ai-job-search/.claude/skills/job-application-assistant/06-cover-letter-templates.md

framework_version

framework_version
1.0.2

Cover Letter Templates and Tailoring Guide

Template: Custom cover.cls (XeLaTeX)

Cover letters use a custom LaTeX document class (cover.cls) with Lato/Raleway fonts.

Output file: cover_letters/cover_<company>_<role>.tex Compile with: XeLaTeX (cover.cls requires fontspec) Font directory: cover_letters/OpenFonts/fonts/

Compile command

cd cover_letters && xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode cover_<company>_<role>.tex

Expected output: Output written on cover_<company>_<role>.pdf (1 page, ...). Any page count other than 1 is a failure that must be fixed before presenting to the user.

Compile-and-Inspect Loop (MANDATORY)

After writing the cover letter and before presenting to the user, always compile and visually inspect the PDF. Iterate until the layout is clean:

1. Run xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode cover_<company>_<role>.tex
2. Confirm page count is exactly 1 and compile succeeded
3. Read the PDF via the Read tool and visually check: signature fits at the bottom, no text cut off, bullet font matches body

Known template pitfall: itemize inside \lettercontent{}

The \lettercontent{} macro appends \\ to its argument. This breaks when the argument ends in \end{itemize} because \\ has no line to break after the environment closes, producing ! LaTeX Error: There's no line here to end. and no PDF output.

Wrong (breaks compile):

\lettercontent{Here is how my experience maps:
\begin{itemize}
    \item ...
\end{itemize}}

Correct — close \lettercontent{} before the list and wrap the list in the matching Raleway-Medium font so typography stays consistent:

\lettercontent{Here is how my experience maps:}

{\raggedright\fontspec[Path = OpenFonts/fonts/raleway/]{Raleway-Medium}\fontsize{11pt}{13pt}\selectfont
\begin{itemize}
    \item ...
\end{itemize}\par}
\vspace{6pt}

\lettercontent{[next paragraph]}

The font wrapper is mandatory — if you just move \begin{itemize} outside \lettercontent{} without the \fontspec block, bullets render in the default body font (Lato) and visually mismatch the rest of the letter.

Document Structure

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
% Cover Letter - [Company], [Role]
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

\documentclass[]{cover}
\usepackage{fancyhdr}

\pagestyle{fancy}
\fancyhf{}

\rfoot{Page \thepage \hspace{0pt}}
\thispagestyle{empty}
\renewcommand{\headrulewidth}{0pt}
\begin{document}

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%     TITLE NAME
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
\namesection{}{\Huge{[YOUR_NAME]}}{  \href{mailto:[YOUR_EMAIL]}{[YOUR_EMAIL]} | [YOUR_PHONE] |  \urlstyle{same}\href{[YOUR_LINKEDIN_URL]}{LinkedIn}
}

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%     MAIN COVER LETTER CONTENT
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

\currentdate{\today}
\lettercontent{Dear [Name/Team],}

\lettercontent{[Opening paragraph - role, connection to background, 2-3 sentences]}

\lettercontent{[Body paragraph - most relevant experience, introducing the bullet list]}

{\raggedright\fontspec[Path = OpenFonts/fonts/raleway/]{Raleway-Medium}\fontsize{11pt}{13pt}\selectfont
\begin{itemize}
    \item {[Concrete achievement/skill 1]}
    \item {[Concrete achievement/skill 2]}
    \item {[Concrete achievement/skill 3]}
\end{itemize}\par}

\lettercontent{[Connection to company - why this role, why this company specifically]}

\lettercontent{[Personal fit paragraph - behavioral strengths, team contribution, 2-3 sentences]}

\lettercontent{I look forward to hearing from you.}

\begin{flushright}
% No trailing \\ inside \closing{} - cover.cls appends its own \\, and a
% doubled break triggers "! LaTeX Error: There's no line here to end."
\closing{Kind regards,}

\signature{[YOUR_NAME]}
\end{flushright}
\end{document}

Key Commands Reference

Command	Purpose
\namesection{}{Name}{contact info}	Header with name and contact
\currentdate{date}	Date field (use \today or explicit date)
\lettercontent{text}	Body paragraph (adds spacing after)
\closing{text}	Closing line
\signature{name}	Printed name below signature

Tailoring Guidelines

Salutation

• If you know the hiring manager's name: "Dear [First Last],"
• If you know the team: "Dear [Company] hiring team,"
• Generic: "Dear [Company]," (avoid "To whom it may concern")

Length - Hard 1-Page Limit

• Target: 1 page including signature block
• Maximum: never exceed 1 page
• Word budget: 250-300 words of body text (not counting LaTeX markup). This is the safe maximum. 350 words will overflow.
• Always count: opening paragraph + bullet list paragraph + closing paragraph = 3 blocks. Add a 4th only if the others are short.
• When adding company-specific content, trim other content to compensate rather than adding net length

Line Spacing

• Add \usepackage{setspace} and \setstretch{1.0} if the letter is long and needs to fit on one page
• Use \vspace{.5cm} between major sections for readability (only if space permits)

Bullet Lists

• Place \begin{itemize}...\end{itemize} outside a \lettercontent{} block (see "Known template pitfall" above), wrapped in the matching Raleway-Medium \fontspec so the bullet font matches the body
• 3-5 bullets is ideal
• Start each bullet with bold label or action verb
• Use \textbf{Label:} for category-style bullets
• A bullet whose text begins with a literal [ must be braced: \item {[text]}. Unbraced, LaTeX parses [text] as \item's optional label and renders it off the left page edge, missing from the PDF text layer entirely

LaTeX Special Characters

Escape these wherever they appear in body text:

• Ampersand: \& (company names: Brüel & Kjær, H&M) - unescaped, the compile fails loudly
• Percent: \% ("grew revenue 30%") - unescaped, it does not fail: everything after the % on that line is silently eaten as a LaTeX comment
• Dollar: \$, hash: \#, underscore: \_
• Tilde: \textasciitilde{}, caret: \textasciicircum{}, backslash: \textbackslash{}

Non-English Cover Letters

• Same template structure, just write content in the posting's language
• Adjust date format to local convention
• Adjust closing to local convention (e.g. "Med venlig hilsen," for Danish)

Checklist Before Finalizing

• No em-dashes (use commas or periods instead)
• No cliches or empty filler
• Every claim backed by specific example
• Forward-looking framing: focuses on tasks you'll solve, not just past duties
• Motivation section references this specific company's mission/values
• Company name and role are correct throughout
• Date is current
• Fits on one page
• Language matches the job posting language
• Salutation is appropriate (named person if possible)
• Headline is engaging and specific, not generic

Submission Guidelines (Best Practice)

• Submit only the documents the employer requests
• Export as PDF to preserve formatting
• Name files clearly: "[Your Name] CV" and "[Your Name] Cover Letter"
• Follow all employer instructions regarding anonymity or specific materials