Full Department Name
Name of Institution
Department Address
Dear Dr./Mr./Ms. Search Committee Chair’s last name and/or Search Committee Members:
Paragraph 1 [3-5 Sentences]: Identify the position you are applying for. Introduce yourself to the committee and your research interests. Connect your interests to the department and describe what makes you interested in becoming part of this departmental community.
Paragraph 2 [3-5 Sentences]: Briefly explain your research to date. Consider mentioning your research questions, methods, key findings, as well as where and when you published and/or presented this work.
Paragraph 3 [4-5 Sentences]: Elaborate on your current research project. Consider mentioning your most prestigious funding awards for this project. Explain your key findings in more detail.
Paragraph 4 [3-5 Sentences]: Introduce your future research plans and goals. Point out the intellectual merit and/or broader impacts of this future work.
Paragraph 5 [3-5 Sentences]: Briefly discuss your teaching experience and strategies. Provide examples of teaching strategies or an anecdote highlighting your teaching effectiveness. You may also want to introduce your philosophy on diversity in an academic setting.
Paragraph 6 [2-3 Sentences]: Make a connection between your work and the department to which you are applying. Include how you will participate in the intellectual life of the department both inside and outside the classroom. Provide concrete examples of how you will be a hard-working and collaborative colleague.
Paragraph 7 [1-2 Sentences]: A thank you for the search committee’s time and consideration.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
Your Name
Credentials and Position
Institution/Affiliation Name
Date: Month Day, Year Search Committee Chair’s First and Last Name, Graduate Degree Dear Dr./Mr./Ms. Search Committee Chair’s last name and/or Search Committee Members: Paragraph 1 [3-5 Sentences]: Identify the position you are applying for. Introduce yourself to the committee and your research interests. Connect your interests to the department and describe what makes you interested in becoming part of this departmental community. Paragraph 2 [3-5 Sentences]: Briefly discuss your teaching experience and pedagogical commitments. Provide examples of teaching strategies or an anecdote highlighting your teaching effectiveness. You may also want to introduce your philosophy on diversity in an academic setting. Paragraph 3 [3-4 Sentences]: Provide a discussion of how you involved yourself with students or the broader university community outside of the traditional classroom setting. Discuss how those interactions influenced your teaching. Paragraph 4 [2-3 Sentences]: Briefly explain your current research interests to date and how it relates to your teaching. State your research questions, methods, and key findings or arguments. Point out the intellectual merit and/or broader impacts of this future work. Paragraph 5 [3-5 Sentences]: Highlight when and where your research was published and/or presented this work or any forthcoming publications. Mention any prestigious funding or awards. Introduce your future research plans and goals. Paragraph 6 [2-3 Sentences]: Make a connection between your work and the department to which you are applying. Include how you will participate in the intellectual life of the department both inside and outside the classroom. Provide concrete examples of how you will be a hard-working and collaborative colleague. Paragraph 7 [1-2 Sentences]: A thank you for the search committee’s time and consideration. Sincerely, Your Name |
Remember your first draft does not have to be your last. Try to get feedback from different readers, especially if it is one of your first applications. It is not uncommon to go through several stages of revisions. Check out the Writing Center’s handout on editing and proofreading and video on proofreading to help with this last stage of writing.
Using the word dissertation. Some search committee members may see the word “dissertation” as a red flag that an applicant is too focused on their role as a graduate student rather than as a prospective faculty member. It may be advantageous, then, to describe your dissertation as current research, a current research project, current work, or some other phrase that demonstrates you are aware that your dissertation is the beginning of a larger scholarly career.
Too much jargon. While you may be writing to a specific department, people on the search committee might be unfamiliar with the details of your subfield. In fact, many committees have at least one member from outside their department. Use terminology that can easily be understood by non-experts. If you want to use a specific term that is crucial to your research, then you should define it. Aim for clarity for your reader, which may mean simplification in lieu of complete precision.
Overselling yourself. While your job letter should sell you as a great candidate, saying so (e.g., “I’m the ideal candidate”) in your letter may come off to some search committee members as presumptuous. Remember that although you have an idea about the type of colleague a department is searching for, ultimately you do not know exactly what they want. Try to avoid phrases or sentences where you state you are the ideal or the only candidate right for the position.
Paying too much attention to the job description. Job descriptions are the result of a lot of debate and compromise. If you have skills or research interests outside the job description, consider including them in your letter. It may be that your extra research interests; your outside skills; and/or your extracurricular involvements make you an attractive candidate. For example, if you are a Latin Americanist who also happens to be well-versed in the Spanish Revolution, it could be worth mentioning the expanse of your research interests because a department might find you could fill in other gaps in the curriculum or add an additional or complementary perspective to the department.
Improper sendoff. The closing of your letter is just as important as the beginning. The end of the letter should reflect the professionalism of the document. There should be a thank-you and the word sincerely or a formal equivalent. Remember, it is the very last place in your letter where you present yourself as a capable future colleague.
Small oversights. Make sure to proofread your letter not just for grammar but also for content. For example, if you use material from another letter, make sure you do not include the names of another school, department, or unassociated faculty! Or, if the school is in Chicago, make sure you do not accidentally reference it as located in the Twin Cities.
Name dropping. You rarely know the internal politics of the department or institution to which you are applying. So be cautious about the names you insert in your cover letters. You do not want to unintentionally insert yourself into a departmental squabble or add fire to an interdepartmental conflict. Instead, focus on the actions you will undertake and the initiatives you are passionate about.
We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.
Ball, Cheryl E. 2013. “Understanding Cover Letters.” Inside Higher Ed , November 3, 2013. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2013/11/04/essay-cover-letter-academic-jobs .
Borchardt, John. 2014. “Writing a Winning Cover Letter.” Science Magazine , August 6, 2014. https://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2014/08/writing-winning-cover-letter# .
Helmreich, William. 2013. “Your First Academic Job.” Inside Higher Ed , June 17, 2013. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2013/06/17/essay-how-land-first-academic-job .
Kelsky, Karen. 2013. “How To Write a Journal Article Submission Cover Letter.” The Professor Is In (blog), April 26, 2013. https://theprofessorisin.com/2013/04/26/how-to-write-a-journal-article-submission-cover-letter/ .
Tomaska, Lubomir, and Josef Nosek. 2008. “Ten Simple Rules for Writing a Cover Letter to Accompany a Job Application for an Academic Position.” PLoS Computational Biology 14(5). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006132 .
You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Make a Gift
Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts
This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.
Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.
When you're applying for a faculty position with a college or university, the cover letter is your first chance to make a strong impression as a promising researcher and teacher. Below you'll find some strategies for presenting your qualifications effectively in an academic context.
