About this template
The ATS Times template is an ATS-safe cover letter in Times New Roman 12pt, the universal serif default that every parser, printer and email client renders identically. Strict one-column layout, conservative spacing — the safest possible typographic choice, installed on 100% of Windows, macOS and Linux workstations without additional setup.
Who is it for?
It suits candidates applying to public administration (federal agencies via USA Jobs, state government, county and city government, public hospitals), traditional legal (Vault 100 white-shoe firms, Magic Circle in London, traditional UK chambers, notaries in civil-law jurisdictions), traditional finance (private banks, trust companies, regional insurers), insurance (State Farm, Allstate, MetLife, Prudential UK) and any heritage industry where Times Roman remains the implicit standard. It is also the safe pick when the recipient's software stack is unknown — Times renders identically everywhere, including legacy government workstations where other fonts would substitute.
How to use it
Keep 12pt — Times at 11pt becomes painful, at 10pt it is downright illegible (the fine serifs close up). For federal civil-service competitions (Schedule A, SES candidate development, Presidential Management Fellows) or the UK Civil Service Fast Stream, respect the prescribed formalism: clear subject line, justified paragraphs, full closing salutation. For old-money law firms, open on 'Dear Mr/Ms' and close on 'Respectfully yours' or 'Yours faithfully'. Formal grammar matters as much as content — Times serves it well. The 'Times New Roman cover letter federal application' search remains stable and high-intent.
Frequently asked questions
Is Times not perceived as outdated in 2026?
In tech, SaaS and startups, yes — Times sends a dated signal. In US federal administration, traditional legal and private banking, it remains the expected standard. A clerkship application to a Federal District Court judge written in Helvetica would be perceived as inappropriate. Quick rule: if the destination institution existed under Reagan or Thatcher, Times is the right choice.
Should I include my bar number or professional registration?
Yes for any legal application: New York State Bar number, England and Wales SRA number, or pending Bar Exam date for graduates. For CPAs in the US, the state license number. For UK chartered accountants, the ICAEW or ACCA membership number. For doctors, the NPI or GMC number. This information often conditions the very admissibility of the application — put it in the signature block or the first line of the body.
Is a handwritten signature mandatory for administrative correspondence?
For a paper-based federal application or a UK Civil Service paper sift, yes — the handwritten signature is required by the competition rules. For an application transmitted via USA Jobs or a digital form on gov.uk, a scanned signature suffices. For a spontaneous application to a law firm, the scanned handwritten signature remains expected as a mark of formal care.
