Software Developer Cover Letter

Address your letter directly to the hiring manager, recruiter, employee, or whoever the person is that put out the job posting.

If a contact name is supplied or if it is possible to find out a name, avoid using a general greeting such as "To whom it may concern" or "Dear Sir/Madam." Use the relevant title before the person's last name — for example, "Ms. Evans" or "Mr. Costa."

In no more than three sentences, tell the person why you are writing and what position you are applying for.

Your writing should reflect the exact job title and you should briefly highlight key job advertisement requirements that you meet, for example, that you have two years' post-tertiary experience as a software developer.

Use one sentence to point out that you feel you are a great candidate for the software developer position.

Refer back to the job advertisement and directly address the stated requirements. Write a few sentences on your qualifications and training as a software developer and where you studied.

For a software developer position, employers usually look for at least a Bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or similar.

Mention how many years you've worked as a software developer. Briefly go through your work history, mentioning only the most relevant jobs. Keep this to a single sentence as you will be discussing your exact duties and work experience further on.

Start by matching prominently featured duties and responsibilities mentioned in the job ad with core skills and competencies from your resume. For example, if the job ad requires that you'd need to develop software specifications, mention the extent of your experience in that regard.

Offer some insight into other relevant skills to give the hiring manager or recruiter a better idea of your abilities. This might include skills related to full-stack development, software life-cycle design, code testing, and more.

In a few sentences, outline your most recent role. Revisit the job description to ensure that you align your responsibilities with the key competencies they require.

Discuss your biggest achievements in your previous job, for example, successfully developing and installing new systems, optimizing user interfaces, and more.

If possible, include metrics to emphasize the impact of your contributions on the projects assigned to you, for example, leading the development of an android app by writing 80% of the code in React Native and achieving excellent stability with less than 10 crashes per 10,000 users. The more specific you are, the better.

Do a bit of research and highlight two or three specific things that show your enthusiasm and admiration for the organization, for example, their achievements in the industry, corporate culture, community involvement, or favorable employee feedback.

Reinforce that you would be a perfect fit for the job by adding desirable character traits, such as being a detail-oriented problem-solver with excellent interpersonal skills. Let them know that you are eager to join their team.

Indicate why being a software developer at their organization appeals to you. Typically, this would include mention of their line of business and how you envisage adding value to their products or services.

Refer the reader to your attached resume and any additional documents that may have been requested. Invite them to look at an online portfolio or website that reflects a range of your software development projects.

Encourage them to contact you via email or phone should they need additional information. Let them know that you look forward to hearing from them.

Offer your thanks for their time and consideration. End your letter by adding "sincerely" or an acceptable synonym and sign off with your full name.