A cover letter for an academic job has a function similar to one for a business job, but the content differs significantly in quantity and kind. While the general advice for business cover letters—such as tailoring your letter for the specific job and selling your strengths—still applies, a cover letter for an academic position should be long enough to highlight in some detail your accomplishments during your graduate education in research, teaching, departmental service, and so on. The typical letter is thus usually one and a half to two pages long, but not more than two—roughly five to eight paragraphs.
In the opening of your letter you need to convey some basic information, such as what specific position you are applying for (using the title given in the job notice) and where you learned of the opening. Since a cover letter is a kind of persuasive writing (persuading a hiring committee to include you on a list of candidates for further review), the first paragraph of your letter should also make the initial claim as to why you are a strong candidate for the position.
In an academic context knowing your audience means reading the job notice carefully and knowing the type of institution to which you are applying. Most graduate students have studied a broad range of material within their discipline before specializing in a narrow field for the dissertation project. Since it is rare to find a job notice specifying your exact qualifications, you need to emphasize those aspects of your graduate training that seem particularly relevant to the position advertised.
If you're still working on your dissertation, you should mention somewhere in the letter when you expect to be awarded the Ph.D., even being as specific as to mention how many chapters have been completed and accepted, how many are in draft version, and what your schedule for completion is. Last-paragraph tips include the following:
Job seekers at Purdue University may find value in the Purdue Career Wiki.
We care about your privacy
When you visit our website, we will use cookies to make sure you enjoy your stay. We respect your privacy and we’ll never share your resumes and cover letters with recruiters or job sites. On the other hand, we’re using several third party tools to help us run our website with all its functionality.
But what exactly are cookies? Cookies are small bits of information which get stored on your computer. This information usually isn’t enough to directly identify you, but it allows us to deliver a page tailored to your particular needs and preferences.
Because we really care about your right to privacy, we give you a lot of control over which cookies we use in your sessions. Click on the different category headings on the left to find out more, and change our default settings.
However, remember that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of our website. Finally, note that we’ll need to use a cookie to remember your cookie preferences.
Without these cookies our website wouldn’t function and they cannot be switched off. We need them to provide services that you’ve asked for.
Want an example? We use these cookies when you sign in to Kickresume. We also use them to remember things you’ve already done, like text you’ve entered into a registration form so it’ll be there when you go back to the page in the same session.
Thanks to these cookies, we can count visits and traffic sources to our pages. This allows us to measure and improve the performance of our website and provide you with content you’ll find interesting.
Performance cookies let us see which pages are the most and least popular, and how you and other visitors move around the site.
All information these cookies collect is aggregated (it’s a statistic) and therefore completely anonymous. If you don’t let us use these cookies, you’ll leave us in the dark a bit, as we won’t be able to give you the content you may like.
We use these cookies to uniquely identify your browser and internet device. Thanks to them, we and our partners can build a profile of your interests, and target you with discounts to our service and specialized content.
On the other hand, these cookies allow some companies target you with advertising on other sites. This is to provide you with advertising that you might find interesting, rather than with a series of irrelevant ads you don’t care about.
Looking to sculpt the future geniuses of our world through education? You're just one professor cover letter away from molding minds in your dream institution! In the hallowed halls of higher learning, a well-crafted professor cover letter could be your ticket to tenure.
Our ultimate guide offers a syllabus of handy tips, examples, and templates that will illuminate how to highlight your pedagogical expertise, academic passion, and career drive.
So stay tuned to learn:
Proper formatting is paramount to ensure your professor cover letter is easy to read and navigate. Fear not. We won't have you penning a thesis here, but a neat, concise design that'll make your application memorable.
Remember, the cover letter isn’t just a narrative of your journey in academics. It's a testament to your attention to detail, aesthetics, and understanding of structure and layout.
2. how to create an effective cover letter header .
The header of your professor cover letter might seem like a minor detail, but it's more important than you might think. It's not just about providing your contact information. It's also about demonstrating an ability to present information clearly and professionally .
The header should contain your contact information, the date, and the recipient's contact information, in this order:
Let's take a look at two contrasting examples:
John Doe [email protected]
Why is it incorrect? It lacks key information — it presents only the applicant's name and email address. The recipient wouldn’t know where to send a written response if they wanted to. Missing a phone number? That's a fast-track conversation sidelined. What’s more, disregarding the date and recipient's information reflects a lack of attention to detail and professionalism.
John Doe 123 Main Street City, State Zip (123) 456-7890 [email protected]
To: Professor Jane Smith Dean of Biology Department University Name 456 College Avenue City, State Zip
Why does it work? This example is comprehensive. It includes all the needed contact information for both parties and the date, which can be crucial for record-keeping. It adheres to the expected professional structure for a cover letter header, hinting at the candidate's meticulous organizational skills.
All in all, the cover letter header is your initial point of contact with the hiring committee or recruiter. Don’t rush it. Pay attention to the details to ensure that yours makes an entrance, leaving a trail of professionalism and thoroughness in its wake.
A cover letter headline is your elevator pitch. Consisting of a succinct, catchy phrase, rightly placed beneath your header, it's your chance to grab the reader's attention .
The perfect headline is a balance between confidence and humility, introducing your professional standing or key accomplishment without appearing boastful.
Experienced Professor Seeking Employment
Why is it weak? This headline is too generic and lacks impact. It doesn't differentiate you from other candidates and overlooks an opportunity to lead with a compelling accomplishment or unique trait.
Renowned Biologist with 50+ Peer-Reviewed Publications, Committed to Nurturing Future Leaders in Conservation
Why does it work? This headline conveys the candidate's impressive academic feats while expressing a spirited commitment to their educational role. It presents the applicant as both an accomplished scholar and a passionate educator. Such a forceful headline heightens the reader's curiosity about the expertise, experiences and values the candidate brings to the table.
When crafting your headline, wear your achievements with pride, introduce the unique flavor of your professional persona and give the recruiters a reason to keep reading. That's how you get your foot in the academic door.
Customizing your cover letter’s greeting isn’t just a sign of respect; it shows that you've conducted your due diligence on the job and are genuinely keen about it.
When you address the hiring committee or a specific person by name in your greeting, it shows that you've taken the time to research and understand who will be reading your application. It also signals that you are detail-oriented and watchful — desirable traits in any academic.
The best place to find the names of the hiring manager or committee members are in the job posting itself, on the university's website , or via LinkedIn .
Dear Dr. Smith, Dear Dr. John Smith, Dear Hiring Manager John Smith,
But what if, despite your research, you can't pin down a name ? There are still options to keep your greeting professional and respectful.
Each of these unspecific greetings has different nuances:
However, diligence in personalizing your greeting is crucial to avoid falling into the "generic trap". Cliche, overly generic greetings like "To whom it may concern," might reflect detachment.
Remember, customizing your greeting is a small detail that can make a big impression. Invest the effort, and it could be a step in the direction of your dream teaching position.
