7 tips for writing a cover letter for a mining job

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April 6, 2023

Writing a cover letter for a mining job isn’t easy. Especially when you’ve no experience. Here are 7 cover letter tips that will help you get the attention of recruiters and land yourself FIFO work.

Struggling to write a cover letter for a mining job? You’re not alone.

Cover letter writing is a task few people enjoy. But they're still relevant.

You’ve spent hours working on your resume. Now you’ve got to find a creative spark. Any interesting ways to turn your skills and experience into an eye-catching cover letter.

Think of it this way. Your cover letter is a marketing tool. It’s an extra channel to market yourself to a mining employer.

We understand you’re probably not a marketer, a recruiter, or a writer. And if you’re not a natural or practiced writer, this can be daunting.

So, here are seven tips that’ll help you write a great cover letter. Insights that’ll give you the best possible chance of landing an interview for the mining job.

Three of these tips will help you with writing structure. Four will help you stand out from the other applicants.

1. How to Address the Hiring Manager

Always include the name of the person who’ll be reviewing your letter.

If you don’t know who to address your cover letter to, avoid writing “to whom it may concern”.

Try using LinkedIn or run a Google search to see what you can find.

If you can’t find the name of the person who’ll review your cover letter, try calling the company and asking the name of the person to write to.

If you’ve tried everything else and still can’t find a name, write something like, “Dear Project Engineer Hiring Manager”. But, seriously, that’s your very last option.

2. Mention the Exact Mining Job You're Applying For

The introduction of your cover letter should immediately mention the role you are applying for. Be specific in your letter. You may wish to put this in bold. For example:

Re: Application for Senior Geologist vacancy at The Very Good Mining Company (Job ad ref # 12345)

You can also put it in the first sentence of the cover letter. For example:

“I wish to apply for the Electrical Engineer position with the global gold producer, The Very Good Mining Company.”

Taking a small detail from the ad, rather than just copying and pasting the job title, shows you’re paying attention and not just taking an “apply for everything” approach to your applications.

3. Showcase Your Mining Skills & Experience – Safety, Licences, and More

Your cover letter is your opportunity to say why you’re perfect for the advertised job.

The job ad will highlight what the company is looking for, so it’s a smart idea to use the ad as a guide to your cover letter pitch. Succinctly, explain why you’re perfect for the role:

Include any relevant skills, experience and requirements, like licences
Say how you align to the company’s culture
Also include any WH&S knowledge and your approach to mining safety on site
Briefly mention times you’ve worked with other companies or teams similar to their company.

4. How to Write in a Professional but Personable Voice

You don’t need to be excessively formal in your cover letter.

Example: “Dear Mr Smith, I wish to extend my great interest in the Driller’s Offsider position available at The Very Good Mining Company.”

It’s also advisable not to sound robotic by relying too much on AI. Employer have seen a noticeable swing towards AI platforms like CoPilot and ChatGPT to write cover letters.

Your best approach is to be human. People want to work with people they can relate to. Be professional, but also be yourself.

5. Formatting Tips for Electronic Submissions

We rarely hand write physical cover letters. Most are sent electronically.

Of course, this means you often have to contend with modern ATS systems that can mess up your carefully crafted formatting.

Here’s a simple ATS tip: Try converting your cover letter to a PDF so everyone can read it as you intended.

6. Include Mining-Specific keywords

As mentioned, resumes and cover letters are now submitted electronically. This is more convenient for job applicants, but has also simplified the way recruiters and hiring managers filter through applications.

Most job applicants don’t realise this but recruiters and hiring managers will often use keyword searches to scan resumes and cover letters for words and terms related to the vacant position.

This is a quick and simple way to identify the most relevant applications to review first.

This means it’s vital you include the right keywords in your cover letter (and your resume).

Use popular or common terms related to the kind of job you’re applying for and the kind of work you do. For example, in an application for an Electrical Engineer job you could include terms like “electrical engineer”, “gold”, and “PLC control systems”.

7. Get Help if You're Struggling

If you’re new to cover letter writing and aren’t confident enough to do it yourself, get some help.

One great benefit of working with a mining recruitment agency, like MPI, is that we can take the cover letter writing burden off your shoulders – and help you to land the perfect mining job.

Bonus Tip: What If You’re New to Mining – Write a Cover Letter With No Experience

If you’re new to the mining industry, what do you write?

Talk about why you’re interested in the role. Most people don’t. Most employers are looking for enthusiastic people, so include a sentence or two about what’s caught your interest.

Also, refer to your relevant qualifications, and mention you’re keen to apply these in practice.

As for skills. Sure, you may not have had an opportunity to use them yet. Refer back to projects from your studies. You can also mention how you might approach a situation and apply your skills and experience.

Keen to know about any mining jobs that might be perfect for you as soon as they come up? Sign up for our free job alerts service.

Or take a look at the latest mining / FIFO jobs.

by Dan Hatch