The cover letter assignment asked us to find a job or internship advertisement that peaked our interest. We were then asked to formulate a cover letter that would be used to apply for the position we found advertised.
Reflection on workshop:
While revising my cover letter I need to look at…
• reformatting back and forth from Microsoft Word to GoogleDocs
• looking how to create sentences that are not quite as awkward with the words I chose
• including a reference to the resume throughout
• connecting some of my ideas throughout my cover letter
• glancing back over the rubric to make sure I hit all of the points
I thought our conversations were the most productive when someone was looking for specific advice on a piece of their cover letter. For example, someone asked for better ways to integrate the desire part of the AIDA model into her cover letter.
Reflection on process:
The whole cover letter process was less stressful than I originally imagined. I have only had to write an official cover letter once and I really don’t think it played a role in me getting the position. I have always dreaded cover letters. In hindsight, it was likely because I was never instructed on how to properly write a cover letter. It always seemed like this adulting task that people just knew how to do one day. I really enjoyed the assignment though. It also made me realize that I was tricked into writing a couple of informal cover letters for grad school applications. I liked that we got to tailor the cover letter to a job that interested us. That allowed our responses to be genuine and truthful.
Being able to workshop the letter was important. I always make sure that I have a couple people look at my work before I submit documents like that. Sometimes words make sense to me but they don’t to other people. Other times I look over typos several times because my brain fills in where needed. The review process allowed me to figure out what pieces of the puzzle I was missing. I feel more confident about my letter now and I was able to make some small changes that hopefully made a big impact.