The introduction of your cover letter is a storytelling moment. It's the spark that ignites the recruiter's interest in your professional and academic journey. The trick is to introduce yourself, highlight key achievements, and articulate your interest in the position clearly and efficiently.
If you have a mutual connection with any existing faculty member, be sure to mention it. This can strengthen your introduction by offering immediate context and relevance.
I'm writing to apply for the Biology Professor position.
Why doesn’t it work? This introduction lacks imagination and doesn’t pique the reader's interest. It merely states the obvious and misses an opportunity to introduce the candidate's credentials or express genuine enthusiasm for the position.
As an evolutionary biologist with 15 years of teaching experience and over 30 peer-reviewed publications, I was thrilled to find the opening for a Biology Professor at XYZ University. My passion for imparting knowledge and recent Fulbright scholarship align perfectly with your focus on global research perspectives.
Why is it strong? This introduction signals the candidate’s teaching experience, academic accomplishments and aligned values, making it a compelling read for any hiring committee.
As a newly-credentialed PhD holder in Computer Science and recipient of the 'Outstanding Research Assistant' award for two consecutive years, I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the growing Computer Science department at XYZ University.
Why does it work? Here, the recent graduate leverages their award and newly minted PhD as testament of their potential, making a strong compelling case despite lack of extensive experience.
Remember, the cover letter introduction is your initial pitch. Make sure you swing for the fences!
The body of your cover letter is your academic showcase, the stage where you outline your skills , achievements , and passions as they relate to the professorship role. Here's what this act should cover:
Let's touch on structure first. Aim to construct two to three mid-length paragraphs. Each one should focus on a different skill or accomplishment, creating a clearly organized and easy to navigate story of your career.
When highlighting your teaching skills , get specific. Does your interactive teaching style drive high student engagement? Have your innovative lesson plans boosted students' grades? Paint a vivid picture of what you bring to the classroom.
If you are a fresh-faced professor with no experience to pull from, focus on your areas of academic excellence, internships, research assistance, or relevant university projects that denote your potential as an educator.
Now, let’s take a look at some examples:
In my recent role as a Sociology Professor at ABC University, I consistently received outstanding student evaluations, reflecting my commitment to creating an engaging learning environment. I am particularly proud of an elective course I developed on Modern Social Movements, which was recognized by the university board for its in-depth, engaging structure.
Why does it work? This showcases teaching skills, course development abilities, and a knack for generating student engagements.
During my doctoral study, I had the opportunity to teach two semesters of undergraduate introductory biology and serve as a research assistant on a project exploring genetics and evolution. Both these roles honed my communication and teamwork abilities, while driving an appreciation for hands-on bio-research that I'm eager to impart.
Why is it strong? In this example, the fresh graduate leverages teaching and research assistant experiences, indicating clear initiative and a passion for the field.
Remember, to set yourself apart, showcase your unique achievements, skills, and experiences that make you not just an expert in your field, but a teacher who can inspire, motivate, and impart knowledge.
After your convincing body paragraphs, there’s one last hill to climb: the conclusion . The importance of a persuasive conclusion can't be overstated. It's your final chance to leave a strong impression, convey your enthusiasm, and specify your plan to proceed in the application process.
Your conclusion should ideally cover:
You can call me whenever it suits you.
Cheers, John
Why is it wrong? This example misses the mark. The language is too casual and it lacks a clear intention for follow-up. The sign-off is overly informal for a professional setting and lacks the applicant’s full name.
I am excited at the possibility of bringing my passion for teaching biology and cutting-edge genetic research to the team at XYZ University. I am available at your earliest convenience for an in-depth discussion. You may reach me at (123) 456-7890 or via email at [email protected]. If I have not heard from you by next week, I’ll follow up to ensure you have all the information you need.
Thank you for considering my application.
Best regards, John Doe
Why does it work? This conclusion demonstrates a clear interest, indicates a plan for follow-up, and includes all necessary contact information. The sign-off is professional and courteous, maintaining the formal tone that a cover letter requires.
Crafting an effective conclusion is about being direct and proactive. It's your chance to ensure your application leaves a lasting impression and initiates the next steps in the recruitment process. Nail the conclusion and you're one step closer to the lectern.
Even the most seasoned professors can trip over a few common pitfalls when crafting their cover letter. Let's shed some light on these mistakes, and more importantly, how you can dodge them:
Remember, avoiding these common mistakes is about attentiveness, intentionality, and clear communication. With a bit extra care, your cover letter can avoid the wastebasket and land you that interview.
Being a professor is not just about shaping minds; it's also a profession with considerable financial and job market potential.
As per the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) , the median annual wage of professors sat at $80,840 as of May 2022. Like other professions, this can vary widely based on expertise, experience, and the particular institution, but it presents an attractive baseline.
Well, it's not just about the earnings. If job security is a concern, consider this: the overall employment of postsecondary teachers is expected to grow 8% from 2022 to 2032. That's faster than average for all occupations.
This translates into about 118,800 openings for postsecondary teachers projected each year, on average, over the upcoming decade.
The takeaway? The outlook for professors is not only intellectually stimulating but also comes with promising salary prospects and a positive job market trend. So keep refining that cover letter, because the future looks bright!
As an aspiring professor, your journey towards academic excellence involves continuous learning and development . To aid your research, job hunt, and professional growth, here are some key resources:
Finally, continuous self-improvement is integral to a professor's role, so never hesitate to seek out professional development opportunities. Engage with these resources, and you'll keep growing as an educator, while maximizing your chances of landing your dream professor role.
Should i include references in my professor cover letter.
Typically, it's not a good idea to include references in your cover letter. Instead, have a separate reference page prepared. If the job posting specifically requests references included, then and only then, include them in your application.
Your teaching philosophy can weave through your cover letter subtly. Science theorist you admire? Methodology you swear by? Mention it in the paragraphs where you highlight relevant skills or experiences. Keep it brief and relevant to the position.
It depends on the tone of the job posting and your familiarity with the institution's culture. Usually, a more conservative approach is advised. You can show personality without using humor. Stay professional and relatable.
In such a scenario, you can combine your cover letter and resume into a single PDF document and upload it.
Absolutely. The preferred candidate might not take the job, and you might impress the hiring committee. Writing a cover letter tailored to the position will emphasize your interest and could put you in the running.
Milan’s work-life has been centered around job search for the past three years. He is a Certified Professional Résumé Writer (CPRW™) as well as an active member of the Professional Association of Résumé Writers & Careers Coaches (PARWCC™). Milan holds a record for creating the most career document samples for our help center – until today, he has written more than 500 resumes and cover letters for positions across various industries. On top of that, Milan has completed studies at multiple well-known institutions, including Harvard University, University of Glasgow, and Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.
Join 5,000,000 job seekers worldwide and get hired faster with your best resume yet.
Professor cover letter body.
