Cover Letter

Job Seekers with Disabilities: 8 Essential Tips for Writing a Successful Cover Letter

By Mary Walton, Simple Grad

Acover letter is one of the most important elements of your job application, and it's only right that you spent a suitable amount of time in ensuring that yours is perfect for the vacancy that you're applying for. Of course, you might spend a load of time on your resume, but this is only a small part of the job application process. However, as someone with a disability, you may be wondering if there are any special points that you need to be aware of. Today, we're exploring the ins and outs of writing a cover letter for your job-seeking activities, allowing you to make sure you're maximizing your opportunities for a new job.

#1 - Address it to a Person

When you're writing your cover letter, it pays to do your research to make sure that you're researching the person who is going to be reading your letter, such as the HR manager or the name on the job description, to show that you've put effort into finding the right person. This also looks a lot more professional.

#2 - Mentioning Your Disability

The majority of countries in the world have some kind of discrimination act, especially in Europe and the US, where an employer cannot discriminate you for a role based on the fact that you have a disability. This means you have no reason to mention this disability in your cover letter unless of course, you want to. You may mention in, for example, if you secure an interview and you're in a wheelchair and want to know the best entrance into the building.

#3 - Start Strong

The first thing your employer is going to read is the first paragraph, so you'll want to make sure that you grab your reader's attention straight away. You can do this by writing a couple of sentences just to summarize who you are, what position you're applying for and a positive sentence that makes them want to read on.

#4 - Highlighting Skills

"Sometimes, you won't have had room in your resume to go into detail about a certain job role but, if you've got the experience from a certain previous job that makes you the perfect candidate, there's no reason why you can't use your cover letter to highlight this connection, especially if it's improving your chances of securing the job," shares Matthew Harper, a cover letter writer for Best British Essays.

#5 - Not a Resume Rehash

One of the easiest traps to fall into is simply rewriting or highlighting parts of your resume that you think your recruiter will be interested in. However, your resume is enough, and your cover letter can do so much more.

Instead, try to focus your cover letter on what kind of person you are and how you'll fit into the company you're applying to and what you can contribute.

#6 - Writing an Accurate Letter

When it comes to actually writing the cover letter, many employers may be put off but certain elements, such as poor spelling or bad grammar. However, here are some tools you can use to help:

Academadvisor / Studydemic: These are two blogs full of writing guides to help you improve your general writing skills.

Oxessays: An online writing service, as suggested by Essay Services, that can proofread your cover letter to perfection.

Let's Go and Learn / Writing Populist: These are two leading writing blogs full of information for a more comprehensive writing style.

Academized: An online editing tool to help you make sure your cover letter is properly structured and formatted, it is recommended by Huffington Post in the Buy Essay article.

Top Canadian Writers: A leading copywriting service that can help you find writers to write your cover letter for you.

#7 - Implement Testimonials

If you've ever bought anything online, from maybe an online store like Amazon, you'll be aware of what reviews are and how they work. If you've got some shining reviews, perhaps from a past employer or manager, why not add these to your cover letter, giving your potential employer a chance to see what you're really like.

#8 - Writing a New Cover Letter

Once you've sat and written your cover letter, you might think it's time to put the kettle on and put your feet up, but this is far from the case. If you're applying for multiple job roles, you can't simply use the same cover letter over and over again. You need to rewrite and edit it, so it's customized for each and every job role that you're applying to.

 

About the Author:

Mary Walton is a content marketer and editor. She proofread content for Revieweal and tutors at Grade On Fire.

 

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