If you are applying for a job, you may be wondering whether you need a CV, a cover letter, or both.
My answer is simple. If you are given the opportunity to send both, send both.
They are two very, very different documents, and they have very different purposes.
A CV is a working document. It tells an employer about your career, your experience, your responsibilities, your achievements and the scope of what you have done.
A cover letter is different. It is a personal document that accompanies your CV and, in essence, gives you the opportunity to say that you are the right person for the job.
The two documents should work together, rather than simply repeating the same information.
What is the difference between a CV and a cover letter?
If you think of your CV as the document that covers your work history, experience and achievements, then the cover letter is where you explain why that experience makes you the right person for the particular job you are applying for.
There is also a fundamental difference in the way the two documents are written.
In a CV, I would not normally use personal pronouns such as “I”, “me” and “my”. A CV is a professional working document and should be factual, concise and easy to scan.
A cover letter is completely different. It is a personal letter, so using words such as “I”, “me” and “my” is perfectly natural.
There is another important difference, and this is where ATS comes into the equation.
If an employer is asking for specific skills or experience, you have the opportunity to make sure those relevant keywords appear naturally in your CV. If the advert is asking for communication, strategic leadership, collaboration or stakeholder management, for example, and you genuinely have those skills, they should be reflected in your CV.
The cover letter gives you the opportunity to take those requirements and explain them in a more personal way.
So, while the CV demonstrates what you have done, the cover letter explains why what you have done makes you suitable for this particular position.
The two should work together.
What does a CV do?
A CV is a working document.
For somebody who has been working for a number of years, I believe a CV should generally be a maximum of two pages. There are exceptions, of course. An academic may need more space, or somebody with a complicated working history may need an additional page to properly explain their experience.
But for 99% of people who have been working, two pages is enough.
For a school or college leaver, one page is usually sufficient.
Your contact information should be clearly presented, followed by the main sections of your CV. I would normally include a professional summary, followed by work and leadership competencies, then your work history in reverse chronological order, education, and any relevant licences or certifications.
Your work history should not simply tell an employer what you were responsible for.
It should tell them what you achieved.
This is something I spend a lot of time working on with clients because people often underestimate the importance of showing scope.
If you managed people, how many people did you manage? If you were responsible for a budget, what was the value? If you improved productivity, what was the result? If you were responsible for a large operation, how large was it?
Those figures give an employer an understanding of the level at which you have operated.
I also believe a CV should be presented clearly, using bullet points where appropriate. An employer should be able to look at your CV and quickly understand what you have done, where you have worked and what you have achieved.
It should not be filled with unnecessary waffle.
It should also not contain huge paragraphs that make the reader work to find the information they are looking for.
If you want to understand how I approach this in practice, you can read more about my professional CV writing service.
What does a cover letter do?
A cover letter is one page.
That’s it.
It is not another CV and it should not become a two or three-page explanation of your entire career.
At the top, you would normally have your name, followed by the date, the position you are applying for and the name of the person you are sending it to, where that information is available.
Then you get to the important part.
You are basically answering the advert.
The employer has told you what they are looking for, and your cover letter is your opportunity to say, in not too many words, that they are asking for certain skills, experience or qualifications and that you have them.
You are effectively saying, “You are looking for ABC, I have ABC, and this is why I am the right person for the job.”
That is what a cover letter should be doing.
You can also use it to explain something that would otherwise be difficult to explain in your CV.
Perhaps you have a gap in employment. Perhaps you are relocating. Perhaps you have a particular availability date. There are all sorts of circumstances where a short additional paragraph can make sense.
But don’t overcomplicate it.
A cover letter is a personal document that accompanies your CV.
I go through how to write one, paragraph by paragraph, in my guide on how to write a cover letter.
Do you need both a CV and a cover letter?
Yes. Absolutely.
If an employer gives you the opportunity to upload both documents, I would always send both.
The CV gives the employer your professional history, experience, achievements and scope. The cover letter gives you the opportunity to address the employer directly and explain why you are suitable for the position.
There will be occasions, however, when an application system only allows you to upload one document.
If that happens, there is a very simple solution.
Go to the very top of your CV and press Ctrl + Enter. This will create a blank page at the beginning of your document. You can then copy and paste your cover letter onto that page, with your CV following behind it.
That way, you have not lost the opportunity to submit your cover letter simply because the application system only provides one upload box.
Should a cover letter repeat your CV?
No. Absolutely not.
They are completely different documents and serve different purposes.
Your CV is your work history document. Your cover letter is your personal response to the job advert.
Of course, there will be some information that appears in both. That is inevitable because you are talking about the same career and the same experience.
But your cover letter should not simply take three paragraphs from your CV and put them into a letter.
The purpose of the cover letter is to take the relevant parts of your experience and explain why they make you suitable for this particular job.
Think of it this way.
Your CV says, “This is what I have done.”
