Ultra-Quick Guide to Cover Letters

For an ultra-quick guide to cover-letter format, you can’t beat this instruction from career counselor Louise Giordano: Be brief, appropriate, and professional. In her article for Quint Careers, Cover Letters Count!, Giordano also offers this formatting advice:

• Length: No more than one page; generally no more than four paragraphs.
• Tone: Professional, not too stuffy or too casual. Read the letter aloud or to someone else to check for tone.
• Appropriateness: Avoid extraneous cliches, fillers, and superfluous information — but be honest and sincere.