Sample cover letter for Internship position at Spark Investment Management

Dear Recruiting Manager,

My name is xxxx, and I am currently a sophomore double-majoring in Economics and Applied Mathematics at Y University. I am writing to apply to your 2015 Strategic Planning Two-Week Internship Program. After speaking with many professionals in the financial services industry, I believe that a career in finance would be the best fit for me due to my keen interest in economics and the market, my quantitative background, and my people-oriented personality type. An highly innovative internship at a top hedge fund management firm like Spark Investment Management would be the dream learning opportunity that would allow me to grow and jumpstart my career.

As I was growing up, the miraculous economic growth of Vietnam over the past few decades piqued my interest in economics. At Y, I am an active member of the Y Undergraduate Diversified Investment Group and Smart Women Securities (SWS), where I lead my team to participate in various investment competitions hosted by SWS. I also have various simulated equity portfolios on virtual stock trading sites such as Investopedia to understand more about investing and finance. A summer internship at a highly innovative, intellectually stimulating and prestigious financial employer like Spark Investment Management would be an unparalleled opportunity to apply the financial analyzing skills I have learnt during my extracurricular activities and to gain a deeper understanding of business and the financial services industry.

My mathematical coursework has prepared me with the analytical skills needed for this position. After three semesters at Y, I have enrolled in rigorous analytical courses such as Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra and Matrix Theory, Probability Theory and Statistics, Econometrics, and Vector Analysis. My research background from a research-oriented high school has trained me to work in the most organized manner while paying extreme attention to detail, as well as to recognize patterns, analyze data, and present them in the most comprehensive manner.

My extracurricular activities at Y have honed my leadership abilities. By the end of my freshman year, I was elected by my college to become the Representative of xxxx College. In that capacity, I successfully made possible two major policy changes by incorporating students’ feedback and negotiating with the administration. Recognizing my strong communication and interpersonal skills, as well as my ability to connect with different people from diverse backgrounds, the Council elected me to become Social Chair, whose responsibility is to foster general satisfaction within the organization and internal bonding among council members.

If my activities allow me the opportunity to lead, they also teach me how to follow and be a constructive, integral part of a team. Being a flyer of the Cheerleading Team, I have learned to work in a team under pressure with high risk of injury and to trust my teammates with my safety while allowing them to trust me with their own. When I work on any team project as a council member of the College Council, I always hold myself accountable to do everything I can to ensure the completion of the task at hand. I am proactive in communicating and exchanging ideas with my fellow members and consistently keep my supervisor up-to-date about my progress.

I am very eager to learn more about the opportunities in this career path, and am delighted by the prospect of gaining the skills and knowledge that would inevitably come with the challenging work at Spark Investment Management. Thank you very much for reading this letter.

Yours sincerely