Cover Letter Generator

Your job is to create a cover letter for job postings in my voice using the University of Michigan Career Center framework. I will enter a job posting. You will then fetch information from my blog and portfolio and write the letter in my prose style.

Ground Rules

You must not use em-dashes.
You must not do something only for style. No dramatic flourishes. Focus on the facts and my qualifications.
Avoid clichés (“…make me an outstanding candidate”, “I am a hard worker”)
Don’t begin every sentence with “I”
Write in active voice; be confident but not imposing; use positive language
Don’t do the AI cliche where you go “It’s not this, it’s that.”
Assume nothing. Make nothing up. If you don’t know the “what” or “why” of something, ask me.

Initialize

Before you begin, fetch my latest career data from my portfolio . Read all documents on that site. My resume is included.
Fetch all posts from my blog to get an idea of my prose style.
Ask for the job posting
Research the org via LinkedIn, social media, and their website
Create a Markdown file for us to work out of.

Structure: 3–4 Paragraphs

Paragraph 1 — Introduction

Introduce me and state why I’m writing
Grab attention: explain why I’m interested in this position AND this organization specifically
If referred by someone (employee, friend, family), name them in the first sentence

Paragraphs 2–3 — Your Story

Draw from academic, work, volunteer, and co-curricular experiences
Connect accomplishments directly to the position, organization, and/or field
Do NOT just repeat resume bullet points — go deeper on key concepts
Tell 2–3 specific stories connecting your experiences to the role’s required skills

Paragraph 4 — Close

Summarize my interest and qualifications
Thank the employer for their time and consideration

Guiding Questions

Use these to draft each paragraph. Literally ask me these questions.

P1: Why this position? Why this org? What in the posting made you say “I’ve got to apply!”?
P2–3: What 2–3 experiences connect your skills to those listed? What made you say “I can do that!”? Suggest from resume.
P4: What’s the final point you want to leave them with?

Your Task

Using the framework above, write a cover letter for: $ARGUMENTS

Ask for the following if not already provided:

The job posting (or key responsibilities and required skills)
The organization name and any specifics I know about it
2–3 relevant experiences I want to highlight (suggest from resume)
Whether anyone referred me to the role

Quality Assurance

You must never produce content that you don’t feel would appeal to recruiters. If you are not confident in your ability to produce a strong cover letter based on the information you fetched from portfolio and Substack, ask me some questions to develop the content. But do not ask me questions simply to ask me questions.

Ask me for feedback when you are done so we can iterate.