Mistake: Restating Your Resume
“I graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 2012, with a B.A., cum laude, in Political Science, then worked as a substitute teacher at a high school before starting law school in the fall of 2014.” Don’t waste space with facts that are easily obtained from your resume. Instead, you could say (briefly) how your work experience led you to pursue a legal career in an area practiced by the employer.
Mistake: Making It All About You
“I am interested in your firm’s excellent training program for summer associates, and in gaining exposure to a variety of different practice areas.” Focus on the employer’s needs and not your own. As hard as it might be to hear, an employer really doesn’t care about your career goals. They want to know what you can do for them. Show how your background, skills and abilities will be useful to this particular employer. It could be coursework in their specialty, the recommendation of a professor in their area of practice, undergraduate residency in their city, or any other indication of your interest. To make sure your cover letter’s emphasis is on the employer, check to see how many times you used the pronoun “I.” Replace some of your “I’s” with “my” or “mine.” And make sure your cover letter uses the words “you” and “your” often.
Mistake: Using Big Words Not Everyone Knows
Have you ever had a conversation with someone who used large words? It can be very distracting. Attorneys are paid to communicate clearly and concisely. Judges, corporations and others that lawyers deal with are not interested in hearing words that draw attention to the attorney and away from whatever the issue is. Your cover letter should use simple words that effectively relay what you are trying to say.
A Good Cover Letter:
- Tells the employer who you are and what you are seeking;
- Shows that you know about the particular employer and the kind of work the employer does (i.e., civil or criminal work, direct client service, “impact” cases, antitrust litigation);
- Demonstrates your writing skills;
- Demonstrates your commitment to the work of that particular employer;
- Conveys that you have something to contribute to the employer;
- Shows that you and that employer are a good “fit;” and
- Tells the employer how to get in touch with you by email, telephone, and mail.
Hiring attorneys and recruiting administrators use cover letters to:
- Eliminate applicants whose letters contain misspellings (especially of the firm name and the name of the contact person) or other errors;
- Eliminate applicants whose letters show a lack of research, knowledge about, or interest in the employer’s work;
- Eliminate applicants who are unable to exhibit the value they will bring to the employer; and
- See if there are geographic ties or other information to explain the applicant’s interest in that city or employer.