{"id":174,"date":"2015-07-19T03:04:28","date_gmt":"2015-07-19T03:04:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/styleforstudents\/?post_type=chapter&p=174"},"modified":"2015-07-21T21:56:07","modified_gmt":"2015-07-21T21:56:07","slug":"introduction-professional-letters","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-hccc-styleforstudents-1\/chapter\/introduction-professional-letters\/","title":{"raw":"Introduction - Professional Letters","rendered":"Introduction – Professional Letters"},"content":{"raw":"
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Chance favors the prepared mind.<\/strong><\/em>\r\n\u2014Louis Pasteur<\/strong><\/em><\/div>\r\nSome say that if you really want a boyfriend or girlfriend, you\u2019ll find one as soon as you stop actively looking (I\u2019m not sure it actually works). More likely, as the above pithy, insightful quote by Pasteur implies, good fortune comes to those who are ready for it. I recall a student who received a phone call from a company two years after she had sent in her resume. \u201cWe\u2019re hiring now,\u201d a company representative told her. \u201cWhat have you been doing for two years?\u201d It turns out that, unable to get a job, she had gone to graduate school and was just finishing up her master\u2019s degree. The consulting company promptly hired her, and she had suddenly landed her dream job.\r\n\r\nAlthough this may be an unusual scenario, it demonstrates the power of a written document filed away in some company folder. The more professional a paper trail you leave, the more impressive a candidate you become. Any letter you write to a company\u2014from a query letter to a thank you and even to a letter rejecting a job offer\u2014is a professional act and a networking opportunity. Even if composing a letter at midnight with a Coke and bag of Doritos handy, you should be sure that the letter carries with it a tone suggesting that you are sitting across the desk from an interviewer\u2014because some day you may be, with that very letter within the interviewer\u2019s arm\u2019s reach.\r\n
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Self-Study<\/h3>\r\nCheck out these two sites in cyberspace for tips on composing cover letters:\r\n\r\nCover letter advice from the Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute<\/a>\r\n\r\nCover letter advice from the Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison<\/a>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n \r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
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Chance favors the prepared mind.<\/strong><\/em>
\n\u2014Louis Pasteur<\/strong><\/em><\/div>\n

Some say that if you really want a boyfriend or girlfriend, you\u2019ll find one as soon as you stop actively looking (I\u2019m not sure it actually works). More likely, as the above pithy, insightful quote by Pasteur implies, good fortune comes to those who are ready for it. I recall a student who received a phone call from a company two years after she had sent in her resume. \u201cWe\u2019re hiring now,\u201d a company representative told her. \u201cWhat have you been doing for two years?\u201d It turns out that, unable to get a job, she had gone to graduate school and was just finishing up her master\u2019s degree. The consulting company promptly hired her, and she had suddenly landed her dream job.<\/p>\n

Although this may be an unusual scenario, it demonstrates the power of a written document filed away in some company folder. The more professional a paper trail you leave, the more impressive a candidate you become. Any letter you write to a company\u2014from a query letter to a thank you and even to a letter rejecting a job offer\u2014is a professional act and a networking opportunity. Even if composing a letter at midnight with a Coke and bag of Doritos handy, you should be sure that the letter carries with it a tone suggesting that you are sitting across the desk from an interviewer\u2014because some day you may be, with that very letter within the interviewer\u2019s arm\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n

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Self-Study<\/h3>\n

Check out these two sites in cyberspace for tips on composing cover letters:<\/p>\n

Cover letter advice from the Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute<\/a><\/p>\n

Cover letter advice from the Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t
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