How to Write an Internship Cover Letter (Best Examples)

Writing a good internship cover letter might be more important than having a perfectly written CV. If you don’t have tons of remarkable achievements, finding the right way to impress recruiters with your candidacy can be tricky.

Most major companies use internships to recruit for full-time roles. It’s incredibly competitive, and to land the best offers, you need a cracking cover letter for an internship to help get your foot in the door.

This guide will show you:

• Internship cover letter examples better than 9 out of 10 others.
• Internship cover letter tips that will let you show off your strengths and abilities.
• An easy step-by-step guide on how to write a cover letter for an internship.
• Why a carefully targeted and researched internship cover letter is key to success.

Want to write your cover letter fast? Use our cover letter builder. Choose from 20+ professional cover letter templates that match your resume. See actionable examples and get expert tips along the way.

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Sample Cover Letter for a CV—See more cover letter templates and create your cover letter here.

An internship cover letter is not quite what you’re looking for? See our other guides:

• Graduate Cover Letter Example
• Speculative Cover Letter Example
• Customer Service Cover Letter Example
• Graphic Design Cover Letter Example
• Consulting Cover Letter Example
• Engineering Cover Letter Example
• Architecture Cover Letter Example
• Career Change Cover Letter Example
• Motivation Letter Example
• Sales Assistant Cover Letter Example
  
  

What is an internship cover letter?

I must start with its definition to properly teach you how to write an amazing internship cover letter.

An internship cover letter is a formal letter that introduces you to the recruiter. It shows who you are, why you are interested in the role, and why you’re a perfect candidate. A well-written cover letter should be tailored for the job you’re after and convince the recruiter to read your CV. 

And there you have it. Without further ado, let’s start today’s lesson by seeing a great internship cover letter example!

Pro tip: To tailor your cover letter for a specific job, read the job ad carefully and mirror it, by answering their requirements directly. Using the company’s name and mentioning the same skills the job ad mentioned is a great tactic.

Internship cover letter sample

That’s exactly how to write a cover letter for an internship. It’s safe to say Jane’s name is already shortlisted.

Now, let’s see how to write a cover letter for an internship that’s just as good.

Your internship cover letter doesn’t have to be long. Learn more: Short Cover Letter Examples

1. Use the best internship cover letter template

Having a properly written internship cover letter is crucial for landing the internship you're after. It's a perfect way of showing your future employer your interest in the position. It also helps you highlight all the skills, education, and qualifications that might be useful during that internship. 

Since it's an internship, your potential employers will focus mostly on those qualities and not on your work experience—given that it's probably not yet as impressive as your other strengths.

That’s why an internship cover letter might be even more important than an internship CV. But how can you ace it? Let’s break down your internship cover letter using this template. It’s a simple guide to the structure you should follow:

Cover letter template for an internship—checklist

• Your personal details, contact info, and the date
• The company’s contact info
• Salutation: Dear (hiring manager name). Using their name will instantly activate their brain, helping your cover letter get their full attention.
• First paragraph: a well-researched and targeted introduction 
• Second paragraph: your key skills (both hard skills and soft skills) and why you fit the internship
• Third paragraph: show your passion and why you want to intern at this company
• Fourth paragraph: your call to action (CTA)
• Sign-off: Yours Sincerely/Faithfully plus your full name and signature.

Okay, so you know what to include in a cover letter. Now, let’s talk more about your cover letter format.

Internship cover letter format

75% of managers want employees with good written communication skills. And you can instantly nail that requirement with a professional cover letter layout. 

Here’s how to do it properly:

• Get your cover letter address right. Your contact details and the date need to be right-aligned. Also, make sure the date is formatted correctly e.g. 5th May 2020.
• Then left-align the rest of your letter. Don’t justify it, as it’s against the standard business letter style.
• Set your margins to one inch on each side of the page and space between paragraphs. This creates plenty of white space, to frame your content and make it easier to read.
• Choose a professional font set at 11–12pt in size. Good CV fonts are perfect for cover letters too.

We’ve covered (pun intended!) what your cover letter should look like. Let’s dive into what should be its content.

Send your internship cover letter with an equally impressive CV. Read more: Internship CV Example & Guide

2. Start your cover letter for an internship right

Here’s the thing with internships. The best companies are flooded with candidates, and recruiters haven’t got the time for substandard applications. They’ll spend an average of 7 seconds looking at your application papers. If you don’t grab their attention instantly, it’s the ‘no pile’ for you.

So how can you impress them within those 7 seconds? By starting your cover letter perfectly.

Here’s how to start a cover letter for an internship:

• Write a professional internship cover letter header. Include your name, address, phone number, and email address. Add a date. Write down your addressee’s address.
• Open with a personal greeting. That’s how you engage with your reader from the start. Try to add some information about the company you're applying to, to make them realise it’s not another generic cover letter, and you want that specific internship, not just any other.
• Show that you’re excited to have an opportunity to learn something with them. Some good ego-boosting won’t do you any harm, on the contrary, it might be a great start for your internship.

