Description

In your first assignment for BA2196, you analyzed, assessed, and elaborated on your strengths. You discovered how to explore and explain your ‘value proposition’ – how you ‘add value’ to an organization. For this assignment, you’ll be taking that skill (of assessing, explaining, and elaborating with specifics) and honing it for a potential employer by writing a strong, focused, formal, and professional cover letter. Your task Use the position (internship or job) that you used in your SWOT analysis assignment. Write a powerful, specific, and convincing cover letter. The Business Writer’s Handbook (one of our recommended texts) rightly calls a cover letter “essentially a sales letter in which you market your skills, abilities, and knowledge.” REMEMBER TO DO THE FOLLOWING: Make yourself stand out by describing your specific accomplishments and achievements. Convince the reader that you will be an excellent choice for this position. This letter must clearly demonstrate your interest in, knowledge of, and fitness for a position in your chosen field. REMEMBER, in BA 2196 even your cover letter must have STRUCTURE: Thesis + Topic Sentence + Unified Paragraphs You must organize the information in your letter with a ‘thesis.’ Thus, your first paragraph should end with a ‘thesis’-type sentence, asserting the two or three skills you will highlight in your letter and prove with specific evidence. Each body paragraph will begin with a topic sentence (which is one of the thesis claims). All paragraphs must be ‘unified’: they must stay ONLY on the topic asserted in the topic sentence – NO TOPIC DRIFT. Format requirements—READ CAREFULLY 1. Your letter must be limited to one page, so make every sentence count. Use the “Moderate” margin setting in Office: 1 inch top and bottom, 0.75 inch left and right. 2. Your letter must be formatted as a business letter. See the information on proper cover letter format posted on Blackboard. Do NOT NEGLECT THE CORRECT FORMAT—YOU WILL LOSE 25 POINTS FOR INCORRECT FORMATTING. 3. Your letter is a professional letter of application; any typos, misspellings, punctuation problems, or grammar errors will lower your grade. This letter should be revised, edited, and proofread before you turn it in. 4. Your cover letter must demonstrate why you would be a good fit for the position. It should not be written to say why the position would be a good fit for you. NO: “Your company would be an excellent place for me to learn more about the marketing industry.” YES: “My talents in communication and my successful experiences working in teams strongly match the requirements of this internship.” (And then go on to specify your talents and describe your experiences—don’t be vague!) 5. Your letter must be stapled or paper-clipped to a cover sheet that includes the following information at the top of the page, right-justified and single-spaced (see example bolded below). Student Name BA 2196 Section (identify)/Instructor Name Writing Assignment: Cover Letter 6. You must attach a hard copy of the job advertisement