Cover letter for employment for 17yo

Witsend_2

I have to say when my daughter applied for a Saturday job she applied in letter form and that was respected. She received letters in reply. However, she applied to small local business' and that makes a differance. She was 15 at the time and wrote the letter. She has worked for a local employer for 18 months, and is paid well and above the minimum wage, paid for her lunch hour. Above all she is respected.
Best wishes I hope you son get's what he is looking for.

Savvy_Sue

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Don't you think that there's a difference between teaching them what it's appropriate to write and writing it for them? With the first it'll be a new skill learned, with the second it's taking the responsibility away from them.

Indeed there is. But there are times when I just need to short-circuit the whole "I don't know what to write" process. For my own sanity!

If I make suggestions about what they should write, they argue with me / forget what I've told them / ignore me. If I write it, and leave something stupid at the end (like "Lots of love"!) they read it, change the wording slightly, remove the stupidity, and have a template for future adaptation.

And, frankly, that seems to be the school's approach with coursework and UCAS Personal Statements - "here's one someone made earlier, now write your own."

And I still remember the terror of the blank page when writing covering letters ...

Although in my defence, we haven't yet got to the 'covering letter with a job application' stage. We've done "letters to ask for work experience" at 15, and we've done "fill in this form because we're giving you the job after an informal interview", and "tell the tax office why you appear to be working 3 different jobs but make it clear you're still at school".

Whether I'll be asked for help with 'proper' job applications is anybody's guess. But as they're all likely to be 21 before that starts, less help may be needed. Who knows, they may even listen to the Careers Service!

WeirdoMagnet

I agree that the letter should be more formal. I'd help him write it, but wouldn't do it for him, after all, he'll have to give you the 'facts' to be included anyway.

He needs to highlight his 'key skills' that are relevant to the kind of jobs he's applying for. For instance, you could say "I have recently successfully completed my first year of {insert course title & level here} at Gloucestershire College of Arts and Technology. I particularly enjoyed working as part of a team for {insert relevant coursework/project here}, and since starting the course have improved my personal organisation and administration skills.

You should also mention any previous jobs, including paper rounds or voluntary work. This shows the potential employer that you can show up for work and do the job (albeit a small one!). Think of the skills an employer will require: cash handling, customer service, admin skills, good attendance & timekeeping etc and try to glean examples of previous experience to include.

Also include activities like DofE and Scout/Guides - you can use things like organising a summer fayre/camping trip as examples of the above skills etc.

HTH

Georgie

PS. I wouldn't put his age in the letter - you don't want to give them any reason not to employ him (too young?), and they'll be able to find it out from the CV.

Jarvisma

I would agree with several of the AP's. My advice would be:

1)Don't put his age in the letter. It's not necessary and may result in unfair and possibly subconscious steryotyping by the reader.

2)Don't use abbreviations for anything, it's just good practice. Even if it's something you think everyone in Gloucester should understand - Who's to say the employing manager hasn't just moved there from Northern Ireland!

3) Get him to either ask in the shops or look for signs in windows and apply for specific openings, summer jobs will be advertised. If they aren't advertised there probably aren't any or they have been filled so a general enquiry letter will be a waste of time.

4) By all means help him but make him write it himself. Trust me you can sniff 'letters from well meaning mum's' a mile off and there's nothing that would put me off giving someone a job more than if they can't even write their own application letter.

Back in the days when I was a retail manager, the best way NOT to get a job was for a mum to come in and ask if there was any part time work for 'my son / daughter'. It may not seem obvious but if a person of any age isn't confident enough / enthusiastic enough (and that may not be the case but is the impression it will give) to come in and ask about a job themselves they are unlikely to be confident / enthusiastic enough to work in the shop dealing with customers.

Hope that helps. I know it may seem like tough love but he has to learn that he has to go out and hunt for jobs and not expect them just to be "offered to him" on a plate or because his mum's letter writing skills got them for him!

LittleVoice

Georgina wrote: »

PS. I wouldn't put his age in the letter - you don't want to give them any reason not to employ him (too young?), and they'll be able to find it out from the CV.

That would, of course, be illegal age discrimination - but difficult to prove so sensible to do as Georgina and others have said.

Hellz85

Don't put the age in. Not even school dates. Don't even mention the name of a future college/uni coz they'll work it out. People shouldn't be judging on age and they will if they get the chance. The NMW imo is set so that employers can target "children" and discriminate against them.:mad: Also, Make sure the mystery 17yearold gets hol pay. I didnt know at the time that I was entitled to it and missed out on £648 over four years (14-18). I'm a student myself and although a little older I wrote my cv in such a way that it is impossible for people to know my age without meeting me. It's worked really well and I'm now doing a weekend job on £8.50ph. :money:

Savvy_Sue

You might be able to get away with that for a while, but increasingly employers are asking for proof of ID so they can be sure you are entitled to work in the UK. So, that's a birth certificate or a passport, or some other combination of documents which is likely to involve giving away your age.

jobbingmusician

If they are asking for a covering letter, I always see this as the same as the personal statement on an application form. I have a VERY good hit rate of being shortlisted (I apply only for jobs where I know I meet the person spec!)

So in a covering letter you have to demonstrate how you meet all the things listed in the person specification for the job. My covering letters all start the same: 'In writing this letter, I hope to demonstrate how my particular experience meets the requirements you are looking for'. This can be said with various levels of formality depending on the job you're going for. Then you take each heading on the person spec and write a couple of sentences showing how your experience meets this.

No person spec? Make one up! If you are applying to be a paper boy, for example, I would want to demonstrate punctuality, the ability to start early in the morning, reliablity, good health, enjoying the outdoor life, and honesty.

ellybelly89

jobbingmusician wrote: »

No person spec? Make one up! If you are applying to be a paper boy, for example, I would want to demonstrate punctuality, the ability to start early in the morning, reliablity, good health, enjoying the outdoor life, and honesty.

it's very honest making things up

Savvy_Sue

jm's point is that if you haven't been given a job description and person spec before applying, you work out for yourself what they need and tell 'em how well you meet that!