While academic resumes may be somewhat longer than those of other professions, the professor cover letter still plays an important part in the application. While the faculty staff will be fascinated by your long list of research and impeccable academic credentials, they also want to know about the person they will be inviting into their staff room.
The professor cover letter allows you to share some of the personality and motivations behind your classroom inspiration. It is a place to share how you teach instead of what you teach. While the other applicants for the role may boast a similar academic record, it is your teaching approach that can set you apart.
Dear Mrs. Roberts,
I am writing to express my strong interest in the Assistant Professor position in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. As a recent Ph.D. graduate from Stanford University with a specialization in Cognitive Psychology, I am confident that my research expertise, teaching experience, and commitment to academic excellence make me a strong candidate for this role.
During my doctoral studies at Stanford, I conducted extensive research on the neural mechanisms underlying memory formation and retrieval. My dissertation, which was funded by a prestigious National Science Foundation grant, investigated the role of the hippocampus in encoding and consolidating complex memories. This work has resulted in multiple publications in top-tier journals such as Nature Neuroscience and Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, and has been presented at major conferences, including the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society.
In addition to my research achievements, I have a strong track record of excellence in teaching. As a teaching assistant at Stanford, I have taught undergraduate courses in Cognitive Psychology, Research Methods, and Statistics. I have consistently received outstanding evaluations from my students and have been recognized with the Stanford Teaching Award for my ability to engage students and facilitate their learning.
I am particularly drawn to the University of California, Berkeley's reputation for academic excellence and its commitment to groundbreaking research in psychology and neuroscience. I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the department's cutting-edge research and to collaborate with its renowned faculty. I am also impressed by UC Berkeley's dedication to undergraduate education and its emphasis on mentoring and advising students. I am confident that my research expertise and teaching experience would enable me to make valuable contributions to the department's mission and to inspire and support the next generation of psychologists.
I am excited about the opportunity to join the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley and to contribute to its mission of advancing psychological science and educating future leaders in the field. Thank you for considering my application. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss further how my research expertise, teaching experience, and commitment to academic excellence and diversity would enable me to make a positive impact as an Assistant Professor in your department.
William Taylor
Any educator understands the importance of structure in their lectures and seminars. You don’t jump straight into the academic gold, you need to warm the class up first. In the same way, the professor cover letter should follow a certain structure. And, by the way, there is no excuse for it being longer than one page (unlike your academic resume).
Here is a suggested structure for a professor cover letter:
Every section of your cover letter should contain different parts of your academic journey that you wish to expand upon during an interview.
A one-page cover letter is standard for any industry or function. While your academic resume (CV) might be longer due to copious amounts of research and academic writing, there is no reason to write a longer cover letter. Brevity is the soul of wit.
Need more inspiration? View our other related cover letter examples from academia:
Writing a cover letter is more involved that just telling a couple of your stories. There are more choices to make than you might think. Read our article on how to write a cover letter .
After creating the header and addressing the hiring manager , it’s time to grab their attention.
The most important consideration at the start of a cover letter is that you should share the stories that you wish to continue during an interview. Make sure that they are relevant to the specific demands of the role and make them impactful enough to compel the hiring manager to read on. How you start a cover letter will set the tone for the rest of your application.
Look at the research priorities of the university. How does their curriculum differ from what you have taught previously? Is there a fit in terms of the culture of the university or college? What are the political leanings of the university staff? There are many more similar questions that you might ask yourself in order to discern your unique advantage.
Dear Mr. Wilkins,
I am writing to express my interest in the professor position in the Department of History at Cornell. With a Ph.D. in Modern European History from Stanford and a proven track record of scholarly research, including publications in top-tier journals such as The Journal of Modern History, I am excited to contribute to your esteemed institution's academic community.
Teaching students is what I am paid to do, but I much prefer hiding away in the library and researching my favourite subject. Some academics are not meant to be in the classroom. Judge me on my research papers rather than my teaching references – none of the students want to be there, anyway.
Share your passion for your subject from those very first few lines. If your introduction cannot excite an academic hiring manager, it is unlikely that your students will be enthused.
Writing the cover letter body should not be difficult for a professor. Choosing what to write may be. Here are a few ideas from the broader recruitment industry that may be relevant for your situation.
Consider the culture of your future employer and the nature of the work that you will be doing.
Hop onto the website of your future employer. Find out more about them and adapt the language in your cover letter to match theirs, if possible. Check out some of the work of your future colleagues. You need to present yourself as “one of them.”
When reading a page of writing from an academic, the sophistication of your arguments should shine through. If you do not take care to craft the cover letter for each role you may run the risk of not being taken seriously. While you may not have spent too much time on the letter because you consider it unimportant, how can a hiring manager know that you are capable of more?
Sum up your cover letter in the final few lines and leave a good impression. The hiring manager will be curious to find out more about you during an interview, so mention that you are also curious to see whether there is a mutual fit.
End by signing off with your name . End with a formal sign-off, along the lines of, “Sincerely.” Formality should be observed wherever possible.
A professor cover letter should mention your relevant skills , but it is your personality, academic approach, and motivations that can shine through in your cover letter.
Try our cover letter builder to experiment with the look and content of the cover letter.
In your professor cover letter, it is imperative to display your academic expertise. Highlight your publications and research to showcase your contributions to your field. Connect your teaching philosophy to your professional experiences. Illustrate how you engage with students to foster an effective learning environment.
Cover letter guide.
Professor Cover Letter Sample
Cover Letter Format
Cover Letter Salutation
Cover Letter Introduction
Cover Letter Body
Cover Letter Closing
No Experience Professor Cover Letter
Key Takeaways
Embarking on the job hunt, you've realized a well-crafted professor cover letter is expected alongside your resume. But here's the challenge: You must capture attention without echoing your CV, opting instead to spotlight that crowning professional achievement that defines you. Writing in a formal yet fresh tone can feel like a tightrope walk, all while keeping your story compelling and concise within a one-page limit. Let's unlock the secrets to creating that impactful, cliché-free cover letter.
Use the power of Enhancv's AI: drag and drop your professor resume, which will swiftly be converted into your job-winning cover letter.
If the professor isn't exactly the one you're looking for we have a plethora of cover letter examples for jobs like this one:
Hazel Clark
San Antonio, Texas
+1-(234)-555-1234
When using our cover letter builder , make sure to include these vital sections:
Our cover letter templates are already set up for you with the best professor cover letter design with single-spaced paragraphs and a one-inch margin.
As for the font of your professor cover letter, use the same one as you did in your resume (where modern and simple fonts, like Rubik and Bitter, take precedence over Arial and Times New Roman).
Your professor cover letter is created with the recruiters in mind - as no Applicant Tracker System looks over this part of your profile.
When sending over your professor cover letter, download it in PDF. This format allows your information and design to stay intact and to keep the same visual quality.
As the saying goes, "You never get a second chance to make a first impression."
