Three Key Components of the Winning Cover Letter

　　1.A brief background

　　Your academic status, whether you have graduated or the expected date of graduation.

　　Your academic institution, major, and special area of studies.

　　Relevant industry experience, if any.

　　2. Intention

　　Responding to an job advertisement.

　　Unsolicited letter to express career interest.

　　The specific area of your career interest.

　　Full time career or summer intern.

　　3. Closing and suggestion of future action

　　Highlight your differentiating factors.

　　Specify that you will be attending the upcoming company sponsored event; you will call; or seek an appointment.

　　Key Points to Note

　　A one-page cover letter will suffice.

　　State your intentions without ambiguity.

　　Highlight some of the most relevant experiences related to the job you are seeking.

　　Be unique, professional and interesting.

　　Ensure that the cover letter is free of any grammatical and typing errors.

　　Addressing it to a specific person is better than “To whom it may concern” .

　　Martin Chen

　　188 Xiang Yang Road South N102

　　Shanghai 200031, China

　　Stephen O’Brien

　　Vice President

　　ABC Banking Inc.

　　1330 Avenue of America, 29 Floor

　　New York, NY 10080

　　August 19, 2002

　　Dear Mr. O’Brien,

　　I was greatly impressed with the wealth of insightful information presented by you and your colleagues during the recent career presentation at our campus. Your candor and willingness to share has enthused many of us.

　　I am determined to pursue a career in private client services with a global financial institution that has the product, service platform, investment research, and all other resources necessary for a leadership position in the highly competitive marketplace.

　　In the exploration of career options, I have spent considerable amount of time to learn more about the private client services business. Specifically, I have spoken to a number of professionals already working in the industry to gather information on: 1) what it takes to be successful in this business; 2) sacrifices and commitment; 3) major trends and development. Based on this information, I have done a self-assessment on my own strengths and weaknesses to see if I have the aptitude, attributes and tenacity to be good at it. I have come to the conclusion that I can make a difference in this challenging industry. The preparation and the basic knowledge that I have acquired will allow me to take advantage of the training program and resources at ABC Investment banking Inc. I have the confidence that my value propositions in servicing the high net-worth clients in China will be differentiated.

　　I was not successful in bidding for the interview schedule by ABC Investment Banking Inc., I would very much like to request for an opportunity to meet you or your colleagues on campus. Kindly advise me if alternative arrangements can be made.

　　Sincerely yours,

　　Martin Chen