Are you looking to land more job offers as an Administrative Assistant?

A great cover letter will be key. This guide will cover everything you need for writing a job-winning Administrative Assistant cover letter (including proven strategies, skills, templates, & examples).

All of the content in this guide is based on data from coaching thousands of job seekers (just like you!) who went on to land offers at the world's best companies.

If you want to maximize your chances of landing that administrative assistant role, I recommend reading this piece from top to bottom. But if you're just looking for something specific, here's what's included in this guide:

• What To Know About Writing A Job-Winning Administrative Assistant Cover Letter
• The Best Skills To Include On An Administrative Assistant Cover Letter
• How To Address An Administrative Assistant Cover Letter
• 3 Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Examples
• The 8 Best Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Templates
• 3 Tips For Writing A Job-Winning Administrative Assistant Cover Letter

Here's the step-by-step breakdown:

Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Overview: What To Know To Write A Cover Letter That Wins More Job Offers

What do companies look for when they're hiring an Administrative Assistant?

When hiring an administrative assistant, companies seek candidates who possess a range of skills and qualities. Firstly, organizational skills are essential, as administrative assistants need to manage multiple tasks and prioritize their workload effectively. Attention to detail is also important to ensure that all tasks are completed accurately and on time. Strong communication skills, both in writing and verbally, are necessary to interact with colleagues, clients, and customers. Proficiency in using computers and various software programs is a must for administrative assistants.

Administrative Assistants also need to be able to manage their time effectively, handle competing demands, and adapt to changing situations in a fast-paced work environment. Additionally, they should be friendly, approachable, and professional while maintaining confidentiality and discretion when handling sensitive information. In summary, administrative assistants must work independently, be self-motivated, and able to handle a variety of tasks efficiently and accurately.

Additionally, there are a few best practices you want to follow to write a job-winning administrative assistant cover letter:

1. Customize the cover letter: Address the cover letter to the hiring manager, and customize it to the specific job you're applying for. Highlight why you're a great fit for this particular position and company.
2. Use a professional tone: Use a professional tone throughout the letter, and avoid using slang or overly casual language.
3. Start with a strong opening: Start your letter with a strong opening that grabs the reader's attention. For example, you might mention a recent news article about the company that impressed you.
4. Highlight your relevant skills and experience: In the body of the letter, highlight your relevant skills and experience, using specific examples to demonstrate your abilities. Whenever possible, include quantifiable achievements, such as “increased efficiency by 30% through the implementation of a new filing system.”
5. Show enthusiasm: Show enthusiasm for the position and the company, and explain why you're excited about the opportunity to work there.
6. Conclude with a call to action: Conclude your letter with a call to action, such as asking for an interview or expressing your interest in discussing your qualifications further.
7. Proofread: Make sure to thoroughly proofread your cover letter for any grammatical errors or typos. A well-written, error-free letter can make a strong first impression. I recommend using Hemingway App to do this.

Let's dive deeper into each of these so you have the exact blueprint you need to see success.

The Best Administrative Assistant Skills To Include On Your Cover Letter

Keywords are one of the most important factors in your cover letter. They show employers that your skills align with the role and they also help format your cover letter for Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).

If you're not familiar with ATS systems, they are pieces of software used by employers to manage job applications. They scan cover letters for keywords and qualifications and make it easier for the employers to filter and search for candidates whose qualifications match the role.

If you want to win more interviews and job offers, you need to have a keyword-optimized cover letter. There are two ways to find the right keywords:

1. Leverage The 20 Best Administrative Assistant Keywords

The first way to find the right keywords is to leverage our list of the best keywords and skills for a administrative assistant cover letter.

These keywords were selected from an analysis of real administrative assistant job descriptions sourced from actual job boards. Here they are:

• Communication
• Reporting
• Management
• Calendar
• Systems
• Organization
• Correspondence
• Filing
• Presentations
• Inventory
• Invoices
• Time Management
• Flexible
• Ability to prioritize
• Leadership
• Problem Solving
• Meet Deadlines
• Research
• Supplies
• Expenses

2. Use ResyMatch.io To Find The Best Keywords That Are Specific To Your Cover Letter And Target Role

The second method is the one I recommend because it's personalized to your specific cover letter and target job.

This process lets you find the exact keywords that your cover letter is missing when compared to the individual role you're applying for.

Here's how it works:

1. Open a copy of your target administrative assistant job description
2. Head over to ResyMatch.io
3. Select the “Job Description Scan” from the scan type selector in the upper right corner of the tool
4. Copy and paste the job description into the field on the left
5. Hit scan and review the results

ResyMatch is going to scan the target job description and show you the exact keywords and skills that are relevant for the role and that you should weave into your cover letter.

Here's a video walking through this whole process:

How To Address An Administrative Assistant Cover Letter

Personalization is what makes a cover letter stand out. That starts from the very first sentence where you greet the person reading your cover letter! There are two ways to do this well:

1. Use The Hiring Manager's Name

The first, and best, is by including the hiring manager's name. Let's say that you discovered the hiring manager's name from a post on LinkedIn or via an informational interview.

