A job application letter                                      

Dear Sir or Madam, 

    I’m sending this letter to apply for the secretary position, which appeared in the People’s Daily on Sunday.

     I believe I have the required qualities for the position. I graduated from Zhejiang University two years ago. My major was Chinese, which provided me with the necessary skills for the secretary occupation. I’m good at operating modern office equipments, such as the computer, the fax machine and the scanner. I’m also familiar with office software, including Excel, PPT, and FrontPage. Besides, I have passed the CET Band 6 with good results.

In my opinion, the office work needs much patience and carefulness and it is usually done with modern equipments. In the past two years, I worked as a secretary with the Eastcom and the China Telecom successively. The experiences improved my capability and skill in communication and made my more confident. With my experience in the two secretary positions, I’m sure I will be the right person for the job.

My telephone number is 88207233. I’m looking forward to your reply.

                                          Yours sincerely,        

                                          Wang Ying

A College Application Letter

Dear Sir or Madam,

I’m a senior in Zhejiang University and I major in finance. I’m planning to get further education and seeking for a graduate school. I’ve heard that your university is very famous in this field and I am looking forward to getting a chance of development in finance. Therefore I consider it wise to make your university my first choice.

In the past four years, I’ve learned basic theories of economics. I got good marks each semester and was awarded many titles such as “Excellent Student” and “Splendid Student Leader”. Meanwhile, I engaged in a lot of social work and have accumulated some experience in finance. Besides, several essays of mine were published in some famous academic journals.

I would like to know how you will help students with their research and what chances I can get. I also wonder how much financial support I can get when applying for a research project.

Finally, would you please send me some materials about your university? I would be very grateful. Yours is such a unique school and the dream to study in it always thrills my heart every time it occurs to me.

I look forward to your reply.

                                                    Sincerely,                           Li Wei 

Letter writing is an art. A well-written letter is a always a pleasure to read.

Make The Letter Clear and simple - Use short words, clear words as much as possible.  Avoid jargon or vague words which may confuse the letter reader. Use only one side of the paper.

Make your letter Short - Keep it short. Be as brief as possible. Do not waste the reader precious time. Long letters are a turn off.

Make your letter come Alive - Try to address the letter directly to the reader.

Make it CORRECT - Avoid spelling, poor grammar, and mistakes in your letter . If you can prepare your letter on a computer, it will be neater.

 I. The format of a letter:

       Friendly or Personal Letters

Personal letters, also known as friendly letters, and social notes normally have five parts.

1. The Heading. This includes the address, line by line, with the last line being the date. Skip a line after the heading. The heading is indented to the middle of the page. If using preaddressed stationery, just add the date. Example:

123 Main St.
West Newfield CT 06123

December 14, 2002

2. The Greeting. 问候语The greeting always ends with a comma. The greeting may be formal, beginning with the word "dear" and using the person's given name or relationship, or it may be informal if appropriate.

Formal: Dear Uncle Jim, Dear Mr. Wilkins,

Informal: Hi Joe, Greetings,

3. The body. Also known as the main text. This includes the message you want to write. Normally in a friendly letter, the beginning of paragraphs is indented. If not indented, be sure to skip a space between paragraphs. Skip a line after the greeting and before the close.

4. The complimentary close. 结尾表示敬意的客套话This short expression is always a few words on a single line. It ends in a comma. It should be indented to the same column as the heading. Skip one to three spaces (two is usual) for the signature line. If you are writing to someone whose name and title you do not know, use the greeting Dear Sir or Madam, and the ending Yours faithfully. If you are writing to a named person, address them as Dear Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms, and end Yours sincerely, followed by your first name and surname. If you have met them or spoke to them by phone, or otherwise feel that you have some acquaintance with them, address them by their first name and sign yourself Yours sincerely, using your first name.

结束语前常有些客套语，在私人信中常用的有： With best wishes, All the best, With kind regards, with kindest regards, With all good wishes, All good wishes, Best regards, Your early reply will be appreciated.

5. The signature line. Type or print your name. The handwritten signature goes above this line and below the close. The signature line and the handwritten signature are indented to the same column as the close. The signature should be written in blue or black ink. If the letter is quite informal, you may omit the signature line as long as you sign the letter.

Example:

Truly yours,

(Signature goes here)

Margaret Fong

Postscript. If your letter contains a postscript, begin it with P.S. and end it with your initials. Skip a line after the signature line to begin the postscript.

Business Letters

A business letter is more formal than a personal letter. It should have a margin of at least one inch on all four edges.

There are six parts to a business letter.

1. The Heading. This contains the return address (usually two or three lines) with the date on the last line.

2. The Inside Address. This is the address you are sending your letter to. Make it as complete as possible. Include titles and names if you know them.

This is always on the left margin.

3. The Greeting. Also called the salutation. The greeting in a business letter is always formal. It normally begins with the word "Dear" and always includes the person's last name.

4. The Body. The body is written as text. A business letter is never hand written.

5. The Complimentary Close. This short, polite closing ends with a comma. It is either at the left margin or its left edge is in the center. It begins at the same column the heading does.

6. The Signature Line. Skip two lines (unless you have unusually wide or narrow lines) and type out the name to be signed.

 Business letters should not contain postscripts.

Envelope format

Return Address

This goes in the upper left hand corner of the front of the envelope. It should include a complete address so that the letter can be returned if necessary.

You do not have to type this in if you are using stationery preprinted with the return address. Stickers or rubber stamps may be used, although a sticker with a return address usually is reserved for personal letters.

Address

The name and address of the recipient should be centered on the envelope.

Example:

Miss Abigail Beecher
Department of History
Klondike Regional High School
Yellowknife, Yukon EFG 123 Canada

Letter of application
Dear Sir or Madame,
I am writing to apply for the position of part time English teacher you advertised in the newspaper yesterday. Enclosed with this letter is my personal resume, which will give you further information about me.
I am 24 years old and I am a quite extrovert person. I studied English Literature in Nankai University from 1996 to 2000 and got a degree of bachelor. After graduation, I worked in a high school as a English teacher. There were good comments from my students during my teaching. From all the above reasons , I feel sure that I am the right person that you are looking for.
Thank you for your consideration of my application letter. I am looking forward to an interview at your earliest convenience. I could be contacted at the number 23131245 from 6 pm to 10 pm.
Yours Sincerely,

Jason Lee