This week, I decided to attend GRF Sam’s class on writing quality cover letters and personal statements. While I was initially unsure of whether this event would help my writing at all, I am glad to have attended in retrospect. For instance, Sam emphasized how cover letters act as the main liaison between your resume and the recruiter. There is so much that a recruiter can miss just by skimming through a resume, so it is important to highlight the transferable skills and accomplishments that you would like to highlight.

This was a new concept for me, as I had never thought about how my resume may be perceived by a recruiter. Even if I value certain accomplishments over others in my resume, there is no way for the recruiter to know this without some notes on my cover letter. Sam’s two examples (one cover letter and one personal statement) were extremely helpful in showing us an example of a cover letter and the kinds of information it should transmit to the recruiter. Here, I realized that I could communicate my brief life story even before an interview, just like how we all applied to college with supplemental essays, not just a resume and a transcript.

When applying for internship opportunities, I find it very difficult to cater my cover letters to specific employers. How should I change my transferable skills to fit the company’s vision? What would an employer in this firm value the most based on the position description? These are the types of questions that run through my mind. From now on, I will present myself more with anecdotes and transferable skills in communicating your strengths to any employer, rather than stressing the positions and names of my previous jobs. Job titles may be important, but what you got out of those jobs matter more.