Dear Prospective Candidate

Mathew Cutts

Cuttsy+Cuttsy

Unity Campus

London Road

Cambridge

CB22 3FT

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23 March 2026

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Dear Prospective Candidate,

I thought I would update my thoughts on applying for a position at Cuttsy+Cuttsy, as we have stepped up our hiring again and a few things have changed.

AI – while it is all new and shiny, please be careful how you use it when putting an application together. We have received covering letters with identical paragraphs in them on numerous occasions. Not a great look.

I know asking for a covering letter might seem a little old fashioned, but when we receive over 100 applications for a single position, we need to see more than a CV to get a better sense of who you are. Letters usually follow a basic format such as addresses, dates, and sign off. In the last batch, I saw a covering letter that was not even addressed to anyone or signed off. That is a lot of effort on an application, only to undermine it by missing the basics.

Initially, I aimed this advice at those newer to the job market, looking for their first or second roles, but I now think it applies to everyone. To keep this short, I am going to focus on securing an interview and a few tips that might help you stand out.

1. Address all correspondence to the person we ask you to send applications to. ‘Dear Hiring Manager’ feels a bit lazy. Also, make sure you spell their name correctly. Mine only has one ‘t’, and the team here are more protective of that than I am. If you are applying through a recruiter, ask them who to address it to.
2. Keep it concise, both your CV and covering letter. If needed, have a quick look at how to structure a letter properly.
3. If you are an editor, do not send in a long CV, edit it. If you are a creative, show it.
4. Do some research and reflect it in your application, and make sure it is accurate.
5. Tell us why you would be good for the role. Be specific and show why you are interested in healthcare and people.
6. Do not say you have excellent attention to detail and then leave double spaces or spelling mistakes in your CV. Get someone else to check it.
7. If you are sending examples of work, make them easy to view. A PDF attachment is ideal. Links to folders we cannot access often mean your work is not reviewed properly.
8. If you have gaps in your CV, explain them upfront. We will ask anyway at interview, and unexplained gaps can put us off early.
9. If you have moved around a lot, tell us why. Freelancing or contracting is absolutely fine, but we need to understand it.
10. We want to know about you, not just your career. Include interests such as travelling, fundraising, running a marathon, playing an instrument, or even line dancing.
11. Tell us about previous jobs, even if they seem unrelated. Shop or bar work, for example, shows experience with customers in a fast-paced environment.
12. Points 10 and 11 might even uncover something you have in common with the person reviewing your CV, and that can make a difference.

Finally, if you do get an interview, whatever you do, do not be late.

Yours sincerely,

Mathew

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