Letters Of Interest/Speculative Applications

 

Letters of interest are perhaps the hardest way of applying for jobs. You are contacting trusts who are not advertising vacancies, so it’s a little bit harder to convince them that they need you to go and work for them. For every 10 letters you send out, you might only get responses from 5 or 6.

 

Some of those responses will be negative, i.e. thanks but we have no vacancies, all our jobs are advertised online so please look there, and so on. It’s not personal, so don’t take it as such, and it does get easier after the first one!

 

Some trusts are more open to speculative applications – usually the larger hospitals which have regular ‘intakes’ are happy to recruit this way. So you might get your application held on file until a future date, or you might be asked to fill in a further application form. If you’re really lucky, you’ll get offered an interview!

 

Tips for Writing Letters

Get the basics right. Spelling, grammar, punctuation, layout and so on. You are about to become a registered professional, so write like one. Get a trusted friend / tutor / mentor to help if you’re not good at this sort of thing.

 

Address it to the right person at the correct address. If you want to work there, you should make the effort to find out who the Head of Midwifery is and write direct to them. You can sometimes find out on the website, but if not, ring them! Pretend you’re writing a thank you letter if you like, but don’t be afraid to call them and ask.

 

Keep it brief, certainly no more than one page of A4 (including addresses and so on). The letter is a basic introduction only; your CV is where the detail should be.

 

Firstly state why you are writing so that they can see immediately what the letter is about. For example:

"I am writing to register my interest in a career with XXX trust, please find attached my CV for your information."

 

Tell them who you are and when you’ll be available:

"I am a third year Midwifery student at YYY university, and am due to qualify in January 2010."

 

Tell them why you want to work there, even if it’s a basic reason such as it’s the largest / nearest trust or whatever. Make them see that you have chosen them above other trusts, and be positive:

"I am interested in working at XXX trust because of its reputation as a centre of excellence / I know midwives (/students) who work there (or women who have delivered there) and who have recommended it to me / I am relocating due to family commitments and I believe it to be the best local trust."

 

Encourage them to contact you for more info, and tell them if there are times when you are unavailable:

"If you would like any further information please do not hesitate to contact me on the details above. Please note that I will be on my elective placement from 1/1/10 to 31/1/10 so will be unavailable at that time."

 

Tell them that you know there are no vacancies advertised at present, but ask them to keep your application on file for any that are coming up:

"I am aware that your trust is not advertising vacancies at this time, so this is a speculative application. I would be very grateful if you would keep my application on file for any future vacancies."

 

Thank them!

"Thank you for taking the time to consider my application, and I look forward to hearing from you shortly."

 

If you can afford it, consider using coloured or textured paper. Nothing too bright or unprofessional, but a nice subtle parchment coloured paper with texture will make YOUR letter stand out from the crowd. It shows that you have really made an effort to make a good first impression and that you care about this application.

 

Remember what we said – you might not hear anything back for weeks / months, if ever. Put it in the post and forget about it, then keep looking.

 

Source: Written by Sue Easthope: Registered Midwife. Copyright The Midwifery Sanctuary