next »

[spatula1000]

Sorry for the elementary question, but I think I've researched the process of putting together a CV and cover letter to the point where my brain hurts and now I'm confused all over again.

In a nutshell, when applying for a position teaching at a college, what are the expected norms for the cover letter and CV (page numbers and content)?  I was always taught that the cover letter could be up to 2 pages, and should be several paragraphs, each one highlighting a skill/experience that corresponds to things on the job listing.  It's hard to find help on the web specific to higher ed jobs, (as I know the strategy differs from, say, public school jobs) but it seems like everything I see says the cover letter should be more like one page, and instead of highlighting  bullet points from the posting, it should be a sort of brief and general introduction, and have things like personal stories, kind "fluff" about how great the school is, etc.  Which is it?

[case_insensitive]

I have always kept my cover letter to one page, just to be nice to the SC.

Your CV should be the length that exhibits your accomplishments and activities, which, of course, will vary wifely by person and discipline.  Mine is about 14 pages, which seems excessive. These days, when I add things, I tend to delete or summarize old items to keep it from getting beyond ridiculous.

Some excellent advice can be found here: http://chronicle.com/jobs/tools/cvdoctor/ Please note the link to previous columns at th ebottom.

[spatula1000]

Thanks so much for the reply.  The link to the CV doctor is duly noted, and I actually went there first, but I was unable to find much about the cover letter, only the CV...

Can I ask, then: do you try, in your one page cover letter, to address each strength in a paragraph, or is it much more general, or somewhere in-between?   

[canadian73]

i'm in english:

for a first time TT position, my c.v was three pages (academic degrees, current position, publication, publications accepted but not yet in press, conferences, service/administrative experience, list of references with ranks and email addresses and phone #s)

letter was just under 2 pages. this is pretty much the norm; i wouldn't have felt that i could everything across in 1 page, as case did, but this is obviously quite individual. My letter template was as follows:
1st paragraph: introduce myself and say where i got my degree, say which position i'm applying for, and something like "i think i would be a good fit for this job as ..." followed by 2 or 3 points which show how you match the requirements listed in the job description - this latter part is the most important.

2nd para - if you're new, dissertation reseach summary. if not so new, describe most recent research, preferably book ms or plans for one.

3rd para - if you're new, how you plan to turn the diss into a book. if not so new, describe future research plans. even if you're new, a brief description of where you'd like to go after the 1st book is useful.

4th para - teaching experience and basic teaching philosophy. perhaps list some courses or general areas you'd like to teach.  (an extra paragraph here if necessary)

5th - sign off - make sure to list what you've included and thank them for their time.

MAKE SURE YOU INCLUDE CONTACT INFO ON YOUR LETTER AND CV. sounds obvious, but the search committee who hired me said that 2 applicants included no contact info. dumb mistake, but we all make them, so check.

this formula worked well for me. no offers but a couple of interviews ABD, job right away once book contract was in hand.

good luck. you're on the right track by starting to worry about this now.

[shakie]

Check out the book "The Academic Job Search Handbook" -- very useful!

My CV is about 7 pages...   and I address the job ad in paragraph form.  I think it allows a lot more personality to show through than bullet points...   I try to use interesting and specific examples that address how I would fit their needs.  Sometimes it is one page - sometimes it is two.  Depends on how much they need...  and my cover letter is shorter if they also want the statement on teaching seperate.  

I've gotten good responses from that type of cover letter...  and after writing a few I am able to cut and paste and change a bit to make it work.  

[dr_crankypants]

Something to keep in mind is that letter length is discipline specific.  From what I understand, it's standard to keep a science letter, for example, to under a page.  Humanities letters, in contrast, should be just under two pages.  Yes, they should be in paragraph form.  I wouldn't necessarily use your paragraphs to match their job description (you shouldn't have to overhaul your letter for each job, just adjust it somewhat).

Canadian73's list is pretty good, but I think it sounds more appropriate for a research institution.  I'd adjust it for a teaching institution by expanding the teaching sections and shrinking the research sections.  I also would add a brief paragraph at the end expressing your interest in the institution and job.

