Career Support

Creating cover letters that stand out

Your cover letter is your first opportunity to shine and highlight your personal attributes, key skills, experience, and passion for the role you are applying for.

A cover letter is generally a one-page document that compliments your resume by providing a snapshot of your standout skills, attributes, and experience relevant to the job advertisement.

It’s usually read before your resume and is therefore a vital part of the job application.

It’s a way of introducing yourself and summarising who you are, where you’ve come from and why you’re a good fit for the job.

What is important when writing a cover letter?

The main role of a cover letter is to clearly outline how you fit what the employer is looking for, and to to show them your enthusiasm to do the job.
Each job vacancy will attract many applicants - to stand out, you need to demonstrate how your skills, experience, attributes and abilities match the job that you are applying for.
If you personalise your cover letter to the role you are applying for (such as using the employers name, and use the specific skills/descriptions used in the job advertisement) you are more likely to trigger the employers interest in reading your resume, and hopefully to get an interview for the job.
Make both your cover letter and your resume strong and stand-alone documents, aimed at convincing the reader that they should meet you for an interview.

Resources to help you create your cover letter

Download a printable version of Creating Your Cover Letter
TAFE SA Student Success and Wellbeing's Cover Letter Recommended Format
Example Cover Letter (based on fictional people and jobs)
Seek Career Advice - explore a wide range of useful articles and templates to make your resume a representation of your unique personality

Kick-Start Your Career - Online Webinar Series

Our “Kick-Start your Career” Series has more information available about all aspects of career planning and job preparation.

You can watch our recorded presentation “Applications that Get Noticed” for more specific tips and detailed information about creating a winning cover letter that will get noticed by employers.

View Kick-Start Your Career Series

Get help with your career planning or job preparation

Current and recently graduated students can book an appointment using the links below, or by calling TAFE SA Customer Support on 1800 882 661. Support is available for recently graduated students for 12 months after completing your training with TAFE SA.

Book an appointment

Career Planning

Note: All resume support appointments are encouraged to be booked as online virtual appointments using Microsoft Teams. This will allow us to share our screens and look at your resume together in real-time.