Marketing Specialist and Freelance Writer
Receiving a job offer with an offer letter is a great step in the right direction during your job search. It is a sign that the job application process went really well, and you shined amongst the rest of the candidates. If a company wants you to work with them after doing a series of interviews, personality tests, and so on, you will receive a job offer letter.
The article will guide you through what you can expect from a job offer letter, what should be included in the letter, and we will even show you an example.
What is a Job Offer Letter?
A job offer letter is a formal communication you will receive when you get offered a job. It is your decision whether you would like to accept or decline the company’s offer. The purpose of a job application letter is to detail the facts of the job you have been offered. This is to make sure you understand the job fully, and all the other aspects related to it before deciding if you want to accept the offer or not. A job offer letter also acts as a point of reference for you, as the candidate, if you wanted to discuss or negotiate anything on the offer letter, such as salary, working hours, or vacation.
What Should Be Included in the Job Offer Letter
Now that we know what exactly a job offer letter is, let’s have a look at what should be included in the letter. These are some aspects of the job you should look out for when you receive your job offer letter…
Start Date
Your job offer letter should include the date on which you are due to start working in your new role. This is especially important to note if you need to give a current job notice. Normally, most jobs require a notice period of two weeks, so if you are still finishing off that notice period, your new start date must facilitate that. It is also important for more obvious reasons. You want to show up on your first day on the correct date, right?
Job Title
This one may seem obvious, of course. You know what job you applied for, but it is an important aspect that should be included in a job offer letter. The correct job title should be shown on your job offer letter so you know exactly what your title will be if you accept the offer. This information may be needed for your own personal documents, your LinkedIn profile, or in extreme cases, to ensure the job you got is the one you actually applied for.
Salary
Your salary needs to be included in your job offer letter so you know exactly how much you can expect to earn working this job. You may already know how much money you are expected to earn. Often this is an aspect that is discussed and negotiated during the application process.
Although you and your employer may have already agreed to a salary, there is no harm in double-checking. It is advisable that when you receive your job offer letter, you check to see if the salary is the same as you had agreed to. If it is, then great. If not, make sure to point this out to your manager.
Benefits
An important part of accepting any job is the consideration of the benefits. Benefits are any nonmonetary compensation the employee may receive. No black and white guide outlines which benefits an employee should receive because they will change from company to company. The most common ones sometimes include health insurance, retirement plan, dental care, sick leave, holiday pay, and so on. These benefits must be outlined in the letter so you have an idea of what you are entitled to. You should receive more details on these benefits and perks in your employment contract.
Duties & Job Responsibilities
A job offer letter should also outline your main duties and job responsibilities included in your new role. By the time you receive a job offer letter, you will probably have a good grasp of what will be expected of you. It is still a good idea to double-check the duties and responsibilities on the letter to ensure it all makes sense.
Other aspects that may be included in a job offer letter may include work schedule, reporting structure, privacy policy, and equity. Each job offer letter will look slightly different, but we have created a sample letter below to give you a better idea.
Job Offer Letter Sample
Dear Kate,
We are happy to offer you the role of Account Manager at Company X. We were very impressed with your skills and experience and believe you will provide great value to the company.
If you decide to accept this offer, you will be subject to the following, according to Company X’s policies:
- Salary of $60,000 per annum, paid in monthly installments by direct deposit.
Benefits include:
- 21 days off for annual leave
- 3 paid sick days
- Health and dental insurance
- Duties & Responsibilities include
- Creating proposals for clients
- Handling client complaints
- Managing sales pipeline
If you accept this offer, your employment at Company X will begin on October 1st, 2021. To accept this offer, please sign and date this letter as indicated below. This offer expires on September 20th, 2021.
We really look forward to you joining Company X! If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Kelly O’Malley.
Sincerely,
John Duggan
Applicant (Sign) _______________________________________________
Applicant (Print) _______________________________________________
Date _____________________________________________
Conclusion
Keep in mind that the above job letter sample is quite vague and a letter you receive in reality will likely have more detail. Nevertheless, this is the structure and outline that most job offer letters will follow. It will be helpful to have an idea of what your job offer letter should look like so you can ensure it includes all the right aspects when it does come into your inbox.
If you have recently received a job offer letter, it is onwards and upwards from here! If not, then don’t get discouraged. Keep putting your best foot forward and Happy Job Searching!
