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Not long ago, I agreed to handle initial screening of résumés for a search committee. Rather quickly, I began to look at résumés and cover letters differently. My advice:
Keep track of what you send, where. Jobseekers should keep detailed records of their activities. One unfortunate applicant sent a cover letter and résumé for the wrong job. This sort of error is preventable.
Always send a cover letter. Some of our applicants appeared to think a résumé was sufficient, so they did not send formal cover letters. Young applicants especially question the value of cover letters when they apply for jobs via email. In my experience, cover letters can make the difference between applicants who are invited in for an interview and applicants who are passed over. Don't miss this powerful opportunity to express your desire and qualifications for a position.
Cover every item of the job ad in your cover letter or résumé. My stint as a screener underscored this classic advice. The search committee members instructed me that they wanted to interview only technologically knowledgeable applicants. But it turned out that less than half of those who applied addressed this issue in their résumés. Again, this was a deciding factor in those we chose to invite for an interview.
Check to make sure the company received your résumé. I was unable to download several of the résumés I received. The format of some cover letters appeared scrambled. Often, documents sent in a certain format did not open on the company computers. Don't assume everything is OK. Call to make sure your material was received in good form.
