Job application example: a cover letter that gets read

What a cover letter actually is

A cover letter is not a summary of your CV. It is a short argument for why you fit this job. If your letter could have been sent to five different jobs with the same wording, it is too generic to help you.

Recruiters read cover letters to answer three questions:

1. Why this job? (Not "a job", but this one.)
2. What can you do that is relevant?
3. What kind of person are you to work with?

The letter that answers all three, briefly and without clichés, wins a place in the interview pile.

How many people actually read the letter

It varies with the industry and the role. A survey by Resume Genius (2023) found that 83 % of recruiters said a good cover letter can make up for an average CV, while a ResumeLab study the same year found that 56 % of job ads did not require a letter. In practice: where the letter is required or optional, you write it, and it can move you from the pile of 100 CVs to the shortlist of 10.

In the public sector and traditional Norwegian industries (banking, health, education, public administration), the cover letter is still central. In technology and start-ups it often matters less, but a good letter still makes you stand out.

The structure that works (3 paragraphs)

Paragraph 1: Why this job

2 to 4 sentences. Say why this role, at this company, interests you. Don't repeat the ad back to them. Mention something specific you have picked up: a product, a strategic direction, a client they work with, a comment the CEO has made. It shows that you have done your research.

Paragraph 2: What you bring to the table

4 to 7 sentences. Two or three claims about what you can do, each followed by one concrete piece of proof. Results with numbers where you have them. Link it directly to what the ad asks for.

Don't repeat the CV. Choose two or three points you want to reinforce, and explain them. The CV lists that you did X. The letter explains how, and why it is relevant to this role.

Paragraph 3: Ending and action

2 to 3 sentences. One sentence about what you are looking for in your next role (short and specific). An ending with a clear wish for a conversation. Not "I hope to hear from you", which is passive and outdated.

"I look forward to hearing from you and would be happy to meet for a coffee at your office or online this week" is active, and gives the recruiter something concrete to respond to.

Three real openings that work

Example 1: Product owner at a Norwegian HR tech company

Hi Mari,

I have followed Simployer since you launched the new recruitment module last autumn, especially how you have handled the integration with Norwegian payroll systems without losing pace. It is a problem I spent three years solving for a similar product, and that very link between HR and payroll is why this product owner role seems so tailor-made that I had to apply.

Why it works: a concrete reference (the module from last autumn), a specific problem (payroll integration), a link to your own experience. No clichés.

Example 2: Communications adviser at a government agency

Hi,

The new communication strategy of the Norwegian Directorate of eHealth, with its focus on how health professionals actually use information in their daily work, really struck a chord with me. I have written for public-sector audiences for six years, most recently as an information adviser at a county authority, and I know how hard it is to produce something that is both legally precise and readable. That is why I am applying for the position of communications adviser with you.

Why it works: shows knowledge of the strategy (research), acknowledges a specific challenge, builds a bridge to your own experience.

Example 3: Newly graduated data engineer

Hi,

I am applying for the junior data engineer position at Kolonial because you seem to take data quality seriously, which I discovered when I read your technical blog post about how you forecast fresh fruit. I graduated from NTNU this spring with a bachelor's degree in computer science, and over the past year I have built a hobby app to track grocery prices in Trondheim, which forced me into exactly the problems you described in the post.

Why it works: a specific blog post, a hobby project that matches (shows initiative), honest about being at junior level.

Paragraph 2, taken apart

Here is a typical weak middle section:

I am a committed and results-oriented person with a strong work ethic and good communication skills. I thrive in teams and deliver under pressure.

That says nothing. Who sees themselves as "uncommitted and process-focused with a weak work ethic"?

Compare:

For the past four years I have been responsible for onboarding new customers to Visma SmartSkanning, where I went from handling 15 customers manually each month to designing a self-service onboarding that now takes 80 per cent of new customers through without my involvement. Our team spent 11 fewer hours a week on repetitive tasks, and the NPS for the onboarding experience went from 42 to 68 in the same period. I believe this experience is relevant to the role with you because, according to the ad, you are in the middle of a similar scaling phase.

The second version has the numbers, the action, the result and an explicit link to the role. The recruiter now knows that you can do this, not just that you think you can.

The tone: calm, clear, a little personal

A letter shouldn't sound like an application template from 2005, or like a LinkedIn influencer. It should sound like you, calm and written on an ordinary day. If you use AI for a draft, rewrite it in your own voice.

Avoid:

• "I am humbled by the opportunity to apply"
• "With my passion for [industry]"
• "I am looking for challenges"
• "I am the candidate you are looking for"
• "Throughout my career I have..."

Keep:

• Short sentences.
• Concrete nouns (product names, places, numbers).
• One personal sentence if it fits (for example that something in the company's values struck a chord with you).

When you don't have all the experience

The ad asks for 5 years of experience, you have 2. Don't pretend, and don't apologise.

The ad asks for 5 years of experience. I have 2, but in those two years I have had full project responsibility for four deliveries instead of being one of many on a single project. I think the value of breadth is underrated, and I would be glad to show you in the interview how it played out.

That puts the objection to rest and invites further conversation. It is far more convincing than pretending 2 years is 5.

Technical details

• Format: PDF, with your name and the job in the file name, for example application-marcus-jenshaug-product-owner-simployer.pdf.
• Font: the same as your CV, about 11 points.
• Length: 250 to 400 words. At most one A4 page.
• Signature: just your name at the end. No scanned handwriting.
• Date: no date at the top. No addresses. Only the content of the letter.

Before you send it

Read the letter out loud. Then go through this checklist:

• Is the company's name mentioned at least twice and spelt correctly?
• Is the word "passion" or "synergy" in the text? Take it out.
• Is there at least one sentence with numbers about what you have done?
• Is the third paragraph tailored, not recycled from an earlier application?
• Does it end with a clear invitation to a conversation?

If all five are yes, you have a letter that can compete. Then it is time to structure the job search itself so you don't lose track of who you have sent what to.