Stand Out Above the Crowd

I’m not talking about the hit song from A Goofy Movie (but that is a great song!). If you are a recent college graduate – congratulations, you are now competing against hundreds of thousands of ASP.NET Web Developers just like you. If you did not go the college route – congratulations, you are now competing against hundreds of thousands of ASP.NET Web Developers just like you.

My point is that either way, you are going to have a lot of competition. So, how do you get potential employers to read your resume? As someone who has been both the interviewee and interviewer, I know it all starts with the cover letter.

Your Cover Letter

A well written cover letter goes a long way to getting an employer to read your resume. You should have the following things in a cover letter:

• The position title and company
• Highlights from your resume that match the job description
• Your availability for both an interview and a potential start date
• Your contact information

You should always keep a general cover letter template for yourself and then tailor it for each and every position you are applying for. If you send a generic cover letter to every employer then it will look like you are spamming employers from job boards. To make the process easier, I highly suggest creating a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet listing each position, resume highlights, etc, and then using a Microsoft Word mail merge to easily automate your cover letter. Luckily for you, I have a sample that you can get for free by subscribing to the HoffsTech newsletter!

I hope you found this article helpful! Stay tuned for more tips on job searching for developers!