This is the jackpot! All you need to do is use their name in the introduction, like this:

But we won't always have the luxury of knowing the hiring manager's name. Here's what you do in those cases:

2. Use This Formula: To The [Department] Team at [Company]

If you don't have the hiring manager's name, no problem! You can address your cover letter to the team that you're applying to.

For example, if you're applying to for a Product Marketing Manager role at Discovery Education, you might start you cover letter like this:

This shows the reader that this letter has been written specifically for them and the content inside of it will support that.

It's much more relevant and personal than “To Whom It May Concern!”

For more advice on writing a strong opening to your cover letter, check out this guide.

3 Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Examples For 2023

Now let's take a look at all of these best practices in action. Here are three cover letter examples for different situations from people with different backgrounds that are all applying for administrative assistant roles:

Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Example #1: A Traditional Background

Our first example is a cover letter written by a candidate with traditional experience as an administrative assistant. Here is what an example of their cover letter might look like:

Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Example #2: A Non-Traditional Background

Our second cover letter example comes from a candidate looking to transition from working as a legal assistant to an administrative assistant role. This cover letter illustrates how they identify and speak to their transferable skills:

Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Example #3: An Experienced Administrative Assistant With a Resume Gap

For our third administrative assistant resume example, we have a candidate who has 8+ years of experience, and is looking to re-enter the workforce after a 2+ year gap. Here's an example of what their resume might look like:

The 8 Best Administrative Assistant Cover Letter Templates

At this point, you know all of the basics you'll need to write an administrative assistant cover letter that wins you more interviews and offers. The only thing left is to take all of that information and apply it to a template that's going to help you get results.

We made that easy with our CoverBuild tool. It has 8 proven templates that were created with the help of recruiters and hiring managers at the world's best companies. These templates also bake in thousands of data points we have from the job seekers in our audience who have used them to land job offers.

Just click any of the templates below to start building your cover letter using proven, recruiter-approved templates:

3 Tips For Writing A Job-Winning Administrative Assistant Cover Letter

You're off to a strong start! But I've got a few more tips to help you take your cover letter to the next level:

1. Use ChatGPT To Write Your Cover Letter In <30 Seconds

All of these tips and best practices work, but you still have to implement them. Normally, that'd mean you sitting down and spending hours brainstorming ideas, typing, deleting, and typing again, and then feeling absolutely drained.

Now there's a way to work around all of that so you save your best energy for the writing and edits that matter most. Here's how it works:

1. Head to ChatGPT (you'll need to create an account – it's free)
2. Ask ChatGPT, “Please write me a cover letter for an administrative assistant role. The role I'm applying for is [Job Title] role at [Company]. Here is the job description: [Paste Job Description]. And here is my resume: [Paste Resume].
3. Watch ChatGPT write up a pretty darn good cover letter base!

Here's a video of me doing this with a real cover letter if you want to see the steps in action:

Note: I do not recommend or advise that you simply copy and paste the content from ChatGPT into your cover letter and submit your application. ChatGPT is great for doing 80% of the baseline work, but you still need to review, revise, and personalize the content yourself.

2. Include Measurable Metrics And Outcomes

Too many job seekers only focus on the actions that they took and not the outcomes that resulted from those actions. As a hiring manager, it's impossible to differentiate between a dozen candidates who were all “Responsible For Increasing Customer Satisfaction Rates.” 

If you want to win, your cover letter should speak to the specific outcomes that you drove in previous roles. That could be:

• The percentage of projects you completed on time
• The percentage by which you increased the efficiency of administrative processes
• The average satisfaction rate of your clients
• The percentage by which you were able to reduce operational costs
• Etc.

These numbers will show hiring teams what you're capable of and make your value crystal clear!

3. Match Your Cover Letter And Resume Design

Design has a big impact on perceived quality. Take the below image for example, which car is worth more?If you said Car A, you'd be wrong!

They're the exact same car, down to the year, make, and model. The only difference is the way the product was presented. Like I said, quality impacts perceived value.

One of the best ways to boost the quality of your cover letter is to make it look clean, professional, and have it match your resume. That's why the resume templates in our resume builder tool match the cover letter templates in our cover letter builder:

If you use both tools to create your cover letter and your resume, your entire application is going to be top notch.

Key Takeaways To Wrap Up Your Job-Winning Cover Letter

You made it! We packed a lot of information into this post so I wanted to distill the key points for you and lay out next steps so you know exactly where to from here.

Here are the 5 steps for writing a job-winning administrative assistant cover letter:

1. Start with a proven cover letter template from CoverBuild.io
2. Use ResyMatch.io to find the right keywords and optimize your cover letter for each administrative assistant role you apply to
3. Start your cover letter with a personalized greeting for the hiring manager or team name
4. Emphasize the measurable outcomes and value you drove in previous roles (include metrics!)
5. Compare the draft of your administrative assistant cover letter to the examples on this page to make sure you're on the right path
6. Use a tool like Hemingway App to proofread your cover letter before you submit it

If you follow those steps, you're going to be well on your way to landing more administrative assistant interviews and job offers.