Personal Statement/Supporting Statement and Cover Letter

State at the start why you are applying for the position (if it is in a form of a cover letter).

The cover letter/personal statement is you trying to explain how you got the essential skills from the Person Specification (PS). Assign a paragraph to each heading or subheading of the PS. Give an example of where and how you gain the skills. These skills do not exclusive have to be from employment, but volunteering and education. Remember that education gives you vital skills, not just a qualification.

Include a confidentiality and diversity paragraph. Employers’ love this, especially in a very diverse city like London or people-orientated role/sector such as health, education, transport, etc.

Include a paragraph about why you want to work for the company (researching the company is a must first place to start is their values, mission and vision statements. Glassdoor will give you additional insights from employees that can be very valuable. Reviews about the company can tell you customers and clients’ experiences).

The statement can secure an applicant for an interview. Employers sometimes use a recruitment system software that will focus on the personal statement to narrow down applicants for shortlisting.  They will do this based on how well applicants match the essential criteria on the PS. Applicants don’t need to match all the criteria on each heading or subheading (except for the qualification). The more criteria matched, the stronger the application and the likelihood the applicant will be shortlisted for an interview. Try to use the terminologies from the PS; these will be easier to recognise if a company uses software to narrow down their applicants. Companies will never reveal their shortlisting techniques (i.e., human or machine), so it is best to use the same terminologies from the PS and the industry (i.e., in the health sector: diagnosed, referrals, care plan, etc.)

A cover letter needs to end with a “Yours Faithfully” (UK version) or “Yours Truly” (US version) if “Dear Sir or Madam” was used to address the receiver. “Yours Sincerely” (UK version) or “Sincerely Yours” (US version) if a person’s name (i.e., Dear Mr Smith) is used. Remember before the closing with “Yours…. “, inform the receiver that you expect to hear the outcome of your application.

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