Write your professor cover letter salutation to be more personalized to the actual hiring manager, who is set to assess your profile by:
Search on LinkedIn, Google, or the company website to find information as to the recruiter's name.
In any case, avoid the impersonal "Dear Sir or Madam".
The opening paragraph of your professor cover letter can seem like a real enigma.
Where do you start writing ?
In your professor cover letter introduction, focus on yourself by stating what:
Write no more than two sentences, which are both authentic and show your enthusiasm for the opportunity.
We've got the intro and greeting covered. Now, comes the most definitive part of your professor cover letter - the body .
In the next three to six paragraphs, you'd have to answer why should recruiters hire you.
What better way to do this than by storytelling?
And, no, you don't need a "Once upon a time" or "I started from the bottom and made it to the top" career-climbing format to tell a compelling narrative.
Instead, select up to three most relevant skills for the job and look back on your resume.
Find an achievement, that you're proud of, which has taught you these three job-crucial skills.
Quantify your accomplishment, using metrics, and be succinct in the way you describe it.
The ultimate aim would be to show recruiters how this particular success has built up your experience to become an invaluable candidate.
The final paragraph of your professor cover letter allows you that one final chance to make a great first impression .
Instead of going straight to the "sincerely yours" ending, you can back up your skills with a promise of:
Whatever you choose, always be specific (and remember to uphold your promise, once you land the role).
If this option doesn't seem that appealing to you, close off your professor cover letter with a follow-up request.
You could even provide your availability for interviews so that the recruiters would be able to easily arrange your first meeting.
Even though you may not have any professional experience , your professor cover letter should focus on your value.
As a candidate for the particular role, what sort of skills do you bring about? Perhaps you're an apt leader and communicator, or have the ability to analyze situations from different perspectives.
Select one key achievement from your life, outside work, and narrate a story that sells your abilities in the best light.
If you really can't think of any relevant success, you could also paint the picture of how you see your professional future developing in the next five years, as part of the company.
Creating your professor cover letter should be a personalized experience for the role and the recruiter, where you:
Explore additional professor cover letter samples and guides and see what works for your level of experience or role.
Enhancv harnesses the capabilities of ChatGPT to provide a streamlined interface designed specifically focused on composing a compelling cover letter without the hassle of thinking about formatting and wording.
Should you include citizenship on your resume, how to write a mid-career resume, 8 example situational interview questions and their answers, how to network on linkedin, how to list a major & minor on your resume (with examples).
© 2024 . All rights reserved.
Made with love by people who care.
The cover letter serves as an introduction to your application package and answers the following questions: Who are you? When will you defend your dissertation (if you’re currently ABD)? Why are you interested in applying for this assistant professor position? Why are you interested in this institution? What is your dissertation research about? What are your future research plans? What kind of teaching experience do you have? How will you contribute to our department and institution? Why is the school a good fit for you and vice versa? A strong cover letter will be tailored to the institution to which you’re applying. For the humanities and social sciences it is typically 2–3 pages long, and for STEM fields 1–2 pages, but this may vary depending on your specific discipline.
Sometimes called a “ letter of intent ” or “ letter of interest ,” a cover letter is an introduction to the rest of your job application materials. The purpose of a cover letter is to quickly summarize why you are applying to an organization or for a particular position, and what skills and knowledge you bring that make you the most suitable candidate for that position. The cover letter is often the first impression that a prospective employer will have of you, especially if they do not know you or have not heard about you from their network of contacts. First impressions count, and so getting your cover letter right is a critical step in your job application process. Like all your job application materials, it may take time and focus to write your cover letters well. You will likely have several drafts before you come up with a final version that clearly articulates your skills and your understanding of the employer and the job requirements.
While your CV briefly states your skills, knowledge, experience, and (most importantly) what you have achieved using your abilities, the cover letter gives you an opportunity to create a narrative that shows the path you have taken in your career or education, emphasizing the skills you’ve used along the way, and explaining why the position you are applying to is the next desirable step on this path.
Step 1: The first step to writing a good cover letter is to have a good CV. Your cover letter expands upon some of the information you include within these documents and describes the role you have played in achieving your academic goals (i.e., showing how your experiences have made you the best candidate for the position).
Step 2: The next step is to find an open position that interests you. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all cover letter, as each should be tailored to each job you apply to, but there will certainly be parts of the letter that will stay much the same and be appropriate for multiple jobs. A 1-3 page cover letter might be the norm when applying for a tenure-track faculty position, but you need to check with your own department to find out what the standards are in your field.
Step 3: Go through the job ad and carefully note all of the requirements and skills the employer is looking for. Based on your background research of the employer and the people you have spoken to who know about this employer (whether a business or a university department), try to identify the two or three most important skills that the employer is looking for. You should then try to create a cover letter that illustrates that you have these skills and have used them effectively.
When applying for faculty positions, you will be expected to spend some time in your cover letter talking about your past research experiences and future research goals as well as your teaching—even though you may have covered these in more detail in your research statement and teaching philosophy documents. How much time you need to spend talking about teaching and research will depend on the nature of the position and your field of study. For some humanities and social sciences applications, you will not be asked for a separate research statement, and this information will need to be integrated into the cover letter. Cover letters for scientific positions will generally be shorter, as more (but not all) of the information about research will be covered in the research statement.
Keep in mind that academic letters also need to cover everything that non-academic cover letters address. You need to show that you are not only a good academic, but that you are a good person to work with who is committed to making meaningful contributions at that particular institution. Make sure that you address the requirements of the position as stated in the job ad. Speak to faculty in your department to get a sense of what is expected in cover letters in your discipline. See if any faculty you know have been involved in search committees, and find out what they looked for in cover letters.
For further tips, tricks, and strategies for writing an academic cover letter, see the resources below:
The cover letter samples below were provided by Penn graduates and postdocs after their successful job searches and represent a range of disciplines.
Science PhD cover letter |
Linguistics PhD cover letter |
History PhD cover letter |
Art history PhD cover letter |
Spanish PhD cover letter |
Science PhD cover letter (postdoc) |
Criteria for success.
The faculty cover letter, as with cover letters for other positions , is the first part of your application to be read by the Faculty Search Committee. Therefore, the primary purpose of a faculty cover letter is to summarize your application by connecting your Research and Teaching Statements, CV, and references.
Knowing what the Faculty Search Committee is looking for will help you tailor your application.
Searches for new hires may focus on specific research areas ( e.g. nanomaterials, systems engineering, therapeutic science, renewable energy). In this case, you should customize your application to highlight your work in the specified research area.
Alternatively, departments may concentrate solely on the best candidates regardless of pre-selected scientific disciplines, in which case you have more flexibility in how you present yourself.
