How to Write a Cover Letter in the Philippines (Samples)

Cover letter or application letter?

In Philippine job posts the two terms mean the same thing: a short letter sent together with your resume. Some employers also call it a letter of intent.

Write one when the job post asks for it, when you email your resume directly to a company, or when you apply as a walk-in. If an online form has no place for a letter, you can skip it.

Your resume lists facts. The letter connects them to this one job. If you still need the resume, start with how to write a resume.

The structure of a cover letter

1. Header: your name, mobile number, email address and city, then the date.
2. Recipient: the name and title of the hiring manager, the company and its address.
3. Greeting: Dear Ms. Reyes, or Dear Hiring Manager, if you cannot find a name.
4. Opening paragraph: the position, where you saw it, and one line on why you fit.
5. Middle paragraph or two: two or three pieces of proof that match the job post.
6. Closing paragraph: your availability, a thank-you and how to contact you.
7. Sign-off: Sincerely, or Respectfully yours, followed by your full name.

Length and format

• One page, about 250 to 350 words.
• The same font and header as your resume, so the two look like a set.
• Font size 10.5 to 12, with normal margins.
• Saved as a PDF unless the employer asks for another format.
• Named clearly, for example Mendoza-Carla-Cover-Letter.pdf.

If you are sending the application by email, the letter can go in the body of the email instead of a separate attachment. See how to email a resume for the short version.

How to write each part

The opening

Say what you are applying for and give the reader a reason to keep going. Skip the long introduction about yourself.

The middle

Pick the two or three requirements that matter most in the job post. For each one, give a short piece of proof: a number, a tool, a result. This is where most letters go wrong by listing duties or by copying the resume.

The closing

Say when you can be interviewed and when you can start, thank the reader, and stop. One or two sentences are enough.

Use the name of the company and the exact job title at least once. A letter that could be sent to any employer reads like one that was.

Sample cover letter

Sample cover letter for a fresh graduate

With no work history, use your internship, thesis, school projects and organizations as proof. One specific project is worth more than a paragraph about being eager to learn.

Pair the letter with a resume built the same way. Our fresh graduate resume example shows how to lay out school projects and internships.

Before you send it

• Check the company name, the person's name and the job title. A wrong name is the fastest way to be set aside.
• Read the letter out loud once to catch missing words.
• Make sure the mobile number and email match the ones on your resume.
• Remove sentences that are only about what you want from the job.
• Confirm every number in the letter also appears, or could be explained, in your resume.

If you want a head start, the cover letter builder gives you a letter that matches your resume's design, and can draft one from the job post on a Pro pass. Edit it until it sounds like you.