Pair your application with a cover letter.
When applying for graduate school, you can improve the appearance of your application materials by topping them with a cover letter. A well-written cover letter ensures that your desires are clear to the school and makes you stand out as a candidate. By taking care when composing your cover letter, you can create a strong first impression and make it clear to the school of your dreams that you are a candidate worthy of admission.
Instructions
1. Select, and consistently follow, a standard letter format. Use a business letter style for the composition of your letter. The easiest style to select and follow is the standard block format, in which you align all sections of the letter to the left and do not indent, instead placing a hard return after each paragraph. Whatever style you select, do not deviate from it throughout your letter.
2. Keep your letter concise. If your letter is long and rambling, the selection committee likely will not read it in its entirety. Stick to the point and keep it simple.
3. Open your letter with as specific a salutation as possible. If you know the specific individual who is in charge of evaluating applications, address it to this person. If not, address the letter to the selection committee and use a standard, "Dear Sir or Madam:" salutation.
4. Express your interest. Explain specifically what you are interested in. If you are applying for a specific major, or desirous of enrolling in a certain graduate major, explain this in your initial paragraph.
5. Provide basic details about your previous education experience. When selecting candidates for a graduate program, selection committees commonly look for individuals with specific previous education experience. List details about your previous education experience that you feel have helped prepare you for the program for which you are applying.
6. Explain why you feel that you are a qualified candidate. Devote only a sentence or two to this section of your letter. Your application materials will explain your basic qualifications, so you do not need too many details. Use this as an opportunity to highlight specific things.
7. List the materials you have enclosed in your application. In your final paragraph, state what materials you have placed in your application packet.
8. Use a standard, "Yours Truly," or, "Sincerely" conclusion to your letter.
9. Print your letter on quality paper. By investing time and money into printing your letter on thick, high-quality paper, you add professionalism to your application materials.
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