In addition, academic employment opportunities differ based on whether positions are tenure-tracked or require teaching, and the type of institution (university, medical school, research institute). Research the responsibilities associated with each of these positions, and include only information relevant to the specific position – don’t waste valuable space on irrelevant experiences.
The faculty cover letter emphasizes your past and present academic career, while promoting your future potential. For many of us, exuding confidence in an open letter of introduction is challenging, but you have to believe in yourself before you can convince others to believe in you.
In academia, the institutions and departments you have attended and the advisors for whom you have worked do matter. State this information in Scientific Achievements . Inform your audience if you have co-taught classes with distinguished professors in Teaching & Mentorship or emphasize existing collaborations in the Motivation & Impact section.
Academia identifies scientific contributions by the following conventions: number of publications, quality, and impact. In addition to research articles, noteworthy contributions may also include opinion articles, book chapters, or your role as a journal reviewer. Emphasize alternative sources of scientific communication (and funding) such as distinguished merit-based fellowships.
Engineering students are likely to be co-authors of patents; state this information.
Beyond reiterating your past accomplishments, you must also show that you are prepared to handle the future challenges of being a Principal Investigator. By far, the most difficult paragraph to write in the faculty cover letter focuses on the Motivation & Impact of your future research program. Clearly articulate the vision of your future research program and describe how your leadership will facilitate an environment of scientific and teaching excellence. Demonstrate expert understanding of your field, and confidently state your qualifications as a leader in research, an educator, and a citizen of the university.
Your application will be one out of hundreds. You must differentiate yourself and your research program from other candidates, as well as previous or current advisor(s). Ask yourself what you will do that is unique compared to any of your past or future colleagues. How will you fit uniquely into the department — what is your niche?
The Motivation & impact section provides an opportunity to concisely define your niche. State specific aims of your proposed research that expand upon the department’s core strengths while simultaneously diversifying the university’s research portfolio ( e.g. emerging research fields, state-of-the art technologies, novel applications). Carefully consider research centers, core facilities, affiliated institutes or medical centers at the university. In many cases, campus- or state-wide research initiatives may complement your research program.
Finally, take advantage of any experiences you’ve had outside of academia. Have you previously worked in industry or consulted? Would these former and future relationships lead to additional funding for your lab? If so, suggest more unusual avenues of additional funding. It may no longer suffice to focus primarily on traditional grants sponsored by government agencies. Think of creative alternatives and diversify your future financial portfolio. This, in turn, differentiates your research program from colleagues.
Finally, you will more than likely apply to multiple departments and universities. Therefore, modify your niche for every application!
Again, your application is one out of hundreds. Helping the Faculty Search Committee easily identify important information in your cover letter will only improve your chances of moving forward in the hiring process. A faculty cover letter should not exceed 1 page , so you must present your qualifications to the Faculty Search Committee in a concise manner.
Maximize impact of words. Use verbs that illustrate impact (“led,” “developed,” “innovated”) over verbs that make you sound passive (“participated”). Aim for verbs that are more specific to the actual contribution you made.
Minimize redundancy and wordiness. For every sentence, challenge yourself to remove as many words as possible without changing the meaning of the sentence.
Use keywords. Keywords cited by grant-funding agencies, easily recognizable by any faculty member, should be included in relevant sections of your faculty cover letter. Using field-specific vocabulary may demonstrate your understanding of the field and the department’s needs, but be aware that Faculty Search Committees with mixed expertise may require simpler vocabulary and/or explanations accessible to a broader audience.
Maintain abundant white space. In terms of formatting, inclusion of white space is easy on the eye while providing a precise transition from one section to the next.
Crafting your faculty application is a process that will continue indefinitely.
Above all else, remember that the faculty application is a creative process. Enjoy it!
This content was adapted from from an article originally created by the MIT Biological Engineering Communication Lab .
Annotated example 1.
Example Faculty Cover Letter 887 KB
Example Faculty CV 85 KB
The Professor Is In
Guidance for all things PhD: Graduate School, Job Market and Careers
Academia is in turmoil; you are not alone., we offer support on:, 1) your academic career, [from job search through retirement], 2) your sustainable productivity and success, 3) your post-ac transition, we reduce rates to be accessible to as many as possible. don’t let finances stop you from reaching out., get in touch; talk it through, academic career help* : email us at [email protected], *learn more about dr. karen kelsky and academic job application, grant proposal/book proposal editing, tenure and promotion statement editing , interview and campus visit prep , and career consultations / negotiating help we offer., productivity help* : email us at [email protected]., *learn more about kel weinhold’s productivity coaching options . includes individual or group coaching with kel on getting your writing done at any stage of the academic career, overcoming writers block, finishing your dissertation, establishing a *sustainable* work-life balance and writing routine, and/or finding a supportive writing accountability group. learn more about current coaching programs here., leaving academia help: email us at [email protected]., one-on-one coaching with dr. karen kelsky and adrienne posner; find information here. also visit the professor is /out/ private facebook group for more.
Visit our On-Demand Courses page and explore resources in “The Professor Is Out” dropdown menu above for more Post-Ac Guidance. It’s Ok to Quit.
1) your mental, physical and financial health matters more than any career..
Academia is a system of external validation and nobody can change that, but you CAN find autonomy vis-a-vis that system, reclaim your own values, and establish boundaries that allow for a healthy, balanced life.
Since 2017, our publicly posted company policy has been to support Black and Indigenous women in the academy. Contact us for reduced rates.
If you need help moving away from a job/location that is dangerous to you, contact us for reduced rates.
We can be reached any time 7 days a week (although we only answer during West Coast business hours!) at
[email protected] (academic careers)
You will reach our ace Office Manager
[email protected] (leaving academia)
You will reach our ace post-ac manager and coach Adrienne Posner.
[email protected] (productivity and wellness)
You will reach the amazing productivity coach Kel Weinhold.
Are you tired of the academic run-around, …an advisor who’s never in, a grad program that doesn’t care, funding that’s never enough, a job market that’s in the tank, and a tenure system that’s a total mystery—and no one to give you an honest answer.
On the ‘Pearls of Wisdom’ Blog (see the categories to the right), I offer the hands-on information you need now to get through the hoops of academia.
I also work with you, one-on-one, with complete confidentiality, on the writing, speaking, and interview skills you need to move closer to your professional goals. I focus on your particular strengths and challenges, and outline the steps you need to take to be successful in each of your specific applications and projects. Together we chart a path to make you competitive. I can’t guarantee a particular outcome, but I can guarantee that I will deliver to you, to the best of my ability, bullshit-free advising on your grants, writing, the job market, and tenure, as well as coaching on professional and career dilemmas.
I am the available and career-savvy adviser you need, that you should already have, but probably don’t.
Interested? Learn more about why to trust me and get in touch .
