Human resources assistant cover letter

Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter (With Examples)

Writing a clear and concise cover letter is the first step to getting hired, landing your dream job in human resources, and reaching your biggest career goals. Hiring managers, especially those hiring human resources assistants, will be looking to your cover letter to understand your work experience, professional skill sets, and personality.

Human resource assistant cover letters are a great platform for illustrating your expertise in maintaining records, collecting data, and providing information to customers. In your cover letter, your ultimate goal is to emphasize your interest and portray how you’ll be the best professional for the job.

Although human resource assistants can work in various professional industries, the job responsibilities generally remain the same. Human resource assistants are typically tasked with performing administrative work and clerical duties, offering support to staff members, and assisting with staff recruitment and payroll processing.

No matter the industry, human resource assistants tend to encounter a lot of competition during the hiring process. Therefore, a well-written cover letter is essential to “selling yourself” and making a great first impression on hiring managers and prospective employers.

Writing a perfect cover letter to submit along with your professional resume and job application will help you stand out among a large pool of applicants and up your chances of getting hired and having a smooth employee onboarding experience.

The best human resource assistant cover letters reiterate and emphasize the skills and experiences listed in a standard resume or CV while also conveying a job applicant’s passion, personality, and career goals.

Human resource assistants should aim to highlight their integrity and organizational skills as well as their proficiency in completing procedures and background checks and their experience managing payroll and personnel files.

By following a cover letter template, you’ll stand out to hiring managers and make a great first impression on established human resources managers and prospective employers.

Parts of a Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter

A human resource assistant cover letter should heavily focus on an applicant's previous experience, education, and interpersonal skills. Cover letters highlighting key qualifications and job-specific skill sets are more often selected to advance in the application process.

Since human resource assistant careers can be extremely competitive, holding a Bachelor’s degree or specialized human resources certification can put you ahead of the competition. Highlighting your advanced education, especially from a top-tier business, human resources management, or communication college, is an essential part of a perfect human resources assistant cover letter.

Almost equally as important as relevant education is practical work experience.

When hiring human resources assistants, job recruiters look for applicants who have relevant work or internship experience.

Professionals who have experience managing new employee paperwork and orientation, assisting with staff recruitment, managing short-term disability claims, verifying payroll, processing employee status changes, and providing office support are more likely to advance in the hiring process.

When writing your cover letter, especially if you’re looking to change careers, it is imperative that you discuss your past experience and related job responsibilities. For example, if you previously held a position as an administrative assistant, customer service representative, or human resources coordinator, you should reiterate that in your cover letter.

Generally, your cover letter should be a one-page correspondence that highlights your key qualifications and explains why you’re the best candidate for the role. The trick to writing a perfect cover letter is properly structuring the professional document so that it is both easy to read and informative.

A great cover letter is typically composed of:

• A professional header in which you professionally address the hiring manager.

• A compelling introduction paragraph.

• A dense body paragraph that focuses on education, previous experience, office and interpersonal skills, resume achievements, and interest in the position.

• A conclusion that offers a proposal or shows why you’re the best-suited candidate for the role.

• A professional salutation and signature.

In addition to following this professional outline, job-seekers applying for employment opportunities as human resources assistants should always double-check their cover letter before submitting their job application. Proofreading will help eliminate typos and grammatical errors and ensure you put your best foot forward and make a lasting first impression.

Generally, cover letters should be between three and four paragraphs long — and definitely less than one page. The business document should also be formatted with standard one-inch page margins, written in a generic font, like Times New Roman, and organized into well-structured and grammatically correct sentences and paragraphs.

Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter Opening

The opening lines of a human resources assistant cover letter are, perhaps, the most important element of the job application letter. The opening paragraph of a human resources assistant cover letter should be interesting, informative, and attention-grabbing.

In the opening paragraph, your goal is to introduce yourself, state your interest in the role that you’re applying to, and convey your enthusiasm. The opening of a perfect cover letter should be clear, concise, and to the point.

The amount of time and consideration a hiring manager spends reviewing your application is often directly linked to the success of the opening lines of your cover letter.

Having the perfect opening paragraph will convince the hiring manager of your interest, compel them to keep reading the rest of your cover letter, and even lead them to spend more time reviewing your job application.

In addition to perfectly crafting the first few lines of your cover letter, you should also be sure to include a professional header, just as you would in any other business document, and appropriately address the hiring manager.

