This document provides an overview and agenda for a tutorial on cover letters. It includes discussions on identifying one's personal brand, the purpose and elements of an effective cover letter, and examples of different parts of the cover letter like the opening, skills matching, and closing. The tutorial also covers how to write an accompanying cover email to apply for jobs. Students are provided with action items which include drafting two cover letter samples for peer review and submitting a skills matrix by a given deadline.

1. COMM 202
TUTORIAL 3: COVER LETTERS
T13 & T19
COMM 202
TUTORIAL 3: COVER LETTERS

2. WHAT’S YOUR BRAND?WHAT’S YOUR BRAND?
2 minutes to jot down 4-5 words that describe
you best
-skills, personality, etc.
THINK: if you had 30 seconds to describe who
you are, what would you say?

3. TIMELINETIMELINE
Week 5
Oct 3-7
Week 6
Oct 11-14
Week 7
Oct 17-21
• Intro to cover
letters
• Skills matrix draft
due
• Cover letter
peer review
• Skills matrix due
Friday, October
14th
After that it’s LinkedIn, Networking, Info interviews and
Employment interviews!
• Resume peer
review
• Bring in 2 copies of
your resume draft
and job posting

4. AGENDA
COVER
LETTERS
HOOK
ACTIVITY
COVER
EMAILS
ACTION
ITEMS
AGENDA

5. AGENDA
COVER
LETTERS
HOOK
ACTIVITY
COVER
EMAILS
ACTION
ITEMS
AGENDA

6. AGENDATHE PROCESSTHE PROCESS
COVER EMAIL
RESUME &
COVER LETTER INTERVIEW
GET HIRED!

7. CAN you do
the job?
Do you
WANT
the job?
Are you
the right
FIT?

8. WHY WRITE A
COVER LETTER?
WHY WRITE A
COVER LETTER?

9. WHY COVER LETTERS?WHY COVER LETTERS?
• shows your INTENTIONS & INTERESTS
– shows SINCERITY and RESEARCH
• demonstrates ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE
– CREATIVE and PROFESSIONAL
• opportunity to elaborate on YOUR STORIES &
PERSONALITY
– drawn from your SKILLS MATRIX

10. RESUME VS. COVER
LETTER
RESUME VS. COVER
LETTER
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

11. RESUME VS. COVER LETTERRESUME VS. COVER LETTER
the resume is about YOU
the cover letter is about THEM

12. ELEMENTS OF COVER LETTERELEMENTS OF COVER LETTER
OPENING
SKILLS
MATCHING
CLOSING
INTEGRATION
BRANDING

13. AGENDAOPENINGOPENING
Dear Hiring Manager,
My name is Georgia Sakurai and I am
applying to your Marketing intern position.
I believe I have the necessary
qualifications for this role.

14. AGENDAOPENINGOPENING
Dear Hiring Manager,
My name is Georgia Sakurai and I am
applying to your Marketing intern position.
I believe I have the necessary
qualifications for this role.

15. OPENING TAKEAWAYSOPENING TAKEAWAYS
• expresses keen and genuine interest and/or passion
for position
• genuine and unique primary and secondary
research indicating interest in company (make sure
the research you show is tied to your interest)
• name drop (where applicable)
• makes a clear expression of the skills/experience
matching the job description

16. AN EXAMPLEAN EXAMPLE

17. ANOTHER EXAMPLEANOTHER EXAMPLE

18. THE HOOKTHE HOOK
How fast can you change four tires? One hour? Ten minutes? A few
years ago I witnessed a Formula One team do it in 2.7 seconds.
They said a perfect run would be just one second. In everything
that I do I strive to reach that one second – that perfect test score,
that perfect presentation, that perfect career. After speaking with
Jake Woodson, a recent hire, Dion Chen, and other industry
professionals, I know that my personality and passion lies in sales
and trading. Through my unique athletic background and passion,
I will provide competitiveness and drive that will set a benchmark
for future interns. I cannot wait to sit on a trading floor, execute
trades, and engage in research while receiving mentorship from
the most world-renowned investment bank. A career with
Goldman Sachs is my one second and this is how I will help
Goldman reach its own one second ideal:

19. YOUR TURN!YOUR TURN!

20. SKILLS MATCHINGSKILLS MATCHING

21. SKILLS MATCHINGSKILLS MATCHING
• skills from your skills matrix
match the job description
(use STAR)
• best relevant experiences
(2-3)
• link education and other
training to the job, and link to
the co/position if it’s not
obvious
• any other qualifications
if it doesn’t belong, don’t
include it!

