattchue]

Honestly, this is kind of what I'm hoping for. I'm a pretty adept writer, and my passion for something tends to come through in my writing. It is definitely good to hear that someone out there is hunting for a stand-out cover letter. Thanks for the responses!