Here’s a great example of how a successful human resources assistant cover letter might begin:

Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter Body

The middle few paragraphs of your cover letter are where you can really personalize the letter and let your specific skills, knowledge, and qualifications shine. In the body of your human resources assistant cover letter, you should summarize the skills and qualifications listed on your resume and reference the requirements listed in the job description.

The body of your human resources assistant cover letter is a great place to discuss specific human resources projects you have worked on, illustrate your administrative and clerical abilities, and explain your experience in completing work related to recruitment, training, compensation, and benefits, employee relations, and organizational development.

Since human resources assistants are generally entry-level employees who are tasked with assisting human resource managers and an organization’s workforce, job-seekers must be detail-oriented, organized, dedicated to a career in human resources, and have top-notch communication skills.

The body paragraphs of your cover letter are a great area to call attention to these skills.

If you have a professional connection at the company you’re applying to who recommended you for the role or who can vouch for your skills, it might also be a good idea to include that in the body of your cover letter. Adding an employee referral to your cover letter can result in a faster response rate and a more efficient hiring process.

Here’s a great example of what the body of a human resources assistant cover letter might look like:

Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter Closing Lines

The closing lines of your human resources assistant cover letter should bring your letter full circle by wrapping up any loose ends, summarizing your skills and interest, and emphasizing your eagerness to discuss to interview for the position and continue on in the hiring process.

The best cover letters end by asking for a phone or in-person interview. The closing lines of a human resources assistant cover letter are also a great place to share a proposal you hope to implement if hired. Sharing a staff recruitment proposal that’s too good to pass up can be a surefire way to pique a potential employer’s interest.

Conveying your enthusiasm for the role and thanking the hiring manager for their time spent reviewing your cover letter and job application will also up your chances of getting a callback and landing an in-person job interview.

Lastly, make sure you close your human resources assistant cover letter with an appropriate salutation and a professional signature that includes your contact information.

An excellent way of closing your human resources assistant cover letter is like this:

Example of a Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter

If you’re on the hunt for a rewarding career in human resources, landing a job as a human resources assistant is a great way to gain experience and break into the industry.

Using a cover letter template when composing and submitting your job application could help you land a role as a human resources assistant and work your way up to higher-paying human resources management roles.

Here’s a great example of a professional and properly formatted human resources assistant cover letter:

Tips for Writing a Human Resources Assistant Cover Letter

At the end of the day, writing a cover letter can be quite similar across a broad range of professional industries. For a human resources assistant cover letter in particular, though, there are a few things you need to keep in mind in order to write a professional and compelling cover letter.

Here are the top three tips all applicants should follow in order to write an effective cover letter and land a competitive and top-notch career as a human resources assistant:

1. Highlight human resources certifications and relevant schooling. Finding a job as a human resources assistant can be tough since the industry has a high level of competition. Because of this, it’s even more important to highlight key skills, education, and qualifications that will help you stand out from your competitors.

   In general, human resources assistants are required to hold a bachelor’s degree in business, human resources management, communication, or a related study. It’s important to highlight your level of education in your cover letter, as well as any job-specific certifications you may hold, to stand out and impress hiring managers.

2. Illustrate how you will offer staff support. Above all else, human resources assistants are tasked with supporting an organization’s staff. Having top-notch interpersonal skills in addition to the required qualifications will help set you apart from other job-seekers.

   Illustrating how you’ll help a business run smoothly by supporting employees on a clerical level, performing administrative duties, and assisting with recruiting, payroll, and other human resources projects will emphasize your interest in the job and show how you’re the best applicant for the role.

3. Discuss experience in recruitment, training, compensation, and benefits, employee relations, and organizational development. If you’re looking to build a career in human resources, having relevant experience is key to landing a rewarding gig in the industry.

   Although human resources assistants are entry-level employees, they still must be highly skilled in their craft.

   Since working in human resources requires extreme organization, quality customer service and interpersonal skills, and an understanding of complex recruitment and training strategies, hiring managers often look for previous professional experience when reading an applicant’s cover letter.

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking to break into the human resources industry and land a job as a human resources assistant, writing a professional and well-written cover letter will help you put your best foot forward and get noticed by hiring managers and prospective employers.

Your cover letter is your first shot at making a positive and impactful first impression. Conveying high-level human resources, office administration, and interpersonal skills are essential to help you get hired as a human resources assistant.

Using the template and tips outlined in this article and structuring your cover letter to emphasize your strengths and career goals will allow you to make a solid first impression and land your dream job as a human resources assistant.