Your computer science cover letter is the place to put a human face on your computing achievements, in language a nonexpert can evaluate. The guide below offers structure and suggestions for writing a letter that puts your programming wizardry into words.
Published: September 15, 2021 Last Updated: September 08, 2024 Average rating people’ve already rated it
Every computer scientist is hard-wired to let their code do the talking – the intricacy of their work with machine learning, artificial intelligence and software modeling is there in those lines for other programming wizards to see. Only a computer scientist can truly appreciate the excellence of bleeding edge computer science. However, there is a time when other mere mortals need to understand and evaluate computer science achievements.
When it comes to a job search, the computer science cover letter and resume will have to do much of the heavy lifting with the less mathematically minded people who will judge their applications – the human resources department and those in leadership roles.
This computer science cover letter example and guide will look at:
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Every computer science professional will appreciate the need for a logical structure and well thought out progression of any argument, so taking a moment to consider the format of a computer science cover letter is critical. Everyone reading the letter will be conditioned to expect a standard format, so there is no real reason to deviate too much. The content is the key to ensuring that they are curious enough to click through to your portfolio of work.
The format of a computer science cover letter is typically as follows:
This cover letter example and guide share specific advice for computer scientists, but there are many more broader considerations to bear in mind when writing job search content. Our comprehensive cover letter example guide offers more food for thought.
This computer science cover letter example may bring a certain inspiration:
Adaptable cover letter exampleDear Mrs. Casterley,
The network administrator role at Scion Technologies is a direct continuation of the work that I have been doing at Longwell. Your proactive approach to business support and innovative cross-functional collaborations attracts me to what I hope will be the next step in my computer science career.
Most of my time at Longwell was spent optimizing their networks, designing new solutions to integrate their international partners and significantly upgrading their network security after a number of high-profile hacks. Our work improving network security reduced the number of external breaches by 82% over a two-year period.
Igraduated with a degree in Computer Science from Penn State and have continually upgraded my technical qualifications and as well as the full suite of Cisco certifications (that I understand are central to your business). I am proficient in the following:
My technical support was rated as excellent by 85% of my colleagues across all departments and my tech education project brought over 300 of them closer to the issues at stake. I hope that I managed to influence behaviors as well as change network settings.
I performed an annual audit of our work and my last business saving was an estimated $3.2 million in avoided malware attacks, network crashes and system slowdowns. There will always be issues, but with a proactive and logical approach, they can be minimized.
I look forward to the opportunity of an interview to explore your specific priorities and understand how I might assist.
Copy to clipboardIf this computer science cover letter guide was useful, please do some of our information technology cover letter samples:
Every hiring manager needs to be able to find the contact details of the candidate easily. Your name, contact email, phone number and a link to your portfolio of work should be at the very top of the cover letter in the header. You might think that leading with something more interesting is a better idea, but once they have mentally noted that they have seen these aspects, the reader can move on to the more interesting bits.
Goal of the cover letter header: Putting your contact details at the top of the letter is like balancing the simplest of mathematical equations. It just makes sense.
Attention to detail is the ultimate calling card of a computer scientist, so make sure that you get the greeting right. Beginning with a “Dear Mr. / Mrs. / Dr. / Professor” plus their surname is the only way to start. Some cultures may be more informal, but never fall into the trap of calling someone by their first name before you have formally met them. Also, never write “ To whom it may concern” – you can always research the person in question or maybe go with the “Dear Company team” option.
Goal of letter greeting: Getting the greeting right and checking it carefully will save you any embarrassment. You do not want any question marks over your attention to detail.
The introduction of a computer science cover letter simply has to focus on some of the biggest projects that you have taken on and the problems that you have solved. Talk about only the most relevant achievements for the job in question and show that you have the capability to perform similar magic for them.
Avoid the temptation of simply listing your programming languages, software knowledge and hardware experience. All these factual aspects should be in your resume. The cover letter is for really hammering home the impact of the projects that you have contributed to. Talk about how you work in a team, your methodology when you go about your work and the rarest achievements that others will not be able to boast.
Goal of the cover letter intro: The introduction should start with a laser focus on the most important achievements and only the most relevant coding and software skills.
Adaptable greeting and introduction cover letter exampleDear Mrs. Casterley,
The network administrator role at Scion Technologies is a direct continuation of the work that I have been doing at Longwell. Your proactive approach to business support and innovative cross-functional collaborations attracts me to what I hope will be the next step in my computer science career.
Copy to clipboardThe middle paragraphs of a computer science cover letter should continue to outline how your past performance will prove your future potential. Pick one or two key projects rather than a long list. Your employer needs a little more detail in terms of the obstacles that you overcame and the problems that you solved.
Try to offer more information than you have shared on your resume. A cover letter is an opportunity to show how you worked with others – computer science is definitely not an individual pursuit and the most successful computer science professionals understand that presenting their work and solving business problems with a wide team is key to success.
Goal of the body of your cover letter: The details of your computer science pitch should lie within these paragraphs. The examples that you pick will be analyzed carefully, so choose wisely. The hiring manager will assume that this is a reflection of your very best work.
Adaptable middle part cover letter exampleMost of my time at Longwell was spent optimizing their networks, designing new solutions to integrate their international partners and significantly upgrading their network security after a number of high-profile hacks. Our work improving network security reduced the number of external breaches by 82% over a two-year period.
Igraduated with a degree in Computer Science from Penn State and have continually upgraded my technical qualifications and as well as the full suite of Cisco certifications (that I understand are central to your business). I am proficient in the following:
My technical support was rated as excellent by 85% of my colleagues across all departments and my tech education project brought over 300 of them closer to the issues at stake. I hope that I managed to influence behaviors as well as change network settings.
I performed an annual audit of our work and my last business saving was an estimated $3.2 million in avoided malware attacks, network crashes and system slowdowns. There will always be issues, but with a proactive and logical approach, they can be minimized.
Copy to clipboardThe best close for a computer science cover letter focuses on the business impact of your work. Any programmer, software security professional or hardware guru can come up with something ground-breaking, but unless it genuinely impacts the bottom line, there isn’t much point in them doing it.
In addition, don’t be afraid to ask for an opportunity to meet and discuss the details of the role. This call to action shows that you are engaged in the opportunity and with the shortage of great technology professionals this will be something that an employer will want to hear. Finish with a note around why you would love to work for them.
Goal of the closing: Finishing with one last reminder of what you will bring will ensure that their next action will be to invite you to that crucial interview.
Adaptable conclusion & sign-off cover letter exampleI look forward to the opportunity of an interview to explore your specific priorities and understand how I might assist.
