Sample cover letter for Full Time position at Lazard

Dear Sir/Madam,

Following our telephone conversation, I am eagerly applying for the role of graduate structural engineer at Walsh. I have just graduated from the University of Nottingham with a Bachelors in Civil Engineering and was awarded a first class honours. My choice for a career in structural engineering is based on my university experiences and my perpetual passion for structures, geometry, how things fit together and how an object that performs a function can also be a work of art.

Having read your profile and looked at your previous projects, I was very excited to see the expertise that Walsh provide, for example high-rise structures. As part of a second year group project, I had to design a 9 storeys structure in Nottingham town centre. The structural system we decided to use was a shear core to provide the buildings lateral stability and was located at the centre of the building i.e. the elevator shaft. I understand that Peyrouz Modarres, one of the experts in high-rise structures at Walsh, is currently working on a structure in excess of 40 storeys; the added complexity of the structural system in terms of the most efficient theoretical solution and the most buildable would require a thorough engineering judgment, something I would love to be a part of. I also find it particularly rewarding when I have designed a solution with regards to the clients requirements and with key emphasis on a sustainable design, for example, by reusing an existing structure as opposed to demolishing and rebuilding, something I have gained experience in throughout my degree. Furthermore, I was very pleased to see that Walsh incorporate lean design from the start of a project, which coincides with the fundamental principles that our lecturers reiterated time and time again, as it is our responsibility as engineers and consultants to advise on this agenda from the onset.

As part of a third year project on steel structures, we were given the task to design a regional airport terminal; I was placed in a group with various international students, leaving me as the only native English speaker. As a result, I took the pragmatic initiative to take the role of group leader and consequently I found myself having to supervise each member in a time effective manner, which I believe was crucial to the successful completion of the project (we were awarded a first class honours for the coursework). Throughout course projects, I have developed better leadership, teamwork and interpersonal skills, which I believe I am now suitably equipped with to work effectively as part of a design team and contribute to the development and progression of Walsh. Moreover, I have been accepted for a summer internship at Structa LLP this summer (as shown in email attachment) and I believe that the knowledge and skills I will develop will put me in a better position to start as a graduate structural engineer.

Finally I would like to thank you for taking your time in reading this letter, please refer to my CV for additional information and I look forward to hearing from you soon.