HOW TO WRITE EFFECTIVE COVER LETTERS FOR ACCOUNTING JOBS

When applying for accounting jobs, it’s important to craft a cover letter that showcases your skills and experiences in a way that sets you apart from other candidates.

A cover letter serves to introduce you to recruiters and helps to highlight your qualifications and experiences that are relevant to the position you are applying for.

Though physical cover letters are not as common these days, you will still be expected to introduce yourself in a similar way. This could be via a professional email, a cover statement on a job portal, or as a question on an accounting employer’s online application form.

Regardless of the medium, the same principles for introducing and promoting yourself still apply! Here are our tips on how to catch accounting recruiters’ attention through your cover letter.

1

Choose An Appropriate Salutation

If you have to address your cover letter to a recipient, choosing an appropriate salutation is important. It sets the tone for the rest of the letter and shows that you have taken the time to research the company and the position.

Tailor Your Cover Letter To The Specific Job And Company

When writing a cover letter for a specific job and company, it is important to tailor the letter to the company’s specific needs and the requirements of the job.

If you know the name of the recruiter or hiring manager, you can use their name as the salutation. For example, “Dear [Name of Hiring Manager].”

If you do not know the name of the hiring manager, you can use the title of the relevant hiring team as the salutation. For example, “Dear [Company Name] Campus Recruitment Team.”

If you are unable to find the name of the hiring manager or can’t determine who the hiring team is, you can use a general salutation such as “To Whom It May Concern” or “Dear [Company Name] Team” as a last resort.

In short, do your best to personalise your salutation as much as possible, given what information you have on hand.

This can be done by researching the company and the job posting, and then highlighting your relevant skills and experiences that align with the company’s mission and the job’s requirements.

A good trick is to study the job posting, identify relevant keywords, and then try and include those keywords throughout your cover letter. Make sure you do this in a way that sounds natural though, and not repeat the same keywords over and over.

Additionally, if the company has a specific mission or values that they very publicly highlight, you should do your best to mention how your own values align with those of the company.

Highlight Your Relevant Skills And Experience

When highlighting skills and experiences in a cover letter, it is important to provide specific examples of how you have used them in the past. Here are a few examples:

4 Showcase Your Enthusiasm For The Position And Company

Showing enthusiasm for the position and company in a cover letter is important as it demonstrates your interest and motivation for the role.

5 Proofread Your Cover Letter

Proofreading your cover letter is an essential step before you send it out, as it ensures that your letter is polished, professional, and errorfree. Here are some things to look out for:

If you have experience with bookkeeping and financial statements, you could say “As an intern at XYZ company, I assisted with preparing financial statements and bookkeeping tasks. I also helped the team to reconcile accounts and prepare financial reports in Quickbooks.”

If you have experience with auditing, you could say “ I have experience in conducting audits and identifying areas of risk and improvement. I took part in an audit case study competition in university where we reviewed the financial statements of a local non-profit organisation and pitched recommendations for improvement.”

If you have experience with budgeting and forecasting, you could say “ I worked on several projects at my university that required me to analyse financial data and make predictions about the future performance of a company or a department.”

Use verbs and the active voice as much as possible in your writing, as that keeps things punchy, concise, and easy to read.

As an accounting graduate, you can showcase your enthusiasm for the position and company by highlighting how your skills and experiences align with the company’s mission and the job’s requirements, and showing that you’ve put enough thought into why you want this specific position. Here are some examples:

If you are applying for a position at an accounting firm, you could indicate why you chose this specific firm over others. For instance: “I am excited about the opportunity to join XYZ accounting firm and contribute to its public mission of helping clients succeed financially. I am confident that my knowledge and experience in auditing and risk management aligns well with the firm’s focus on client success.”

If you are applying for a position in a non-finance company, you could explain what draws you to this industry. For instance: “I am excited about the opportunity to work with the finance team at XYZ company. I am particularly impressed by the company’s recent innovations in cloud computing, and I am confident that my experience in budgeting, forecasting and financial modeling will help the company achieve better growth and profitability.”

Check for spelling and grammar errors

This is the most basic step in proofreading. Use spelling and grammar checkers, but don’t rely on them entirely. It’s always good to give it a read through by yourself.

Check for formatting errors

Make sure that your letter is properly formatted, with correct spacing, margins, and alignment. Also, check that your font size is consistent throughout.

Check for consistency

Make sure that your letter is consistent in terms of tone, style and language. Also, check that your qualifications, skills and experience are consistent with what you have listed in your CV.

Check for accuracy

Make sure that the information you’ve provided is correct. Check for typos, errors, and inconsistencies in your contact information, the job title, and the company name.

If possible, try and have someone else review your cover letter too. This could be a friend, a family member, a mentor or a career counsellor. A second set of eyes may spot errors or inconsistencies that you missed.

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