Writing an Academic Cover Letter

Writing a strong academic cover letter will help you secure a job interview. But did you know that it’s only one part of the story? In this article, Professor Nicola Whitton discusses how to write a great academic cover letter to evidence your skills and experience.

Selection panels will review your cover letter in conjunction with your CV. Sometimes other documents are also requested, such as research plans or teaching philosophy statements. You need to craft these documents as a group. You need to provide evidence that you meet the requirements of the person specification. The more explicit you can make this, the easier it will be for the selection panel to shortlist you.

To make this as explicit as possible, I suggest adding an appendix to your cover letter. This could be a table or a supporting statement. This should list every element in the person specification, with two or three bullet points/sentences that show how you meet each one. Alternatively, you might use headings throughout your cover letter to show how you meet the requirements, but this will lead to a longer letter. How you do this will partly depend on personal style, and partly on what is being requested – make sure to stick to page limits if they are given.

How long should my Academic cover letter be?

Generally, one or two pages is sufficient for the main letter, but it depends on the seniority of the role and how you evidence the skills required. Don’t repeat the details of what’s on your CV or in other documents. However, you can summarize the key points and signpost where to find out more.

What should be in a cover letter?

Your cover letter should be set out as a formal letter, and contain the following parts:

• Start with a clear statement of the job that you are applying for.
• Give a short summary of you, including the key skills and experience you bring to the job.
• There then follows a series of paragraphs, each highlighting your core skills that are relevant to the job. This will usually include research, teaching, leadership and/or citizenship experience.
• Explain why you want the job and what you can uniquely bring to the role. This latter part is really important. How can you contribute to the school or department? Why should they consider you for the job?
• Flag your skills table or supporting information if you have included either as an appendix.
• Finish by thanking the committee for considering your application.

Showing you meet the person specification

Here are some tips for crafting a statement of evidence that you meet the criteria described in the person specification.

• Use the wording from the statement to be explicit about each characteristic.
• Characteristics will usually be labelled ‘essential’ or ‘desirable’. Make sure that you provide some evidence for all the essential elements as a minimum. Some areas will be stronger than others and that’s fine.
• You can still apply if you don’t meet all of the characteristics; you may be less likely to secure an interview, but it is not impossible.
• Be specific. Rather than saying something generic such as ‘I am an excellent communicator’ use evidence to give an example of your communication skills what the impact was.
• Give detail. Rather than saying ‘extensive experience’ say, for example, ’10 years’ experience’.
• Be clear what you did and what other people did. Did you lead, contribute to a team, or advise? It may be tempting to exaggerate, but this is likely to unravel if you are invited to interview.
• On the other hand, don’t undersell yourself. This is not a time to be modest.

Tone and style

Your covering letter should be professional in standard business letter style. Address the letter to the head of the appointment committee by name if that is given in the job advertisement. It’s okay to show some of your personality but keep your letter formal. If you can show how enthusiastic you are about the job and the institution then that will go a long way.

Some final tips

• Don’t be tempted to use AI to write your cover letter for you – it’s generally obvious and you need to be authentic.
• Never use a generic covering letter – it should be specific and tailored for each job. Show that you have done your homework about the institution and department.
• Avoid spelling or grammar errors – ask a friend or colleague to check your work.

I hope these guidelines prove useful.

Please note however that these are general guidelines for UK academic cover letters and may differ in certain disciplines or geographic areas.

Make sure that you always follow the guidance given by the recruiting institution.

For more advice on Academic Cover letters and CVs, explore the articles below:

• 4 Tips for a Winning Academic Cover Letter
• Academic CV Guidelines
• How To Write A Flawless Cover Letter
• CV Cover Letters With Impact

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