Writing Your Career Documents: Cover Letters and Personal Statements

As you prepare to “fling your Green and Gold afar” after graduation, you will likely need to write a professional personal document, typically either a personal statement (graduate school or grant programs) or a cover letter (job opportunities). While the specific requirements of each document may differ somewhat, they both follow similar principles. This blog post will help you pack your career bags for the world beyond Baylor. 

The professional personal document is one of several suitcases that you will bring with you. The other most common document is a professional identity document, such as the  CV (curriculum vita for graduate school) or the résumé (for job opportunities). This professional identity document is like your carry-on bag: it contains just the essentials you need access to during travel, such as your ID, ticket, phone, wallet, etc. (contact information, education history, and work history). The professional personal document is like the checked luggage: you will need to pack the clothes and accessory items that fit both your personality and the activities you have planned for the trip. 

Before you get started making your packing list of possible narratives and details to include in a professional personal document, it helps to get a sense of what tasks you need to pack for. First, the personal statement or cover letter should showcase your professional personality. Just as your style comes through in the clothes and accessories you pack, your voice should come through in this document. While you may look at templates and samples to understand the form and genre, you will not want to simply fill in your information or draft it with an AI. Your employers are looking to hire a human that they believe will be a good colleague, so write like a human. Many writers are nervous about their professional voice, lamenting “I write like I talk.” In the drafting process, do write like you talk—you can edit for professional tone in later drafts. It is much harder to insert your voice into a pre-drafted form letter than it is to start with your voice and moderate it for a professional setting. You want to keep your readers interested, and writing like your professional, human self will do that much more effectively. 

Second, the personal statement or cover letter should fit the program or job you are applying for. You may love your favorite sneakers, but you probably shouldn’t pack them for a hiking and camping trip—you should bring hiking boots or shoes that you don’t care about getting a bit muddy. Likewise, you may have a lot of great personal and professional traits and skills or wide-ranging interests—pick the ones that are relevant to what you are applying for and that answer any questions mentioned in the prompt or posting. You may bring some unique skills or interests to the position, but you will need to make it clear how they are relevant when you mention them. For example, the HR department at the accounting firm you’re applying to may not care that you were involved in a fraternity or sorority, but they would be interested in hearing details about how you managed the budget for the philanthropy fundraiser. The biology program admissions committee may not be interested in your camp counselor summer job, but if leading nature hikes for kids sparked your interest in science communication, it could be worth sharing. Demonstrate your unique skillset and interests but do so in a way that readers can see how you are a great fit for the position or program. 

Lastly, think of your application documents as part of a set. When you travel, you will want to have matching luggage tags with the same information: you don’t want one lost bag going to your current apartment and the other going to your old address. When readers look at your documents, they should easily see that you are the same person—you should make sense as a professional whole. On the other hand, you don’t want to bring two of everything in your personal item and main luggage item—you don’t have the space. Likewise, your readers do not want to read a cover letter or personal statement that covers information they could have gotten from glancing through your résumé or CV. You should mention jobs you have had, but only to present narratives that support your claims to relevant skills. While it may be appropriate to include relevant coursework on your résumé or CV, you do not need to mention any coursework that does not demonstrate anything unique about you in your cover letter or personal statement. For example, almost every medical school applicant took organic chemistry, so only bring it up if you have a specific, interesting, and relevant story to share about it. Be consistent but not redundant.

For more tips, see our 2020 blog post and stop by the UWC to pick up a handout on personal statements or cover letters. For specific feedback on your own draft, schedule an appointment with a UWC consultant to help you with any stage of this job or graduate school application writing process.