Cover Letter Examples for 15 Jobs (and What Makes Each Work)

A strong cover letter is one page, names the job in the first sentence and backs each claim with something you did. Below are fifteen short annotated examples, covering graduates, interns, career changers, teachers, nurses, developers, customer service and more, plus a reusable paragraph bank and notes on UK and US differences. Every example is invented, so replace each detail with your own.

How to use these examples

Each example below is the core of a letter: the opening and body paragraphs, which is the part that wins or loses the interview. Add your own header, greeting and sign-off. Our guide to cover letter format covers the layout, and how to write a cover letter walks through the steps.

Two honest warnings first.

• Every name, employer and figure here is made up. Employers can tell when a letter is copied, and a claim you cannot back up in an interview hurts you. Copy the structure, not the facts.
• Every strong letter follows the same pattern: name the job, state the requirement from the ad, show what you did and what changed, then say what you want next.

Each example ends with a one-line note on why it works.

Early-career examples

1. Recent graduate (marketing)

I am applying for the Marketing Assistant role at Brightleaf Foods. Your ad asks for someone who can write for several channels. As social media officer of my university's film society, I wrote a weekly newsletter and Instagram posts for 18 months, and membership grew from 120 to 210. I would welcome the chance to bring that habit of testing subject lines and posting times to your spring campaigns.

Why it works: the first sentence names the job, and the result is specific and checkable.

2. Internship application (finance)

I am a second-year accounting student applying for your summer internship. I do not yet have industry experience, but I do have habits you list in the ad: accuracy and reliability. For my society's treasurer role I reconciled monthly accounts in a spreadsheet and presented a budget to a committee of nine, with no corrections needed at year end. I would like to learn how a professional team does this at scale.

Why it works: it is honest about the gap, then moves straight to evidence from a student role.

3. No experience (retail assistant)

I am applying for the Sales Assistant post at Harlow & Finch. I have not worked in a shop before, but I spent two summers helping at my family's market stall, where I handled cash, restocked quickly on busy Saturdays and learned regular customers' names. I am free on weekends and evenings and can start on 2 December.

Why it works: it turns informal work into relevant proof and states availability.

4. Career change (hospitality to project coordination)

After seven years managing restaurant shifts, I am moving into project coordination, and your Coordinator role is the one I want. Running a kitchen of 12 taught me scheduling under pressure, supplier negotiation and clear handovers. Last year I completed a part-time project management certificate and coordinated our restaurant's move to a new site, finishing on the planned weekend.

Why it works: it says plainly why the move makes sense and translates old skills into the new field.

Education and health examples

5. Teacher (secondary maths)

I am applying for the Maths Teacher vacancy at Oakfield School. In my final placement I took a Year 9 group whose test results had stalled and introduced short weekly low-stakes quizzes. By the end of term, the class teacher reported that more pupils were attempting the hardest questions. I would value the chance to teach in a school that, as your website says, puts reading and numeracy support first.

Why it works: it describes a classroom action and its effect, then links to the school's stated priority. (In the US, use "students" and "grade", not "pupils" and "Year 9".)

6. Nurse (newly qualified)

I qualified as a registered nurse this summer and am applying for the Staff Nurse post on your medical ward. During my final placement on a busy elderly-care ward, I took responsibility for a bay of six patients under supervision, completed observations and handovers, and was praised by my mentor for clear communication with families. I hold current basic life support certification and am ready to work shifts, including nights.

Why it works: it uses the language of the job and lists the credentials a recruiter will check.

7. Healthcare support worker

I am applying for the Healthcare Assistant role at Millbrook Community Hospital. For three years I have cared for my grandfather at home, helping with mobility, medication reminders and meals. I have since completed a first-aid course and volunteered weekly at a day centre. I am calm, patient and used to early starts.

Why it works: lived experience is presented as practical care skills, not just character.

Technical and professional examples

8. Software developer

I am applying for the Junior Developer role at Northgate Systems. Your ad lists JavaScript and API testing. I built a booking app for a local sports club using JavaScript and a REST API, wrote automated tests for each endpoint, and fixed a double-booking bug reported by users within a day. The code is on GitHub at the link in my CV, and I would be glad to talk it through.

Why it works: it names the stack, describes one real project and invites inspection.

9. Engineer (mid-career)

I am applying for the Civil Engineer position. Over five years at a regional consultancy I have led drainage design on projects worth up to £2 million and mentored two graduates through chartership. On my last project I resolved a clash between utilities that would have delayed groundworks, by coordinating a revised layout in two weeks. I would like to apply that coordination to your transport schemes.

