Brainstorming your Cover Letter
Before you write a cover letter, you want to take some time to consider some key questions that will drive the message.  

1. Determine what you are looking for
   1. What type company do you want to work for?
      
      

What type of position are you looking for?

1. Choose a job opening
   1. Based on your desires, search for job openings that fit your desires
      1. Some places to start your search: Monster, LinkedIn, Indeed, SimplyHired, Idealist
      2. **NOTE: All of these sites are free to use, but some may require users to sign-up before using them
         
         
2. Do your research
   1. Read the job description carefully.  
      1. What qualities are they looking for in a candidate? What qualifications do you need for their job?
         
         
   2. Also, look at the company’s website, its Twitter feed, the LinkedIn pages of key members of the company
      1. What challenges is the company facing? How could you help to solve them?
         
         

What type of culture does the company seem to have?  Risk-taking? Conservative?

Practice Writing A Sample Cover Letter
Now that you have the information you want to include, it’s time to put it into a cover letter.  

1. Open our Cover Letter Template
2. Go to “File” → “Make a Copy” and title your resume “Last.First - Cover Letter” (ex. Smith.John - Cover Letter)
3. Any information in YELLOW needs to be replaced with your own information.

For tips on how to craft different parts of your cover letter, you can use these resources:

• Harvard Business Review - How to Write a Cover Letter
• University of Colorado - Cover Letter Writing in 3 Easy Paragraphs