Yes, don't forget the contact info.
 

[seniorscholar]

The things in the last sentence of your original post (bullet points, fluff about how you like the school, etc.) would get your letter straight in the round file if it went to a search committee for English (maybe there are differences by field). Two pages is about right. The letter is, of course, different depending on the kind of school (research or teaching). Though we don't want "fluff" do make sure you have a grip of the kind of department and program -- letters to my large public research university that "fluff" with how much the candidate would enjoy teaching at a private university without state interference [I'm not kidding; we did get this letter two years ago] also earn a quick trip to the trash. That is, your letter should recognize the differences between a liberal arts college (don't tell them you're looking forward to teaching graduate students) and a university known for its doctoral programs (don't emphasize your brilliant mentoring of undergraduates in small classes). Do make sure you respond specifically to all of the qualifications mentioned in the job ad. And no bullet points. And give us a choice of ways to contact you: in English (again), where preliminary interviews are generally done December 27-30 at the MLA convention, it's important to let us know how to reach you after the end of the fall term, since we often make our shortlist during exam week when we have time to meet. Provide e-mail, home phone, office phone, cell phone, and (if necessary) a "between December 12 and January 5 I can be reached at [with your holiday number]."

Otherwise, as has been said, you need to describe your research, your publications, your teaching, and anything else that promotes your professional profile, organized in the suitable way for the kind of position and school you're seeking. If you have not yet defended your dissertation, tell us the date of your scheduled defense. If the degree is in hand, make sure that also is clear in the letter as well as on the c.v. And get the really good stuff -- the information that demonstrates your possession of the explicit qualifications required in the advertisement -- into the FIRST paragraph of your letter. (Development can come later.) In any field where there will be 100+ applications, the first paragraph makes us read the rest of the letter (or not), and the letter controls our decision whether or not to read the c.v.

[spatula1000]

This is all good stuff!

The position I'm looking at is in music, and it would entail teaching several different classes (not research oriented).  I'm inclined to present a paragraph for each class they want, and maybe another which addresses, as a group, things like recruiting, being a team player, community involvement, etc.  I guess the challenge will be to do this in less than 2 full pages.

I don't know if this is the best method, but it did get me an interview a while back.  I guess my reluctance to a general, breezy cover letter (well, I wouldn't be flippant or anything), is in trying to rectify one point which I hear repeatedly: that, in a glance, I want them to look at my stuff and instantly think that their job has my name written all over it.  It seems the class-paragraphs idea is a way to do this.

Hmm...

[trabb]

I have a slightly different take on this, for what it's worth.  In my field (literature), standard cover letters are 2 pages.  However, because of the overwhelming number of applicants, search committees are able to ask for more from candidates.  A lot of schools now expect outstanding research, stellar teaching, and the ability to teach a 3-3, 3-4, or even 4-4 load in multiple areas.  For these schools, the standard research letter which mentions teaching but doesn't go into a lot of depth seems inappropriate; just as inappropriate is the standard letter for the "all teaching" school, if such a thing exists anymore.

My approach has been to write what it takes to demonstrate for them that I am what they're looking for.  Now, I don't mean that I explain how I'd teach every class I might ever have to teach. However, if their job ad states that they want someone who can maintain a scholarly agenda while teaching medieval lit, 2nd half Brit lit surveys, composition, and graduate level courses in Romanticism (and I have actually seen that ad), then I'm going to address those things in my cover letter.  On several occasions, that's pushed my letter onto the third page.  I could probably have squeezed it into two pages with 10 pt. font and .5 inch margins, but that just begs for someone to throw the letter out on the grounds that it's too hard to read.  The key for me is to make sure that every sentence - indeed every word - works very specifically towards showing them that they want to hire me.

I'm not suggesting that this necessarily is the best approach.  I can say that I've had interviews at schools to which I submitted a two and a half page cover letter.  Whether I got those interviews because of or in spite of the length of the letter, I have no idea.

Good luck with the applicatoin process.