Why it works: it uses seniority markers, such as value, mentoring and chartership, and one problem solved.

10. Accountant

I am a part-qualified accountant applying for your Senior Accountant role. At Tarn & Cole I took over month-end close for four entities, shortened the close checklist from nine days to six by automating three reconciliations, and supported the external audit with no major findings. I enjoy turning dense numbers into a two-line summary a manager can act on.

Why it works: the improvement is measured in days and tied to a task the reader recognizes.

Customer-facing and office examples

11. Customer service

I am applying for the Customer Service Advisor role. In my current call-centre job I handle around 60 calls a day, and in the last review my team leader noted that my follow-up calls reduced repeat contacts on complicated billing queries. I stay calm when customers are upset and I make a point of repeating back what I have heard before offering a fix.

Why it works: it shows a behaviour, repeating back, instead of calling itself "friendly".

12. Administrative assistant

I am applying for the Administrative Assistant role at Fairway Legal. Your ad stresses diary management and confidentiality. For the past four years I have managed the calendars of three senior partners, arranged travel and organised client meetings, working with sensitive documents daily. I introduced a shared booking sheet that stopped double-booked meeting rooms.

Why it works: it mirrors two requirements in the ad and gives one small improvement.

13. Sales representative

I am applying for the Account Executive role. Last year I opened 14 new accounts in my region and kept the retention rate on existing accounts steady while the market was slow. I do this by calling within a day of every demo and sending a one-page summary the buyer can forward to colleagues. I would like to bring that approach to your software products.

Why it works: the numbers are limited and relevant, and the method is explained.

14. Project manager

I am applying for the Project Manager position. At Linden Group I managed an office relocation for 85 staff across three phases, kept spending within the approved budget and ran a weekly stand-up that surfaced two supplier delays early enough to fix them. I hold a recognised project management qualification and enjoy keeping many people informed without drowning them in email.

Why it works: it shows scope, control of budget and communication in three sentences.

15. Volunteer or non-profit role

I am applying for the Volunteer Coordinator post. For two years I have organised weekly food-bank shifts for around 30 volunteers, built a rota that cut last-minute cancellations, and welcomed each new volunteer with a short induction. I care about your mission of reducing food waste, and I would like to do this work full time.

Why it works: it demonstrates the exact task, organising people, and states a genuine reason for applying.

Paragraph bank you can adapt

Use these as scaffolding and replace each italic phrase with your own facts.

Opening lines

• I am applying for the job title role at company. Your ad asks for requirement, which is what I did when short example.
• Name of contact on your team suggested I apply. (Only if true.)
• I have followed company's work on specific project since when, and the job title role matches what I do best.

Evidence lines

• When situation, I action, which led to result.
• In my role at place, I took responsibility for task and improved measure from old to new.
• My project, placement or volunteer role gave me hands-on experience with skill from the ad.

Why this employer

• I am drawn to company because specific thing you found on their site or in public news, and I would like to contribute to area.

Closing lines

• I have attached my CV and would welcome the chance to discuss the role. I am available from date.
• Thank you for considering my application. I look forward to hearing from you.

UK and US variations in tone and spelling

Neither version is wrong. Match the country of the employer, and if their ad uses a particular spelling, copy it. For the CV side, see CV versus resume.

Mistakes these examples avoid

• Opening with "I am writing to apply" and nothing else.
• Listing adjectives such as hard-working and passionate with no proof.
• Repeating the CV line by line.
• Writing a letter that could go to any employer.
• Making up a figure. If you cannot measure a result, describe it plainly.

Using the Cover Letter Generator as a starting draft

The AdeptWrite Cover Letter Generator builds a draft from a short form: the position, the company, your experience, your skills and any extra detail, with modes for fresh graduate, experienced, internship, standard and formal. It is AI-generated text, so treat it as a rough first version.

A sensible way to use it:

1. Write down two or three real results from your own history first.
2. Enter them with the job title and company, and generate a draft.
3. Delete every generic phrase, then add your own specifics and the employer paragraph.
4. Check each fact. The tool cannot know your history, so it may state things that are not true for you.
5. Read the result aloud, then run it through the Grammar Checker and Spell Checker, choosing British or American English.

Employers read many letters, and a letter that sounds like everyone else's does little for you. The generator saves you the blank page; the evidence has to come from you.

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