Last time we looked at the opening paragraphs of a successful hedge fund job cover letter.
When it comes to the second paragraph, this section should also be tailored to the particular firm you are sending it to. Although this adds more time and effort, it emphasizes how serious you are about their particular opportunity. You can streamline this process by writing a number of different paragraph 2 templates, tailored for different types of hedge fund firms, and modifying them on an as-needed basis.
Your final paragraph reminds them that you’ve enclosed your resume, and describes what action will happen next. You might be proactive, ask for the interview, or say that you’ll follow up with a phone call within 10 days. Or you might mention that you look forward to hearing from them soon, and thank them for taking the time to look over your resume.
Some other tips include letting others sing your praises. If you have a one-sentence quotation or recommendation from someone else (especially someone from a well-known firm or institution), you might want to include that. You can also use research to differentiate yourself, by including facts about their organization and tying that in with your experience.
Above all, always keep the interests of your prospective employer in mind. Try to slant your letter towards what they want and need. What’s in it for them and what you can bring to their organization.
References:
www.thebestcoverletters.com
www.bahedgejobs.info
While you may be e-mailing your resume these days instead using paper and envelopes, a cover letter can still be one the most effective ways to differentiate yourself from other candidates.
But as you can expect, hedge fund managers and principals are extremely busy, so you have only a few seconds to capture their attention. It’s best to follow a simple, 3-step format that gets into the heart of your message in a hurry.
The first paragraph should simply introduce yourself and explain why you are writing. Mention the specific position and why you are interested in it. However, if you had any personal contact with the person you are writing to, or were referred to them by a third party, be sure to mention the person’s name. This paragraph should be no longer than two sentences.
Your second paragraph is where, in the most concise and powerful way possible, you highlight your unique qualifications and experience. This is where you pull out 2-3 key points from your resume and put them front and center.
The key here is relevance. As with your resume, your cover letter should focus on the specific skills or experience that you’ve acquired that relate to investing and hedge fund jobs. This could include proof of your passion or long-term interest investing, a successful investment track record, your particular investment philosophy, awards or recognitions. This paragraph should be no longer than 5 sentences; you may want to split it into two paragraphs if it’s too long.
Next time, we’ll look at how to close your hedge fund job cover letter, and some other tips to make it more compelling.
It should go without saying that your resume must be impeccably formatted, free of any spelling or grammatical mistakes, and visually pleasing. When hedge fund managers are going through the pile of resumes that cross their desk, they are just as often looking for reasons to reject a candidate and move on to the next. Don’t give them those reasons with a careless spelling or formatting mistake. Have someone else, or a professional proofreader, go over your resume. It’s often difficult to spot mistakes after you’ve revised a document a dozen times.
Your resume should be easy to scan and, like investment banking resumes, have a high density of information in a small amount of space. There is no reason for your resume to be more than one page. In fact, a longer resume probably shows you haven’t spent enough time whittling things down to the most crucial information. You should pare down your experience to no more than five bullet points per job. Emphasize the work you have done or the skills learned that directly relate to the hedge fund job you are going after.
You should demonstrate your character and integrity by not exaggerating claims made in your achievements section. And by accounting for every bit of time (no gaps) since you graduated from university.
And yes, there should be a short personal section at the bottom of your resume that brings a touch of your personality to the picture. Here you can mention any special skills you might have, such as fluency in a foreign language, contests or championships you’ve won, passions and hobbies.
For a good selection of hedge fund resumes to review and model, we recommend you pick up a copy of Claude Schwab’s book, Hedge Me: The Insider’s Guide: U.S. Hedge Fund Careers, from Lynx Media.
References:
Schwab, Claude. Hedge Me: The Insider’s Guide: U.S. Hedge Fund Careers. Lynx Media.
www.hedgefundblogger.com
Alec.co.uk / Bradley CVs Ltd. http://www.alec.co.uk/
