How to write a cover letter in Australia

A cover letter is where you answer the question your resume can't: why this job, and why you. Most employers in Australia still ask for one, and a good one can be the reason a hiring manager reads your resume properly instead of skimming it.

This guide covers how long it should be, what goes in each paragraph, and the small Australian details that matter. There's a full example at the end.

Do you still need a cover letter?

If the ad asks for one, yes. Applications without one are often the first to be put aside. If the ad says it's optional, it's still worth sending a short one. It's your only chance to explain anything the resume can't, like why you're moving cities or changing industries.

Government and council jobs are the exception. They often ask for a short "statement" or answers to selection criteria instead. Read the ad carefully and give them exactly what they ask for.

Before you write a word

Spend ten minutes on the ad first. It makes the letter much quicker to write.

• Find the two or three things they care about most. They're usually in the first few lines of the role and repeated in "about you". Ignore the nice-to-haves.
• Match each one to something you've actually done. A project, a number, a situation. If you can't think of a real example, leave that point out rather than stretch.
• Work out why you want this job. Something specific about the work, the organisation or what they're trying to do. "It's a great opportunity" doesn't count.
• Find a name if you can. The ad often lists a contact for questions. Calling or emailing them with a real question about the role is one of the best things you can do. It gets you noticed before they've seen your application, and gives you something genuine to mention in your letter.

How long should it be?

One page, and usually 250 to 400 words. That's four or five short paragraphs. Hiring managers read a lot of these, and a tight letter shows you can get to the point.

The format Australian employers expect

• Same header as your resume: your name, then your phone, email and suburb. You don't need your full street address.
• The date under the header, then straight into the greeting.
• The greeting: "Dear Sam" if you've spoken to them, "Dear Sam Nguyen" if you haven't, otherwise "Dear Hiring Manager". Avoid "To whom it may concern" and "Dear Sir/Madam". They read as dated.
• Sign off with "Kind regards", then your name.
• Australian spelling: organise, prioritise, colour, centre.
• Work rights, if it's relevant. If your visa or citizenship might raise a question, one plain sentence answers it before they have to ask.
• Leave out your date of birth, a photo, your salary expectations (unless the ad asks) and your referees.
• Send it as a PDF with a clear file name, like "Jordan Ellis Cover Letter.pdf".

What goes in each paragraph

1. The opening: the job, and why you want it

Name the role and give one real reason you're interested. Skip "I am writing to apply for..." because they already know. If you spoke to someone about the role, say so here.

2. Your strongest match, with proof

Pick the thing they care about most and show you've done it. Say what you did, how big it was and what came of it. One solid example beats three vague claims.

3. A second match

Do the same for the next thing on their list. This is a good place for how you work with people, since almost every ad asks for it.

4. Anything that needs explaining (optional)

A career change, a gap, a move, work rights. Keep it to a sentence or two, and keep it positive.

5. The close

Say you'd welcome a chat, and thank them. That's all it needs.

An example cover letter

Here's a full letter for a Business Analyst job at a water authority. Jordan and Coral Coast Water are made up, but the ad is a typical one. It asks for workshops, user stories, explaining technical changes to non-technical people, and experience with a large system change.

Why this letter works

• It opens with something only Jordan could write. The phone call shows real interest and makes the letter memorable.
• Every claim has proof. A dollar figure, a number of workshops, a number of user stories. Each one is something Jordan could talk about for five minutes in an interview.
• It covers what the ad asks for, in Jordan's own words. Workshops, user stories, explaining change, testing and a big system change are all there, without copying the ad's wording back to them.
• It links Jordan's past to their problem. Council rates are a billing system for every household, which is close to what a water authority does.
• It's about 290 words. Long enough to make the case, short enough to fit on one page.

Mistakes that get letters skimmed

• Repeating your resume. The letter should pick out two or three things and say more about them, not list everything again.
• Copying the ad's phrases back. "I am a dynamic self-starter with excellent stakeholder engagement skills" tells them nothing. Show it with an example instead.
• Claiming more than you did. If you helped with a project, don't say you led it. Whatever's in your letter can come up in the interview.
• The wrong company name. It happens more than you'd think when reusing a letter. Check it twice.
• Starting every sentence with "I". Mix it up so it reads like a person talking.
• Going over a page. If it's long, cut the weakest example rather than shrinking the font.

Tailoring it for each job, quickly

You don't need to start from scratch every time. Keep a base letter with your best examples, then for each job:

1. Rewrite the opening with a real reason for this job.
2. Swap in the examples that match this ad's top two or three needs.
3. Check the names, the role title and the spelling.

It takes about fifteen minutes once you've done it a few times, and it's worth it. Hiring managers can tell straight away when a letter was written for their job and when it was sent to fifty others.

Before you hit send

• Is it one page?
• Does the opening give a real reason for wanting this job?
• Does every claim have an example you could talk about in an interview?
• Are the company name, role title and contact name right?
• Did you save it as a PDF with your name in the file name?