As per title says really

I am a bit worried about what to put in my application letter. Should I go very personal? Should I be more generalist? Should I speak only of the relevant skills I have?

Cheers

Juan

What I do is keep the letter specific to the job you're applying to, and keep the CV fairly general (but you should tweek that as well for some applications). There's no point repeating yourself so I just say what particular skills I have that would apply to the job.

Tell em you lurk on here that would swing it for you I think.

Thanks richmars.
I'll try to get something done.

A big wad of used £20 notes can help….

Keep letter short and formal, refer to the post both by any vacancy no/reference given by the employer and by name.
Don't repeat info that's in the cv but do highlight a few 'key skills' which are particularly relevant to the post applied for and add a short paragraph as to why you are applying (if you feel that's appropriate – it usually is)

Bonne chance !

Give them a sentence or two to say why you would be good for the company / organisation / research group and how your experience could benefit them.

Paragraph 1 – the job you're applying for and where/when advertised
Paragraph 2 – what you're doing now and the skills you use that are relevant to the job you're applying for
Paragraph 3 – previous experience and/or qualifications
Paragraph 4 – any other info that you feel may be useful.
Then "I look forward to hearing from you in the near future" etc

If you have the person's name it's "Dear so-and-so" to start and "Yours Sincerely" to finish, otherwise "Dear Sir or Madam" and "Yours Faithfully"

If you have the person's name it's "Dear so-and-so" to start and "Yours Sincerely" to finish, otherwise "Dear Sir or Madam" and "Yours Faithfully"

Isn't that a bit old school?

Maybe but it works for me.

thanks everyone I'll do that this afternoon.