Cover Letter
WHAT IS THE COVER LETTER?
The cover letter is where you will reflect on the contents of this portfolio and what those contents say about your writing.
Please do not compose the letter until after you have selected the three writing samples you are including in your portfolio.
The purpose of the letter is to introduce yourself and your portfolio to the reader. Take a few sentences to tell us about who you are.
Then turn to introducing the portfolio itself.
* Tell the readers what is included in the portfolio.
* Describe when and why you wrote each writing sample.
* Tell us what kinds of skills you needed to use to compose the writing samples.
* Explain why you choose to include those writing samples in the portfolio.
* Conclude by describing what kind of writer you have become while in college, using the writing samples in your portfolio to support your claims.
WHY WRITE A COVER LETTER?
This portfolio is what readers will use to determine if you are prepared to take a writing intensive course.
Your reflection will help readers gauge how well you understand your own writing process. A student who knows their own writing process is better able to use that process independently in future settings.
The reflective cover letter is where students demonstrate that they understand the following: This portfolio says something about me as a writer.
In a strong portfolio letter, students are able to clearly explain what that something is.
WHAT SHOULD THE COVER LETTER LOOK LIKE?
The letter should be 300-500 words
Open the letter by directly addressing the portfolio readers with: Dear Portfolio Reader,...
Format the text as a letter (no address or mailing information please)
Divide the letter up using paragraphs
Find a style and tone that is suitable for a student writing directly to a college-level instructor
Close with a thank you
HINTS
Remember the purpose of this letter:
The cover letter is where you will share your reflections on the contents of this portfolio and what they say about your writing process.
Remember the reader of this letter:
A college-level instructor at Sacramento State University who is evaluating how prepared you are to enroll in a writing intensive course.
Remember what readers expect to find in this letter:
* A description of the portfolio contents
* An argument that claims specific things about your writing ability and supports those claims with references to the portfolio contents
Remember to give yourself room to be specific:
* Pick 2-4 qualities in your writing that you want to highlight (more than that and you will not have room to provide specific support)
* Provide specific support from one or more of your writing samples
Here are three portfolio-appropriate claims with support:
I used to struggle with being concise. My descriptions were always too wordy, and that made some things confusing for readers. In the literature review I used for my second writing sample, however, there are several examples of clear and concise descriptions. So, I think I have improved in that area a lot.
My third writing sample on environmentalism in the rural Central Valley includes a number of places where my evidence is followed by strong analysis. One example is the section where I cite the Manteca Bulletin article about strengthening agricultural runoff regulations. That is followed by analysis explaining how this shows both financial and political support for environmentally friendly policies.
I have learned to consider my audience when writing, and I think that is made clear when you compare my psychology paper to my philosophy paper. In the psychology paper, I was supposed to write a summarize of research for parents concerned about the impact of screen time for kids. For that paper, I cut out all of the specialized jargon and used a lot of examples. In the philosophy paper, on the other hand, I was writing a response to a call for papers. I knew the readers were going to be other philosophers. So I tried my best to use all the vocabulary we learned in class.
The cover letter is where you will reflect on the contents of this portfolio and what those contents say about your writing.
Please do not compose the letter until after you have selected the three writing samples you are including in your portfolio.
The purpose of the letter is to introduce yourself and your portfolio to the reader. Take a few sentences to tell us about who you are.
Then turn to introducing the portfolio itself.
* Tell the readers what is included in the portfolio.
* Describe when and why you wrote each writing sample.
* Tell us what kinds of skills you needed to use to compose the writing samples.
* Explain why you choose to include those writing samples in the portfolio.
* Conclude by describing what kind of writer you have become while in college, using the writing samples in your portfolio to support your claims.
WHY WRITE A COVER LETTER?
This portfolio is what readers will use to determine if you are prepared to take a writing intensive course.
Your reflection will help readers gauge how well you understand your own writing process. A student who knows their own writing process is better able to use that process independently in future settings.
The reflective cover letter is where students demonstrate that they understand the following: This portfolio says something about me as a writer.
In a strong portfolio letter, students are able to clearly explain what that something is.
WHAT SHOULD THE COVER LETTER LOOK LIKE?
The letter should be 300-500 words
Open the letter by directly addressing the portfolio readers with: Dear Portfolio Reader,...
Format the text as a letter (no address or mailing information please)
Divide the letter up using paragraphs
Find a style and tone that is suitable for a student writing directly to a college-level instructor
Close with a thank you
HINTS
Remember the purpose of this letter:
The cover letter is where you will share your reflections on the contents of this portfolio and what they say about your writing process.
Remember the reader of this letter:
A college-level instructor at Sacramento State University who is evaluating how prepared you are to enroll in a writing intensive course.
Remember what readers expect to find in this letter:
* A description of the portfolio contents
* An argument that claims specific things about your writing ability and supports those claims with references to the portfolio contents
Remember to give yourself room to be specific:
* Pick 2-4 qualities in your writing that you want to highlight (more than that and you will not have room to provide specific support)
* Provide specific support from one or more of your writing samples
Here are three portfolio-appropriate claims with support:
I used to struggle with being concise. My descriptions were always too wordy, and that made some things confusing for readers. In the literature review I used for my second writing sample, however, there are several examples of clear and concise descriptions. So, I think I have improved in that area a lot.
My third writing sample on environmentalism in the rural Central Valley includes a number of places where my evidence is followed by strong analysis. One example is the section where I cite the Manteca Bulletin article about strengthening agricultural runoff regulations. That is followed by analysis explaining how this shows both financial and political support for environmentally friendly policies.
I have learned to consider my audience when writing, and I think that is made clear when you compare my psychology paper to my philosophy paper. In the psychology paper, I was supposed to write a summarize of research for parents concerned about the impact of screen time for kids. For that paper, I cut out all of the specialized jargon and used a lot of examples. In the philosophy paper, on the other hand, I was writing a response to a call for papers. I knew the readers were going to be other philosophers. So I tried my best to use all the vocabulary we learned in class.
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