22. SKILLS MATCHING EXAMPLESKILLS MATCHING EXAMPLE

23. SKILLS MATCHING EXAMPLESKILLS MATCHING EXAMPLE

24. SKILLS MATCHINGSKILLS MATCHING
• each line proves you have the necessary skills &
aptitudes to perform on the job
• always link to the company/position if not obvious
• use skills listed in the job description

25. CLOSINGCLOSING

26. CLOSINGCLOSING
“Thank you for looking at my application. I
hope that I have shown you that my
interpersonal skills, my leadership skills, and my
ability to perform on a team make me a
perfect fit for ABC position. Thank you very
much and I hope to hear from you soon.”

27. CLOSINGCLOSING
“Thank you for looking at my application. I
hope that I have shown you that my
interpersonal skills, my leadership skills, and my
ability to perform on a team make me a
perfect fit for ABC position. Thank you very
much and I hope to hear from you soon.”

28. CLOSINGCLOSING
• make a good final impression
• show your passion
• restate skills with a different wording
• give genuine thanks
• leave a call to action
• tie to previous examples/stories (tie to hook)

29. CLOSING EXAMPLECLOSING EXAMPLE

30. CLOSINGCLOSING
NO!
address the elephant in the
room
-grades
-year off
-etc.

31. CLOSING EXAMPLECLOSING EXAMPLE

32. CLOSING EXAMPLECLOSING EXAMPLE

33. BRANDINGBRANDING

34. BRANDINGBRANDING
remember your brand? USE IT
• consistent throughout cover letter
• fits in with the company’s values & yours
• create the image you want to project
• use job research assignment

35. INTEGRATIONINTEGRATION

36. INTEGRATIONINTEGRATION
• cover letter & resume use SAME
formatting
• stands out!
• cover letter reflects and expands
on resume
• be mindful of spacing

37. FORMATTINGFORMATTING

38. FORMATTING- STARTFORMATTING- START

39. FORMATTING- STARTFORMATTING- START

40. FORMATTING- ENDFORMATTING- END

41. FORMATTING- ENDFORMATTING- END

42. COVER EMAILSCOVER EMAILS

43. COVER EMAILSCOVER EMAILS
• <150 words
• utilize bold face type to emphasize
important points
• show your brand & personality
• make them want more!
– ie. resume, cover letter and and interview!

44. COVER EMAILSCOVER EMAILS
Subject: Job Title – Your Name OR come up with a very short hook for example “Beer & people lover has found her dream
internship” or “Your new HR Intern is inside” or “HIRING MANAGER NAME, I’m excited!” Depending on how cool the company is.
To: Name of job poster/whom it may concern/hiring manager (never write Dear Sirs – hello sexism!),
Your advert posted on WEBSITE NAME for JOB TITLE really caught my attention; Labatt has “good things brewing” and I would
love to be a component of the “good things”. I believe my XYZ (people management) experience alongside my drive,
tenacity and exemplary communications skills are a solid match to your needs. I also match the job requirements in the
following ways:
• 2 years of leadership experience
• Exceptional presentational skills
• Advanced Excel capabilities
• UBC Innovation Award recipient
• 5 years’ experience organizing team building activities
I am confident that I will be a fantastic addition to your team! I have attached my resume and cover letter, please do not
hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have or to set up an interview on 778-XXX-XXXX.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards,
Your name
(778)-XXX-XXXX
Email address
LinkedIn profile URL

45. QUESTIONS?QUESTIONS?

46. ACTION ITEMSACTION ITEMS
• TUTORIAL next week!
• for tutorial: 2 hard copy cover letter drafts for peer
review
• SKILLS MATRIX DUE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14TH @ 2PM ON
TURNITIN
• sign up for office hours
REGISTER
FOR
TURNITIN:
T13:
CLASS
ID:
13730071
PASSWORD:
cookies
T19:
CLASS
ID:
13730071
PASSWORD:
cookies

47. HAPPY
THANKSGIVING!
HAPPY
THANKSGIVING!