[iomhaigh]

This is the format that I used in my successful hunt for my interdisciplinary TT SLAC job in English/Theatre/Speech/Communications/Fine Arts/etc.:

First paragraph:  Degree type & status and uni, job applying for, some nice summation line setting up rest of letter

2nd:  Bit about how I have experienced the SLAC environment and would like to return to it for XYZ reasons, including direct mention of their programs (1st year seminars, etc.) that I would happily participate in, etc.  This is also where I address my familiarity with whatever non-traditional populations they might have (assuming I have that familiarity.)   

3rd: Summation of courses I have taught and how they apply to the courses required by the ad (or otherwise listed in the deparment).  Keep it short:  My experiences and training in XYZ have prepared me to teach your Theatre! Joy! courses and Sewing for Scientists.  While I have never taught Avoiding Self-Electrocution, my work as a lighting designer and master electrician have given me the skills necessary to teach this course.  I can teach seminars in Tap & Two-Step and foundation courses in Acting w/o Fear because of blah blah blah.     

4th: Discussion of how range of research interests/skills matches the job and the curriculum, showing active research interests but always taking the focus back to how that can benefit the students/help round out the department's needs as listed in the ad, etc.

5th: Thanks and quick summation.

It was a tight but informative letter, always accompanied by a statement of teaching philosophy and, where appropriate, statement of research goals.  It was usually 1 1/2 pages at the most, often a bit less, since #1 and #5 are really short. 

Sell yourself.  Craft each letter to each job.  And Good Luck!

[stevea]

The cover letter might be field specific but after having served on "too many" search committees (in the biological sciences), the most useful cover letters (1) let the search committee know your positive aspects that are not apparent from your CV and (2) let the search committee know you are specifically interested in their institution and how you would fit in.  That being said, do not go "on and on" about yourself or the institution; again in my field, there is the idea that your CV "speaks for yourself" so speaking for your CV in your cover letter can be a red flag if the letter is too long.

[voxprincipalis]

The position I'm looking at is in music, and it would entail teaching several different classes (not research oriented).  I'm inclined to present a paragraph for each class they want, and maybe another which addresses, as a group, things like recruiting, being a team player, community involvement, etc.

As a fellow musician, I can offer you my experiences, but YMMV widely dependent on the exact configuration of the job. I can't tell from your description whether there is also a studio component to the position; of course that changes not just the kind of letter you'll write but also the weight given by the committee to the various components of your application packet.

I am about to start my 3rd TT job, and have taught at a community college, a large state RI, and (now) a very respectable SLAC. So I've customized my CV and cover letter every which way from Sunday, according to the demands of the position.

The following advice holds true for positions in lots of fields, but I think it's particularly important in music -- know what your potential students will be like and use the cover letter to address how you will teach those students. At my CC, I had to do a lot of teaching to audiences who had never had any formal training in music. My teaching demo was "explain the concept of 'rhythm' to an audience of non-musicians." So for those application materials it was important to use the cover letter to sell my teaching ability and how I could reach students with wide disparities in experience and training. For my RI job, which also had a studio component and was at a school with a large music ed program, it was important for me to talk about how I would address the needs of both performance and ed majors in my studio teaching -- but since they were all going to be music majors, I didn't have to water down my theory teaching at all. You get the idea.

My DMA advisor always said that the point of the cover letter is to highlight and expand on the areas of the CV that you really want to make sure the search committee sees. Additionally, yes, this is where you talk about areas of the job that don't fit into your CV (recruitment, ideas for additional teaching areas, etc.). I don't know about the "team player" bit. I think *everyone* thinks they're a team player. If they like you enough on paper to meet you in person, they'll find out for themselves how well you would fit in with their particular team. 

By the way, while interviewing for the job I am about to leave, I had a search committee member say to me, "Did I hear you say you had experience in XXX?" Me: "Yes, I believe I put that in my CV." SCM: "Oh, I never read the CVs, just the cover letters."

One hour later, in a meeting with the dean and department chair: "Did you say you have training in YYY?" Me: "Yes, I believe I put that in my cover letter." Dept. chair: "Oh, I never read cover letters -- I just read the CVs."

Danged if you do, danged if you don't.....

VP