You know how. Now let’s see an example of an internship cover letter that will get you work experience at the company of your dreams.

Cover letter examples for internship—first paragraph

Now that’s going to give the hiring manager pause for thought.

What makes it impressive? Meticulous research. As you progress in your career, your internship cover letter should start with eye-catching professional accomplishments. But as you don’t have any professional experience yet, you need to explain why you want this internship with this company.

That’s where your research skills come in. Look at their corporate website, LinkedIn, and Glassdoor. Search for current news using Google’s news aggregator, and look for insights from previous employees and interns on forums like Quora and Reddit.

Here’s what to find out when researching the company you’re applying to:

• The history of the company
• News and current events the company is involved in
• Major projects the company is undertaking
• Company vision and corporate values
• Background info on the manager you’ll be working under

As you can see, that example is meticulously researched and laser-focused. Compare it to this one.

It’s not terrible, but it’s not great. The problem is that it comes across as an obvious copy-paste that the candidate uses for everything. There’s no targeting the company and no research.

Don’t be lazy and generic. Make every application targeted and unique. And always avoid the “to whom it may concern” opening line, as it’s just plain lazy.

Find out more details about gaining your recruiters’ attention from the very first sentence of your cover letter. Read our guide: How to Start a Cover Letter

3. Write a compelling internship cover letter middle

So you’ve just written a perfect cover letter opening. The hiring manager is well and truly hooked. But unless you keep up the pace, it’s still a one-way ticket to rejection. Stay in the race by including more proof of your passion and skills.

To do that, you need to write a cover letter middle which shows:

1. Your understanding of the internship duties. That alone will prove that you're an excellent candidate for an internship.
2. How you can excel at those duties. It’s how you show you have given it a thought and have a plan for your career development within that company.
3. Why you want this internship and not just any internship. That’s what makes it personal, and that’s what makes the reader feel appreciated and acknowledged. It’s also what makes them think you’re a good investment, someone who can soon turn an internship into a full-time job.

Look at these internship cover letter examples:

Cover letter examples for internship—first paragraph

That’s going to keep the recruiter fully engaged. Do it like that internship cover letter example, and you’ll get your career started in style.

But the next of our internship cover letter examples will get you nowhere fast.

It’s ok. But it’s not going to get you an interview. Sure, it’s got passion, but the first half of it sounds like it was taken from a textbook definition of marketing and the rest of it feels far too general. There’s no understanding of the needs of the company and no proof of the claims being made. It just won’t cut it.

By this point, you might be wondering how long should a cover letter be. Aim for 300 words maximum. And since we're getting close to that number, let's see how to end a cover letter perfectly.

4. End your internship cover letter with a call to action

You’ve impressed your recruiters with a perfect cover letter layout. You’ve gained their attention with perfect opening lines. They kept on reading through the amazing second and third paragraphs of your internship cover letter. Now it’s time to end it strongly and make them remember your application.

Here’s what you should remember when closing an internship cover letter:

• Once again, express your excitement about the chance to start your career in such a prestigious company. 
• Write about how your skills and passion might help the company if they accept you for an interview. After all, from their perspective, that’s exactly what you’re there for.
• Ask for an interview. It’s not as bold as may seem. And convincing them the ball is in their court will press them to take action.

Let’s see some examples:

Cover letter sample for an internship [ending]

That’s a strong finish.

It thanks the reader, which isn’t just good manners, it motivates a positive response, too. Then it makes it clear you want to proceed to the next stage of recruitment, plus cements your passion and commitment to contributing to the employer.

Compare it to this.

Not so good. It even uses the dreaded please find attached my CV. Don’t start with a bang and end with a whimper by using that sort of ending.

And remember, it’s Yours Sincerely if you address your cover letter to a named person and Yours Faithfully if it’s addressed anonymously, as in Dear Hiring Manager. Don’t use anything else, cover letters need to retain a certain level of formality.

End your cover letter in style and make a great last impression. Read more: How to End a Cover Letter

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your CV will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

Create my cover letter now

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

Key takeaway

Let’s sum up how to write an internship cover letter:

1. Create a professional header, including your full name and contact information.
2. Add a date, location, and company address below.
3. Address the hiring manager directly by their full name.
4. Express your interest in this specific job, and mention how you've heard about the opening and why you think you'd be a perfect fit.
5. Mirror the job ad in your cover letter by mentioning the skills and experience they are looking for in a candidate.
6. Finish your cover letter with a professional sign-off and a call to action, offering a date for your interview.

Thanks for reading. What else would you like to know about writing a cover letter for an internship? Do you want to discuss something more specific like a cover letter for a law internship or a cover letter for a fashion internship? Let me know in the comments section and I’ll be happy to help.

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Sources

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1647299/
• https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/2018/04/what-are-soft-skills
• https://u.osu.edu/ehedesigntips/2015/04/06/design-101-white-space/
• https://www.hrdive.com/news/eye-tracking-study-shows-recruiters-look-at-resumes-for-7-seconds/541582/
• https://www.umkc.edu/facultyombuds/documents/grant_gino_jpsp_2010.pdf