Both-and: non-binary style in academia – a guest post.
by Finnegan Shepard Finnegan Shepard is a trans writer, entrepreneur, and ex-classicist with 1/3 of a Phd in philosophy from the University of Cambridge and
The pressures of academia helped fuel over a decade of addiction for me. How many of our colleagues suffer in silence? Guest Post by Dr.
Our last post was a guest post about Weaponized Incompetence in Academia. The author, Susan Cholette, wrote: “Do you find yourself pulling together the materials
We continue with vintage – yet evergreen – recordings. It seems like everyone struggles with the desire to quit at times. It’s a natural response to external forces, but you can summon internal forces to manage that impulse. We’re not saying don’t quit! We’re just saying, act deliberately. In this episode, Karen and Kel talk […]
A title page is required for all APA Style papers. There are both student and professional versions of the title page. Students should use the student version of the title page unless their instructor or institution has requested they use the professional version. APA provides a student title page guide (PDF, 199KB) to assist students in creating their title pages.
The student title page includes the paper title, author names (the byline), author affiliation, course number and name for which the paper is being submitted, instructor name, assignment due date, and page number, as shown in this example.
Title page setup is covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Section 2.3 and the Concise Guide Section 1.6
Student papers do not include a running head unless requested by the instructor or institution.
Follow the guidelines described next to format each element of the student title page.
|
|
|
---|---|---|
Paper title | Place the title three to four lines down from the top of the title page. Center it and type it in bold font. Capitalize of the title. Place the main title and any subtitle on separate double-spaced lines if desired. There is no maximum length for titles; however, keep titles focused and include key terms. |
|
Author names | Place one double-spaced blank line between the paper title and the author names. Center author names on their own line. If there are two authors, use the word “and” between authors; if there are three or more authors, place a comma between author names and use the word “and” before the final author name. | Cecily J. Sinclair and Adam Gonzaga |
Author affiliation | For a student paper, the affiliation is the institution where the student attends school. Include both the name of any department and the name of the college, university, or other institution, separated by a comma. Center the affiliation on the next double-spaced line after the author name(s). | Department of Psychology, University of Georgia |
Course number and name | Provide the course number as shown on instructional materials, followed by a colon and the course name. Center the course number and name on the next double-spaced line after the author affiliation. | PSY 201: Introduction to Psychology |
Instructor name | Provide the name of the instructor for the course using the format shown on instructional materials. Center the instructor name on the next double-spaced line after the course number and name. | Dr. Rowan J. Estes |
Assignment due date | Provide the due date for the assignment. Center the due date on the next double-spaced line after the instructor name. Use the date format commonly used in your country. | October 18, 2020 |
| Use the page number 1 on the title page. Use the automatic page-numbering function of your word processing program to insert page numbers in the top right corner of the page header. | 1 |
The professional title page includes the paper title, author names (the byline), author affiliation(s), author note, running head, and page number, as shown in the following example.
Follow the guidelines described next to format each element of the professional title page.
|
|
|
---|---|---|
Paper title | Place the title three to four lines down from the top of the title page. Center it and type it in bold font. Capitalize of the title. Place the main title and any subtitle on separate double-spaced lines if desired. There is no maximum length for titles; however, keep titles focused and include key terms. |
|
Author names
| Place one double-spaced blank line between the paper title and the author names. Center author names on their own line. If there are two authors, use the word “and” between authors; if there are three or more authors, place a comma between author names and use the word “and” before the final author name. | Francesca Humboldt |
When different authors have different affiliations, use superscript numerals after author names to connect the names to the appropriate affiliation(s). If all authors have the same affiliation, superscript numerals are not used (see Section 2.3 of the for more on how to set up bylines and affiliations). | Tracy Reuter , Arielle Borovsky , and Casey Lew-Williams | |
Author affiliation
| For a professional paper, the affiliation is the institution at which the research was conducted. Include both the name of any department and the name of the college, university, or other institution, separated by a comma. Center the affiliation on the next double-spaced line after the author names; when there are multiple affiliations, center each affiliation on its own line.
| Department of Nursing, Morrigan University |
When different authors have different affiliations, use superscript numerals before affiliations to connect the affiliations to the appropriate author(s). Do not use superscript numerals if all authors share the same affiliations (see Section 2.3 of the for more). | Department of Psychology, Princeton University | |
Author note | Place the author note in the bottom half of the title page. Center and bold the label “Author Note.” Align the paragraphs of the author note to the left. For further information on the contents of the author note, see Section 2.7 of the . | n/a |
| The running head appears in all-capital letters in the page header of all pages, including the title page. Align the running head to the left margin. Do not use the label “Running head:” before the running head. | Prediction errors support children’s word learning |
| Use the page number 1 on the title page. Use the automatic page-numbering function of your word processing program to insert page numbers in the top right corner of the page header. | 1 |
Dietrich college of humanities and social sciences, read our community standards, upcoming programming and events, department climate survey findings, diversity, equity, and inclusion, the department of english at carnegie mellon university.
The English Department is dedicated to creating a climate that amplifies and nurtures practices of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), not just through words but through actions. To conduct this work, we have established a DEI committee and set the following three goals for this committee: 1) to understand and address ongoing climate issues that emerge in our community; 2) to enrich our intellectual engagement by supporting department members pursuing work and holding events related to DEI; and 3) to build a long term accountability plan that gives the department multiple opportunities to sustain, reflect on, and continually revise our practices in order to achieve such an environment.
Community standards, programming & events, dei project grants, key definitions, dei dashboard.
Based on surveys conducted annually, see the identity and representation of the English Department by using our interactive dashboard:
Suguru Ishizaki, Chair | Faculty Marian Aguiar | Facutly Laura Donaldson | Staff Dorothy Lovia Hammond | Ph.D. Student Julie Pal-Agrawal | Special Faculty
Rich Purcell, Chair | Faculty Richard Branscomb | Ph.D. Student Shun-Sho Carmack | Staff Don Holmes | Special Faculty Suguru Ishizaki | Faculty Stephanie Larson | Faculty
Stephanie Larson, Chair | Faculty Eyona Bivins | Staff Jason England | Faculty Peter Mayshle | Special Faculty Rich Purcell | Faculty Nick Ryan | Staff Nisha Shanmugaraj | PhD Student Elizabeth Walker | PhD Student Joanna Wolfe | Faculty
Stephanie Larson, Co-Chair | Faculty Rich Purcell, Co-Chair | Faculty Jason England | Faculty Peter Mayshle | Special Faculty Jane McCafferty | Faculty Kristina Straub | Faculty Stephen Wittek | Faculty Joanna Wolfe | Faculty James Wynn | Faculty Eyona Bivins | Staff Vickie McKay | Staff Nick Ryan | Staff Julie Kidder | PhD Student Isis Brooks | Undergraduate Student
COMMENTS
Part 1 of an Experiment. By Karen Kelsky | May 1, 2024. Can AI Write an Academic Cover Letter?Short answer: no.Years back I wrote:"Anyone can write a cover letter fast, over a weekend. A BAD cover letter, that is.But to write a good one takes weeks, even months, of close, painstaking edits."Why?Because ….
