04/16/2024

Engineering Internship Cover Letter: Sample & Template

Why are you applying for these engineering internships? Shouldn’t you be setting up PayPal and earning your billions to blast into space?

Dave Rygielski

Career Expert

04/16/2024

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Elon Musk is God’s gift to Earth.

He alone could make hundreds of millions of people believe that engineers are cool, witty, and handsome.

But—

Let’s get back down to Earth.

You haven’t written PayPal, I’m guessing.

That’s fine, you’ll have a real engineering job soon.

At least for a few weeks.

This guide will show you:

A sample cover letter for engineering internships better than 9 out of 10 others.
How to write an engineering internship cover letter that gets you hired.
Why adding the right components from your engineering studies can make you stand out.

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engineering internship cover letter examples

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Looking for other cover letter examples for positions in engineering, tech, and science? See:

Haven't found what you're looking for? Check all our Cover Letter Examples.

1. Engineering Internship Cover Letter Example

Our sample cover letter for engineering internships comes from Greg, who is soon graduating, and has been involved in many hobbyist projects and challenges. See how he displays his passion and unique approach to grab their attention and not let go all the way until the post scriptum.

Engineering Internship Cover Letter Example

Gregory B. Olmos

77 Walwyn Rd

Heathfield, TA4 3QN

07970 946 460

gregory@olmos.com

Heathfield, 30th January 2020

Madison Employer

Recruitment Manager

STP Engineering

1 Grove Avenue

Heathfield, TA3 3FG

Dear Madison,

I want to express my excitable interest in the engineering internship you are offering at STP Engineering. As a final year General Engineering student at the University of Sheffield, I maintain high grades (>80%) and have made the Dean’s List every semester, setting me up with a solid foundation to get a taste of real engineering at STP.

As well as maintaining these grades, I am also one of the team leaders of the Engineering Society, where we build machines that compete with each other on tasks, and an engineer in the Robotic Society, where we build machines that duke it out with each other to death, most days. During our largest competition of the past year, we competed to build an e-bike that would climb the maximum incline, and also for a 1-km actual hill climb race outdoors. I used CAD and automated CNC to fabricate ultra-light aluminium rear stabiliser wheels, with raised edges that allowed us to fit strips of solid rubber into the wheel, providing traction, and not having to fabricate the wheel to fit an existing tyre. Our bike, powered by a rear hub drive, instead of a pedal assist, beat the next team on the incline by 14 degrees (40 degrees), and the last by 21 degrees. As the chief designer and fabricator behind the stabiliser design, I have exhibited outside-of-the-box thinking, and sacrificed a few pounds for increased stability and traction that would ace the harder task.

With these challenges, as well as subjects of my study, I am often able to find the innovative solution that will beat out the others, and have together with my team been crowned The Engineering Society best team in 2019. I am extremely interested and excited how my approach will fare in the world of real engineering, with real, complex, new problems, and I am excited to see how I could grow and what I could learn at a cutting-edge company such as STP.

When could we schedule a call or a meeting for me to tell about the other crazy robotics projects we made?

Best Regards,

Gregory B. Olmos

07970 946 460

gregory@olmos.com

PS There was a sword fight involved in our last robotics project. You might want to see the video.

Let’s engineer that letter of your own.

2. How to Write an Engineering Internship Cover Letter That Just Works

1. Use The Correct Cover Letter Format

Imagine this—

Your engineering cover letter gets picked up—

BANG!

A fuse is blown. In the brain of the hiring manager, when they see that fonts between your cover letter and CV do not match, and neither do the margins. In the bin. Something as silly as this can disqualify you from a job requiring this level of attention to detail.

Here’s how your cover letter should look like:

Cover letter format: three paragraphs.
Set margins at 1-inch.
Left-align your cover letter, and single-space your paragraphs.
Make your cover letter with no experience less than a full page.
Use the same, presentable cover letter font as in your CV.

Let’s get into our engineering internship cover letter example. Here’s what it should include.

2. Make a Header With Your Contact Information

The header of your cover letter for engineering internships should match your CV header. Both should be only one page, so that there is no delay in the “user journey”, or hesitation permitted on the side of the hiring manager.

List your details in full, a space, city and date, a space, and the details of the hiring manager. Things like listing your LinkedIn profile at this stage may be an unnecessary distraction—there’s not going to be anything there they won’t find on the CV just yet.

We can compare notes:

Engineering Internship Cover Letter: Header

[ Your Full Name]

[ Your Job Title ] (Optional)

[ Address ]

[ Phone Number ]

[ Email Address ]

[ LinkedIn Profile ] (Optional)

[ City and Date ]

[ Hiring Manager’s Full Name ]

[ Hiring Manager’s Position ]

[ Company Name ]

[ Company Street Address ]

[ City and Postcode ]

Expert Hint: If you’re applying online, there are some specific issues to keep in mind when sending your legal cover letter electronically, which our email cover letter guide will clue you up on.

