Job Application Letter Examples and Writing Tips

Your job application letter (also known as a cover letter) is your chance to stand out from the competition by showing the employer how your experience, skills, and work ethic qualify you for their specific job opportunity.

If the purpose of a CV is to tell the employer what skills you offer them, the purpose of your job application is to explain why those skills are important and how the employer can benefit from them.

But even if you’ve already read up on how to write a cover letter, putting one together can be difficult.

Check out these nine job application cover letter examples, a cover letter template, and writing tips to get over your writer’s block and put together a letter that dazzles the employer and moves your name onto their interview shortlist.

9 job application cover letter examples

The best tone, structure, and content for your job application letter depends on the job you’re applying for and the type of company that’s reviewing your application.

Here are nine examples of cover letters for different job applications and cover letter formats for:

1. teaching jobs
2. engineering jobs
3. accounting jobs
4. nursing jobs
5. IT jobs
6. emailing an application letter
7. asking about possible job opportunities
8. following up on a previous job application
9. withdrawing a job application

1. Teaching job application letter

Enthusiasm, people skills, and classroom results are valuable elements when writing a teacher cover letter.

Tell the employer why you’re interested in their learning centre by spotlighting values, teaching approaches, or specialist areas that match your skills and interests.

Previous experience is always a plus, so if you’ve taught in a classroom setting before, be sure to highlight relevant details:

• Class sizes
• Methodologies
• Important classroom metrics (e.g., student performance)

Here’s an application letter for a teaching job that highlights all the right traits:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

2. Engineering job application letter

Whether the employer is looking for data analysis or mastery of AutoCAD, you’ll need to demonstrate the right technical skills to be considered for your dream engineering job.

This cover letter for an engineering job makes a strong case for the applicant by highlighting their qualifications, practical experience, and knowledge of computer-aided design software:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

3. Accounting job application letter sample

Already using hard numbers to optimise your CV work experience section? Do the same when you write your job application letter.

Hard numbers are highly effective at highlighting key achievements on a cover letter because:

• numbers stand out on a page full of words
• they’re easy for employers to understand and remember

This accounting job application letter does an excellent job of quantifying the applicant’s achievements. And as accountancy is a highly results-oriented field, the employer will find the approach highly persuasive:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

4. Nursing job application letter example

If you’re applying for a nursing position that asks you to submit a CV, you’ll need to send in a nursing cover letter, too.

This cover letter for a nursing job application demonstrates how you should focus on outlining what you can do for the employer rather than what the job will do for you:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

5. IT job application letter example

If you’re applying for an IT job, your application letter should, at a minimum, include any qualifications or certifications the role requires.

But to win over the employer, you’ll need to show them what benefits these experiences will bring to their team if they hire you.

See how this IT job applicant highlights their relevant qualifications but also teases how they could use these skills to help the employer if hired as a member of their staff:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

Other types of job application letters

Depending on your current situation or application, you might need to use a different format for your job application or write your cover letter differently.

Here are a few examples of job application letters that have different formats or end purposes:

6. Email cover letter

Here’s an example of an email application letter that doesn’t include the date or employer’s contact information:

7. Speculative job application letter

A speculative job application letter is a covering letter you send out when you want to find out about possible job opportunities.

You write speculative job application letters differently from traditional covering letters, normally focusing on why the applicant wants to work for the employer rather than why they’re qualified for a specific job. Here’s how:

Download This Job Application Letter Sample

8. Follow-up letter for a job application

Perhaps the employer is experiencing delays. Perhaps they just have a lot of CVs to read through. Either way, you haven’t heard back from them for a couple of weeks.

It’s time to send a follow-up letter.

Follow-up letters politely remind the employer about your job application and reaffirm your interest in working for them. If you want to make more of an impact, you can also highlight a relevant skill or achievement that qualifies you for the role.

Download This Follow-Up Letter Sample

9. Sample withdrawal letter for a job application

If you’ve accepted another job offer or decided to take your job search in another direction, you might find yourself writing a withdrawal letter to inform an employer that you don’t wish to work for them anymore.

While it might be easier just to stop communicating with an employer after you decide to cancel your application, writing a courteous withdrawal letter has notable advantages:

• You can keep a line of communication open with the employer
• The employer might contact you first about new opportunities

When writing a withdrawal letter, be polite, apologetic, and give a reason for your decision to withdraw your application. Here’s an example withdrawal letter, written for email:

Job Application Letter Template

Below is a template you can copy and paste into your word processor and personalise to suit the specific job you’re applying for.

If you’re not sure how to edit the template, read through this guide on what to include in a cover letter.

1. Application letter header: Open your application letter with your name in a large, bold font at the top of the page. Add your email, phone number, and other contact details under your name within the header.

2. Date: Write the date you’re writing the letter underneath your header (right-aligned) — for example, ‘14 October 2021’ or ‘14/10/2021’.

3. Employer’s name and contact details: If you know the employer’s name, state it in this section, including the company’s name and address. If you don’t have a name, use the name of the department you’re applying for or a job title like ‘Accounting Manager’.

4. Salutation: When addressing your job application letter, use ‘Dear Mr’, ‘Dear Mrs’, ‘Dear Mx’, or the name of the department or company you’re applying for. Add the recipient’s surname to the salutation to personalise your application letter. Try to avoid using ‘Dear Sir/Madam’ or ‘To Whom It May Concern’ as they’re considered cliches.

5. Opening paragraph: Start your application letter by stating how you became aware of the job opening introducing your professional work history, and explaining directly why you feel you would be an ideal fit for the role.

6. Body paragraphs: In 1–2 paragraphs, expand on what you’ve built on in the first paragraph by emphasising your experience and key CV skills and relating them directly to the needs of the job.

7. Closing paragraph: Show gratitude to the employer for taking the time to read your application letter. Next, invite them to contact you through a call to action (CTA) by mentioning how grateful you’d be to receive an interview and include a phone number and email address for employers to reach you.

8. Professional sign-off: Use ‘Yours sincerely’ to close your letter if you used the recipient’s name in the salutation. If you went with the department name, use ‘Yours faithfully.’ Type or sign your name to end your job application letter. A hand-written signature is optional but looks professional and conveys how much effort you’ve put into your job application letter.

How to write a job application letter (3 tips)

Below are three ways to enhance your application letter:

1. Use correct formatting

To use proper job application letter formatting, set your font size to between 10.5 points and 12 points. Smaller font sizes than 10.5 points are difficult to read, while font sizes larger than 12 points appear unprofessional.

Keep your page margins between 1.25 cm and 2.5 cm. Use a good cover letter font like Times New Roman or Arial for your application letter so employers can easily read your application letter.

Always use the same font for your CV and cover letter as this shows attention to detail. An easy way to ensure your application documents match is to use an online CV creator that also offers a cover letter builder.

Also, save your job application letter as either a .docx or PDF file or according to the job description.

2. Write to enhance (not parrot) your CV

Your job application letter accompanies your CV, so there’s no need to repeat information across both documents.

Instead, treat your CV as a factual overview of your abilities and accomplishments. List what you can do and what you have done.

Then use your job application letter to explain how your experience is relevant to the job. Specify how you can help the employer by bringing your skill set to their team.

3. Tailor your application letter to the job advert

With each new job application, adjust your application letter’s content depending on the job.

Companies use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to find ideal candidates, so ensure your letter gets past the ATS by using the exact keywords you see from the job advert.

Customised descriptions of your skill sets and work history also show employers you’ve put effort into your application letter and understand what qualifications they’re looking for.