Your cover letter says, “This is why what I have done makes me the right person for your job.”
That is the difference.
How should a CV and cover letter work together?
This is where ATS becomes particularly important.
When you are applying for a job, you need to read the advert properly.
Look at what the employer is asking for. What skills do they want? What experience do they want? What qualifications or credentials are important?
If communication is one of the requirements and you have strong communication experience, make sure that is reflected naturally in your CV.
The same applies to strategic leadership, collaboration, stakeholder management, project management or any other relevant requirement.
You should adapt your professional summary and your technical and leadership competencies towards the role you are applying for.
Then you do something similar in the cover letter.
Instead of simply listing communication as a competency, for example, you can explain how you have actually used communication in your previous role.
You might say something along the lines of:
“In my last role, effective communication was imperative. I used this skill to…”
Now you are doing something different from the CV.
The CV demonstrates that you have the skill.
The cover letter demonstrates how you have used it.
It’s like a glove. One doesn’t work without the other.
Should you have a different cover letter for every job?
Yes.
As I have already explained, the purpose of your cover letter is to say that you are the right person for the job.
You cannot properly do that if you send the same generic letter to every employer.
You need to look at the job advert and identify what the employer is actually asking for.
Then you need to make sure your cover letter addresses those requirements.
You don’t necessarily have to rewrite the entire document every time. But it should be adapted to the position.
The same principle applies to your CV.
Your CV is your master document, but when you are applying for a particular position, you should make sure the relevant experience and keywords are properly aligned with the job.
That is part of the process I go through with clients. You can read more about how my CV writing process works.
What makes a good CV and cover letter?
That’s a good question, and I can only answer it from a professional CV writer’s point of view.
First of all, there should be no spelling or grammar mistakes.
That sounds obvious, but you would be surprised at how many CVs and cover letters I see where there are simple errors that could have been avoided.
The format needs to be clear. There should not be enormous amounts of white space, but equally you don’t want to cram every available space with information.
Dates need to be consistent. Positions need to be clear. Your employment history needs to make sense.
Most importantly, the documents need to tell a story.
Your CV needs to show what you have done, what you have achieved and the level at which you have operated.
Your cover letter needs to explain why that experience makes you suitable for the job you are applying for.
Both documents also need to look professional.
Getting help with your CV and cover letter
I don’t use AI to write my clients’ CVs. We talk, I ask questions, and I keep asking until I understand your career properly.
You might tell me that you managed a team.
I’ll want to know how many people.
You might tell me that you managed a budget.
I’ll want to know how much.
You might tell me that you improved an operation.
I’ll want to know what you changed and what the result was.
That’s where the real substance of a CV comes from, and it’s what the cover letters are built on too. Every package includes two cover letters written differently, so you’ve got options when you apply for different roles. You can see what’s included in CV and cover letter writing, how my process works and my current prices.
CV and cover letter FAQs
Should I send a cover letter if the employer says it is optional?
Yes. If the employer gives you the opportunity to submit a cover letter, I would send one. It gives you another opportunity to explain why you are suitable for the position.
Should a cover letter be more than one page?
No. I believe a cover letter should be one page. It should be concise and focused rather than becoming another version of your CV.
Should I use “I” and “me” in my CV?
No. I don’t recommend writing a CV in the first person. A cover letter is different because it is a personal document, so using “I”, “me” and “my” is entirely appropriate.
Should my cover letter contain keywords from the job advert?
Yes, where they genuinely apply to you. The important requirements in the advert should be reflected naturally in your CV and cover letter. Your CV is particularly important when it comes to ATS, while the cover letter allows you to demonstrate those skills in context.
Do I need a different cover letter for every job?
Yes. Your cover letter should be tailored to the particular position you are applying for. Its purpose is to explain why you are the right person for that specific job.
What if the application only allows me to upload one document?
Put your cover letter at the beginning of your CV. Go to the very top of your CV, press Ctrl + Enter, and you will create a new first page where you can place your cover letter.
Do you write both the CV and cover letters?
Yes. My packages include two bespoke cover letters written differently, alongside the CV. Depending on the package, I also provide LinkedIn optimisation and coaching.
Ready to do something about your CV?
Your CV is often the first impression an employer gets of you.
Don’t leave it to a generic template, an online questionnaire or an AI-generated document.
Let’s talk about your career, what you have achieved and what you want to do next.
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About the author
John Logan is a professional CV writer based in Portsmouth, working with clients across the UK. He served in the Royal Navy, including aboard HMS Fearless during the 1982 Falklands Conflict, then spent more than 40 years in senior management, running his own businesses and leading a multi-million-pound retail operation with a team of over 500. Along the way he has recruited and interviewed hundreds, probably thousands, of people. He has appeared on regional television as a CV expert, has written career guidance for US military transition readers and has worked with over 500 clients, from school leavers to senior military officers and company directors.