3. Say Which Job You’re Applying For and Introduce Yourself

Internships are often amongst the most contested positions on the market. In specialist fields such as engineering, everyone needs their first shot somewhere. Preferably somewhere big, recognisable, and prestigious. Sound familiar?

The statistical truths are on your side, however. The majority of these inexperienced future world-changers will make cardinal errors in their application, the kind that this engineering internship cover letter guide is here to prevent.

You will stand out.

When addressing your cover letter, always address the manager by their first name. It shows your attention to detail and research skills. If the name of the manager is nowhere to be found in the job posting, go on the company LinkedIn, or even pick up the phone!

Check against our template:

Cover Letter For Engineering Internship Example: Introduction

Dear [Hiring Manager’s name]:

As soon as I saw your company logo next to the engineering internship ad on [career website], I knew this is the opportunity I have been waiting for. As an [degree program name] student in their [year] year of study, I maintain a [X] grade, and have made the Dean’s List [X] times. I have excelled in [coursework relevant to company] modules during my studies, achieving [grade] grades, and managed to [achievement/project related to the above-mentioned]. Together with the know-how and mentorship of [target company name], I will be able to make steps towards becoming a true, professional engineer.

Expert Hint: While you’re on LinkedIn stalking hiring managers, you can do some very impressive research. In an innovative, dynamic field such as engineering, many companies will put out their content online. See if the company has any LinkedIn blog posts (check the website, too!)—double points if they’re written by the person who’s going to be receiving your engineering CV. See if there is anything you can relate to or discuss in your engineering internship cover letter.

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4. Demonstrate You’re The Best Candidate

Just like in our sample cover letter for engineering internships, start strong, and don’t let go. Maintain the attention. Using empty and flowery statements to fill space will get you binned, and your hopes of being the next Elon Musk.

If you don’t have many varied achievements, feel free to work one angle just like Greg did in the example. If you can provide metrics, ways you contributed to the success, and explain your thinking, that is far more interesting than listing your “relevant coursework” or education.

Start here:

Sample Cover Letter For Engineering Internship: Middle Paragraph

I have been impatiently waiting for you to reopen your intern intake at [target company name], and am excited to offer my candidature. Apart from maintaining the grades, I also take active part in [society/hobbyist projects/other]. During one of our frequent challenges, we were required to [challenge task], where I innovated a [describe solution] which allowed us to [achievement/metric] and dominate over our opponents. I very much enjoy being an active, motivating, and stimulating part of the team, while competing with the opponents, and I would like to bring that attitude to my tasks at [target company name].

Expert Hint: Need to drum up some additional experience, awards, or certs? See the Royal Academy of Engineering for events, courses and ideas. Putting these projects, achievements and awards on your CV will boost your chances.

5. Give Them A Reason Why You Applied

Alright, you’re there to grow, to learn, we get it.

That’s what interns are for.

To learn—

How to make that perfect cup of coffee.

Put yourself in the employer’s shoes, and think, what would I want an intern to bring to the table? All interns are bringing an effectively empty slate—they all have been educated similarly—focus on what you can do for the employer.

Fill in the [blanks]:

Engineering Internship Cover Letter Sample: Third Paragraph

I think I would make a significant impact for an Intern, through my hobbies and the university societies I have developed [skills] skills far outside the scope of a regular engineering graduate. Perhaps when combined with [target company name]’s know how and experience, I could develop those skills to the next level and become a valued employee at the forefront of innovation.

6. Sign Off & Request Interview

End your cover letter professionally, and boldly ask for a call or an interview. You’ve made your case. Sometimes, people need an extra push. Drop in an extra reason or incentive to convince them.

Use this:

Engineering internship Cover Letter Sample: Sign Off & Call to Action

When would be a good time for a call or a meeting to discuss how my [your best, most relevant skill/experience/their most important requirement] skills can help [target organisation name] achieve [something important to this employer]?

Best Regards,

[Digital copy of your handwritten signature]

[Your full name]

[Phone number]

[Email address]

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Key Points

When composing a cover letter for engineering internships, remember to:

Make the CV and cover letter headers identical. Check if you addressed it to the right person.
In the 1st paragraph, state the position you’re applying for, and a short, strong reason why.
In the 2nd paragraph, give your full reasoning for being a good candidate, and back it up with numbers and achievements.
In the 3rd paragraph, explain your motivation, and what you understand about the company.
Request the interview & sign off.

Do you have any more questions about writing a cover letter for engineering internships? Did you find our engineering internship cover letter examples helpful? Leave us a comment, I’ll be more than happy to hear from you!

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