These real job descriptions were used to create the sample resumes and cover letters for Marie and Hien. Notice how both
documents are targeted/tailored to those descriptions.
MARIE GOUCHER
HIEN GOPHER
Amazing Island Yacht Club
Employment Opportunities
At Amazing Island Yacht Club, we are dedicated to
maintaining the highest standards of hospitality and
service. The Club is driven by people who desire to
provide supervisor, distinctive, professional and
attentive service to our members and guests.
The Club provides its employees with competitive
wages housing, staff meals, island bus passes and a
quality working environment.
Experience working as part of a fantastic team at one
of the most exclusive yacht clubs in the world – on one
of America’s most beautiful islands.
If you are interested in employment opportunities at
Amazing Island Yacht Club, please fill out the
Employment Application and email a cover letter to
hr@TheClub.com
Community News Journalist
Baltimore Sun Media is looking for driven, versatile journalists
with a passion for reporting community-driven news and tell
stories that won’t be found elsewhere. These roles could be
covering an important county council meeting or breaking news
story one day and writing a feature on a local community group
the next.
Skills and responsibilities:
*Ability to juggle multiple assignments, creating compelling
content to meet deadlines for web and print, engaging readers,
and having a willingness to work with other reporters to ensure
complete coverage for our target audiences.
*Possess excellent reporting and writing skills to accurately,
quickly and under deadline pressure, produce content for our
websites and publications while also possessing the skill to write
longer, more complex stories with context and perspective.
*Be deft at social media reporting via Facebook & Twitter.
*Skilled at shooting, editing photography and video from the
scene of news.
*Able to develop sources and resources related to the beats,
generate the majority of story ideas and meet deadlines with
content that contains accurate grammar and style, placing the
utmost emphasis on balanced reporting while maintaining high
ethical standards.
Qualifications:
*Candidates should have a Bachelor’s degree, Journalism
preferred, and at least 1-2 years of professional reporting
experience
*Ability to handle daily, short-term and long-term assignments
simultaneously.
*Competency working digitally and with different systems.
*Excellent communication skills, shows initiative and exercises
good news judgment.
*Email Simon Sun (simonsun@baltsun.com) a cover letter and
resume (as PDFs)
Updated Summer 2021
Marie Goucher
1021 Dulaney Valley Road
Baltimore, MD 21204
443-555-5555
Today’s Date
Human Resources
Amazing Island Yacht Club
Xxxxxx Street
Amazing Island, MD 23456
Dear Human Resources Manager:
Thank you for the opportunity to apply for a position at the Amazing Island
Yacht Club. Growing up near the Chesapeake Bay, I spent a lot of my free
time on boats and at the beach. I learned of your esteemed reputation
through my aunt and Club member, Sally McNally. After reviewing your
standards, distinctive, professional, and attentive service to your members
and guests, I feel confident that I would make a great addition to the staff. I
am excited to join the team at one of the most exclusive yacht clubs.
I have perfected managing a multitude of responsibilities, as I am very
organized and adaptable. As a full time student, I hold myself to high
academic standards, while involved in extracurricular activities.
My experience in the food industry has taught me how to work with a wide
range of personalities and an immense amount of patience. Being the liaison
between students, parents and the administration at a private pre-school
allowed me to use diplomatic skills to communicate between multiple parties
in a timely fashion and professional manner.
Furthermore, I have been a captain of my high school soccer team. That role
requires punctuality and a dedication to putting forth 100% at all times. I
guarantee I will bring the same promptness and passion to work as I do to the
field.
After reviewing my resume, you will agree that I am the type of qualified and
industrious person you would like on your team. The combination of my skills
and experiences, as well as my knowledge of the area, make me an asset to
the Amazing Island Yacht Club. I look forward to speaking to management
soon to discussion the position and my application further. Thank you in
advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Marie Goucher
Attachment: resume
Header
This is a traditional business letter
format. Font of the letter should
match the resume.
Address & Salutation
The job description only shares an
email, not a specific person. The email
address is typical for a Human
Resources Department. Find the
address online. Call to ask the hiring
manager’s name.
