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Cover letter example

Systems administrator cover letter example

Hiring managers for admin roles are usually the IT manager or the infrastructure lead. They read your letter to check one thing: can you be trusted with production?

Show the environment you have run, a project you led end to end, and your attitude to on-call and documentation.

Cover letter example

Replace the parts in brackets with your own details.

Subject: Application: administrateur systèmes et réseaux, ref. [reference]

Dear [Mr/Ms Last name],

I am applying for the systems and network administrator position at [Company]. For the past [x] years I have been running the infrastructure of [Current employer], a site of around [x] users in [City]: a VMware cluster, Windows and Linux servers, Veeam backups and a Fortinet firewall.

Last year I led the migration of our file servers to new storage. I planned the cutover over two weekends, wrote the rollback procedure, and informed each department beforehand. Users found their shares on Monday morning without opening a ticket. I also set up monthly restore tests, which revealed two backup jobs that had been silently failing.

Your job ad mentions an upcoming move to a hybrid model with Microsoft 365 and Entra ID. I administered that tenant at [Current employer] and know the pitfalls of synchronising an older Active Directory. I take part in the on-call rota today and am comfortable with that organisation.

If useful, I can walk you through the rollback plan I wrote for that migration; it says more about how I work than a list of tools. My number is [phone], and my email [email].

Kind regards,[First name Last name]

What to highlight

  • The size and type of environment you administer
  • One project with a clear before and after
  • How you handle incidents and communicate during them
  • Your availability for on-call duty and maintenance windows
  • A link between your skills and their stack, named precisely

Mistakes to avoid

  • Copying the job ad's list of tools back to the reader without examples.
  • Writing a generic letter for an ESN and a client-side IT department alike.
  • Not saying whether you accept on-call duty when the ad mentions it.
  • Spending a paragraph on passion for technology instead of one concrete project.

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Frequently asked questions

Is a cover letter still expected for IT jobs in France?

Many ESN recruiters skip it and call you directly from your CV. Internal IT departments, public employers and smaller companies still read it, often to judge how you write, since documentation is part of the job. A short, precise letter is always better than none for these employers.

How do I apply to an ESN versus a company's own IT team?

With an ESN, insist on adaptability and the range of environments you know, since you may be placed with different clients. For an internal team, show that you understand their business and that you can own an infrastructure over time, including its documentation and its users.

Can I write the letter in English?

If the ad is in English or the company is international, yes. Otherwise write in French, even simple French, because the letter also shows that you can write procedures and incident reports for French-speaking colleagues and users.