Sample cover letter for Internship position at Financial Conduct Authority

I am a graduate student of Accounting and Finance at the London School of Economics and I am writing to apply for the graduate scheme as advertised through LSE Careers.

Through my graduate studies in Accounting and Finance at the LSE, I have become familiar with the financial services sector, its crucial significance to the UK economy and the regulatory framework it must conform to. I can blend these insights with an understanding of the economic and regulatory aspects of labour markets, obtained during my graduate studies in Human Resource Management in Athens. All of this is held together by an economist’s analytical rigour, and supported by strong research skills practiced throughout my academic education. I also hope to bring skills that I have gained in my five years of serving the Greek debating community as one of its most active debating coaches and tournament organisers. In addition to developing my communication skills through debate I also established and developed new relationships as I gained £1000 sponsorship for our final competition. I am also required to keep aware of current affairs and news in the debate community through structured, daily research.

I am enthusiastic about working for the FCA because I would like a career that allows me to make a difference. Since the financial services industry contributes over 5% of the UK’s GDP I feel that I could make an important contribution by working for an organisation that provides such a crucial public service. My interest was strengthened when meeting FCA representatives at the LSE Banking & Finance Fair who described the variety of the work and clients they are involved with from bulge bracket investment banks to small high street lenders. Charity work is important to me having volunteered for the last year with Food Cycle; a charity that seeks to reduce food waste and feed vulnerable people. Therefore, I was particularly impressed with the FCA’s commitment to social corporate responsibility and the offer of 28 days volunteering per year for each employee

The research aspects of the graduate scheme are particularly attractive as whilst at LSE I have enjoyed project work around financial regulation, taking additional courses in this area and writing a dissertation on ‘How to address the too big to fail, too interconnected to fail’ problem”. This involved an extensive 5000 word literature review looking at current and historical policy documents. Although the role will be challenging I anticipate that the high expectations of the FCA’s stakeholders will energise me to reach my potential. To produce research that will ultimately contribute to the efficiency, good governance, quality of service and growth of the financial sector greatly appeals.

Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you. Yours Sincerely,