Opening Paragraph
Engages the reader by sharing a
connection to water in general and the
Yacht Club in particular. Note that
this paragraph uses keywords from the
job description.
Body Paragraph(s)
The job description does not offer
much, so the student had to consider
skills that are important in the job and
necessary to provide high standards of
hospitality. It does not state tasks
done at the particularly experience, but
the skills demonstrated there.
Closing Paragraph
Invite the reader to review your
resume and thank them for their time.
Signature
Hand written signature saved as an
image and added to the letter.
Hien Gopher
Today’s date
Simon Sun
Managing Editor
Baltimore Sun Media
123 ABC Street
Baltimore, MD 212xx
Dear Simon Sun,
Reading the Baltimore Sun in the mornings has been a quintessential part of my
experience growing up in the city. I’m particularly drawn to the concise writing
style of City Hall reporter Julie Scharper. Having spoken with Education reporter
Liz Bowie last week, I’ve learned more about the Sun’s philosophy on reporting,
which has further solidified my desire to work for such an esteemed paper. I was
elated to see an opening for a Community News Reporter. In addition to my love
for all things Baltimore, my strong writing and editing background would make
me an asset to my hometown paper. I embrace the opportunity to use my
journalism skills to report on community-driven news, and thus get to know my
community on a deeper level.
My writing and editing experience has been honed in a variety of settings. As an
editor for Goucher’s Preface Literary magazine and an editorial intern for
Bancroft Press, I’ve created finished products by editing manuscripts and
submissions for content, grammar, style, and accuracy. Through both of these
positions, I learned the necessity of accuracy and attention to detail, while still
meeting tight deadlines. The relationships I developed with my team members
allowed us to collaborate and provide comprehensive reviews of our work.
Though I enjoyed editing, my passion lies in storytelling. At Inter-Act Magazine in
London, I had the privilege of applying my courses in journalism to writing
articles for the publication. Through talking with local artists, I learned about the
integration of faith and art. Listening to their stories was deeply impactful; I
sought to create a narrative that would elicit a similar experience for readers. At
Smartish Pace, I conducted interviews of local authors and wrote book reviews,
connecting the author to their work for our readers. These experiences gave me
exposure to incredible content that I otherwise would have missed.
The community news journalist position is of utmost interest to me because of
the versatility in content and the opportunity to tell the stories that won’t be
found elsewhere. Whether it’s fact-checking hard-hitting pieces or writing a
feature on the local community, I am confident that my organizational and writing
skills will make me an asset to the Sun team. Thank you for your consideration. I
look forward to speaking with you further about this position!
Sincerely,
Hien Gopher
Header
You can use the same header as your
resume, so that it’s clear the documents
go together, as shown here.
Address & Salutation
Address the letter to the person
managing the hiring process or making
the hiring decision. Instructions in the
post stated to send materials to Simon
Sun. Hien used the company website
and LinkedIn to verify the hiring
manager’s name and also obtain his title.
Opening Paragraph
Hien starts this paragraph with a hook
about why he wants to work for the
Sun. He makes a personal connection to
his experience as a city native. He also
uses the opportunity to show he knows
about the organization – by mentioning
his recent conversation with a Sun
employee and another reporter whose
work he admires. It’s clear which
position he is applying to.
Body Paragraph(s)
Hien highlights his strongest experiences
without repeating his resume. He
mirrors the language of the position
description to show that he meets the
qualifications of the role.
Hien then speaks to his personal interest
in storytelling – something that cannot
be captured in a resume. He shares why
it is impactful for him, while highlighting
a few experiences that relate to the
position he is seeking. He allows his
personality into the letter, while still
discussing his skills.
Closing Paragraph
Hien ends the letter by reiterating his
interest in the role and briefly
summarizing his experiences (in an
interesting way). He then expresses
appreciation for Simon’s time.
Signature
Hien ends the letter with a closing,
followed by a type-written signature. If
he had an electronic signature, he could
also insert that above the typed text.