The Art of the Cover Letter is a 10-module self-guided course, all-online, available anytime 24/7, that walks you step by step through the planning, info-gathering, writing, and editing of your academic job cover letter. Includes worksheets that teach you how to a) grasp and frame your record for the purposes of job market competition; b ...
By TPII editor extraordinaire, Verena Hutter This is a continuation of our 2017 series on the Academic Cover Letter. Verena is walking us through the paragraphs of the cover letter. Scroll back through the blog over the past 10 weeks or so for the preceding paragraphs: self-intro, current research, contribution, publications, and next project)~ Most […]
The Post-Ac's Guide to the Cover Letter. by TPII Post-ac Coach Darcy Hannibal. A cover letter for a non-academic job is nothing like what you'd write for an academic job. It has to be less about you and more about what you can do for the employer. And short, very short. I previously wrote that resumes get a mean of 6 second review in the ...
This handout will help you tackle one of the most important components: the cover letter or letter of interest. Here you will learn about writing and revising cover letters for academic teaching jobs in the United States of America. ... "How To Write a Journal Article Submission Cover Letter." The Professor Is In (blog), April 26, 2013 ...
See your instant resume report on Indeed. Get recommendations for your resume in minutes. Stuart Stone, Ph.D. in American History 771-555-0199 I [email protected] I Brooklyn, New York 11202 May 6, 2023 East River University Dear hiring manager, I'm excited to apply for the professor position in the history department at East River University.
A cover letter for an academic job has a function similar to one for a business job, but the content differs significantly in quantity and kind. While the general advice for business cover letters—such as tailoring your letter for the specific job and selling your strengths—still applies, a cover letter for an academic position should be ...
With an academic cover letter template like that, they'd have to interview you. 1. Use a Respected Academic Cover Letter Template. Writing a good cover letter for university jobs takes certain core requirements. This academic cover letter template has them. Hit all the right notes and the department chair is bound to notice you.
In the hallowed halls of higher learning, a well-crafted professor cover letter could be your ticket to tenure. Our ultimate guide offers a syllabus of handy tips, examples, and templates that will illuminate how to highlight your pedagogical expertise, academic passion, and career drive. So stay tuned to learn: 1.
Academic cover letter sample Use this sample to help craft your own academic cover letter: Malik Hanson Providence, Rhode Island 312-209-9389 [email protected] Feb. 1, 2023 Hiring committee Teal University Department of English 12 Teal Ave. Providence, Rhode Island 02902 Dear Hiring committee, I am writing to apply for the Tenure-Track English Professor position at Teal University as ...
How to format your cover letter for academic posts. A fill-in-the-blanks template that will produce your academic cover letter within 15 minutes. Save hours of work and get a cover letter like this. Pick a template, fill it in. Quick and easy. Choose from 18+ cover letter templates and download your cover letter now. Create your cover letter now.
Associate professor cover letter example The following is a sample cover letter for an associate professor. Chuck Ferris Chicago, Illinois 304-555-0192 [email protected] March 14, 2024 Mr. Bob Richardson ABC University Dear Bob Richardson, I am writing to express my interest in the associate professor position in the Department of Biology at ABC University, as advertised on the university ...
Professor cover letter example. Professor cover letter example. Dear Mrs. Roberts, I am writing to express my strong interest in the Assistant Professor position in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. As a recent Ph.D. graduate from Stanford University with a specialization in Cognitive Psychology, I am ...
Free College Professor cover letter example. Dear Dr. Freedman: As an experienced, dedicated, and highly accomplished college-level instructor with 11 years of excellent experience developing business and marketing curriculum and leading lectures and group projects, it is my pleasure to submit the enclosed resume for your review.
In this post, The Post-Ac's Guide to the Cover Letter, Darcy writes: "A cover letter for a non-academic job is nothing like what you'd write for an academic job. It has to be less about you and more about what you can do for the employer. And short, very short. I previously wrote that resumes get a mean of 6 second review in the first cut.
In your professor cover letter, it is imperative to display your academic expertise. Highlight your publications and research to showcase your contributions to your field. Connect your teaching philosophy to your professional experiences. Illustrate how you engage with students to foster an effective learning environment.
Free Professor cover letter example. Dear Dr. Crockett: As a skilled and enthusiastic college-level instructor with key experience developing curriculum while maintaining a steadfast focus on incorporating various methodologies and new technologies into the classroom, it is my pleasure to submit the enclosed resume for your review.
A 1-3 page cover letter might be the norm when applying for a tenure-track faculty position, but you need to check with your own department to find out what the standards are in your field. Step 3: Go through the job ad and carefully note all of the requirements and skills the employer is looking for. Based on your background research of the ...
A faculty cover letter should not exceed 1 page, so you must present your qualifications to the Faculty Search Committee in a concise manner. Maximize impact of words. Use verbs that illustrate impact ("led," "developed," "innovated") over verbs that make you sound passive ("participated"). Aim for verbs that are more specific ...
The cover letter examples below are intended specifically for academic positions, and can be useful tools in creating your professor cover letter. If you're ready to take the next step in your academic career, click on any of the professor cover letter examples shown below to get started. Create My Cover Letter.
STEM letters should not exceed one page. Humanities and social sciences letters may extend up to two pages. Check with faculty in your department. Address to the individual named in the job posting, or with "Dear Members of the Search Committee." The cover letter is a writing sample. It must be good. Proofread and spell check! TIPS
The Art of the Academic Cover Letter; The Art of the Academic CV; Quick Job Document Editing; Interviews, Job Talks, Teaching Demos and Campus Visits; Personal Negotiating Assistance ... I spent 15 years as an R1 tenured professor, department head, and university advisor, and now over ten years as an academic career coach. I tell you the truth ...
813-253-3333. Dear Professor Marvin, I am tremendously excited to be able to apply for the position of Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Tampa. With my penchant for teaching and equipping students with the right skill set and knowledge, I am committed to furthering the students' career aspirations.
A cover letter is a way to introduce yourself and highlight your skills and fit specific to the opportunity to which you are applying. ... Barbara King, Professor of Anthropology at William & Mary, informed me of this exciting opportunity. She has conducted research on gorillas at the National Zoo for five years and believed that this
The running head appears in all-capital letters in the page header of all pages, including the title page. Align the running head to the left margin. Do not use the label "Running head:" before the running head. Prediction errors support children's word learning. Page number. Use the page number 1 on the title page.
Equity refers to fair and just practices and policies that ensure all department community members have the same access to resources, opportunities, and outcomes. Equity is different from equality in that equality presumes everyone's baseline to access is the same. Being equitable requires acknowledging and addressing structural inequalities—historic and current—that advantage some and ...