Are you well equipped for an accounting internship?
The pandemic was not just a pause for all accounting professionals but a complete reset.
While major accounting firms across the globe are going through a major overhaul, the job seekers need to step up their game as well.
In this blog, we shall cover all aspects of writing an irresistible accounting internship cover letter.
An accounting internship cover letter has to be well thought out and carefully crafted to target the coveted accounting internship job role.
But, how to go about it? What are the Dos and Don'ts?
We shall address all these questions and more as you read on.
Here is a summary of the topics covered in this blog:
- A brief overview of an accountant in the current scenario
- Importance of writing a good accounting internship cover letter
- Key Sections of a good accounting internship cover letter
- Tips and tricks to write the most desirable accounting internship cover letter
- Key Takeaways from the blog
Overview of a good accountant
What does an accountant do after all?
You might be wondering - What does an accountant do after all?
An accountant is responsible for examining financial statements to ensure accuracy and compliance with the laws and regulations of the corresponding jurisdictions.
An accounting professional is not always doing the same thing over and over again.
That’s right.
An accounting profession is laden with exciting opportunities and challenges.
An accounting professional also helps a firm in strategizing and financial decision making considering the company forecast to mitigate risk and increase profitability.
So, in general -
An accounting professional is the one who performs any function related to accounting such as auditing, analysis of financial statements, and account analysis.
Key skills of an accountant
Now we know what an accounting professional does.
What next?
It is highly necessary to know the key skills of a good accountant.
Why, you ask?
The short answer is this - to work on the strengths and weaknesses.
Not everyone enters an organization with all their skills maxed out. But a smart accountant prioritizes the skill set necessary for immediate turnaround.
Let us a look at some of the key skills of a good accounting professional:
- Asset management
- Revenue Projection
- Tax Compliance and Returns
- Account Reconciliation
- General Ledger
- Client Relationship Management
All these skills are very highly solicited by any top accounting professional.
However, that’s not all.
To be a leading accounting professional in an industry that is as old as perhaps the times of barter, you need to carry them along with your interpersonal skills and ethics.
Job trend post-pandemic
Accounting jobs have been steadily increasing by 10 percent over the last decade but the pandemic has posed new challenges and opportunities as well.
It is no surprise that most accounting firms are recalibrating and consolidating their business processes based on the recent trends post-pandemic.
So what does that mean to aspiring accountants?
It is not the end of the world, but the new trend has to be embraced by each accounting individual.
Accounting professionals need to focus more on data & digital technologies and sharpen their skills around them.
An automated system can generate a report but only a skilled accountant with foresight can offer insights that can add tremendous value.
Everyone now has access to the minutest data but it is the interpretation of the available data that will change the game.
Significance of an accounting internship cover letter
You may be wondering:
What’s the big deal about an accounting internship cover letter?
After all, you are armed with the most charming accounting resume you could ever have.
Sure, you have the best accounting resume. But a great accounting internship cover letter is a must if you are targeting the internship of your dreams.
You already know the significance of an internship. An internship at a coveted firm is exponentially better than an internship at a regular firm.
Naturally, there will be more applicants for the same internship. How do you stand out?
Enter accounting internship cover letter.
An accounting internship cover letter is a single-page document that is more effective than you think.
Here’s why -
An accounting internship cover letter is an efficient tool to directly reach out to the employer and convince him/her why you are the right person to get the internship.
Now, think about it:
The employer won’t be looking for years and years of experience as an intern.
The only thing the employer would be looking for is your intent and your vision.
How do you visualize yourself with the company and in what way will you be able to add value to the organization within a specific duration?
What are the special traits and innate qualities that you bring to the table?
What is your perception of the company and why it matters to you?
If you can answer these questions with clarity, your accounting internship cover letter will be more effective.
key components of an accounting internship cover letter
If you are convinced and have resolved to write an accounting internship cover letter, you must read on.
Because you need to know what are the key components of an accounting internship cover letter for you to write an impeccable accounting internship cover letter.
Before we proceed further, why don’t we take a look at a sample accounting internship cover letter?
Sound good? Here is a sample accounting internship cover letter:
Insert sample
As you can deduce from the above sample, an accounting internship cover letter is a single-page document, which is crisp and to the point.
It always begins with your name and your job title. If you do not have any previous internship experience, you can specify your academic qualification for the internship that you are applying for.
Next, specify your contact details so that the employer may contact you easily.
Once this is out of the way, you start by addressing the hiring manager.
Begin with the date, followed by the name of the hiring manager, the company name, and the address.
Follow this up with the subject line/intent of the accounting internship cover letter.
Here is an example:
Re: Accounting intern at Scripps Health
Next is the greetings/salutation.
Let us see an example of this:
Dear Melissa, or Dear Tom,
Once all of this is taken care of, we can begin with our opening paragraph.
In the opening paragraph, you start by introducing yourself as a well-qualified and enterprising accounting professional with mad skills.
Your opening for the accounting internship cover letter must be so compelling that the hiring manager must be head over heels in favoring your application.
In the subsequent paragraphs, you are dwelling on all your key achievements which are relevant for the accounting internship role that you are targeting.
Do not make the rookie mistake of just translating your accounting resume in an informal tone.
No, that is not what an accounting internship cover letter is intended for.
You must ensure that your accounting internship cover letter is completely free from redundant information.
Each phrase must be targeted towards the specific accounting internship role that you are applying for.
As such, detail all your key achievements succinctly to grab the attention of the recruiter reading it.
If you do not have any key milestones yet in your career or if you are a fresher, then you can talk about your accomplishments in general.
In the final paragraph of your accounting internship cover letter, specifically, talk about the firm.
Are you just going to heap praises on a corporate firm?
Not exactly.
Understand the vision and the direction in which the company is heading and lay them out in no uncertain terms.
You can end the paragraph with how you can contribute towards achieving the goals of the company and why your own goals are aligned with that of the company.
Finally, close the accounting internship cover letter duly signed.
Tips to craft an unassailable accounting internship cover letter
So far, we have learned about the significance of an accounting internship cover letter and also the key components of an accounting internship cover letter.
But what distinguishes an exceptional accounting internship cover letter from an ordinary one?
Well, the devil is in the details.
Let us go over, one by one.
Power verbs
What are power verbs?
If it is the first time you are hearing this word, then do not go into a panic attack!
It is just a fancy term for action verbs. Power verbs enhance the words describing action similar to adjectives.
This is the key, however. There is a reason why the pen is mightier. The more power verbs you use wherever applicable, the more persuasive your accounting internship cover letter will be.
Let us look at some of the power verbs to give you an idea:
- Pioneered
- Spearheaded
- Supervised
- Streamlined
- Orchestrated
- Engineered
- Expedited
Now, let us see some of the power verbs in action:
Example 1: Spearheaded the new financial reform….
Example 2: Supervised a team of 5+ juniors…
Needless to say, power verbs are the ornaments of your accounting internship cover letter.
Avoid redundancy
Let us go back to the basics, what is the intention of an accounting internship cover letter?
It is a single-page document tailored towards a specific job you are applying to.
From the way you introduce yourself to the key achievements you list out to your declaration - everything must have a single purpose of achieving that specific objective.
That means to say, do not ever dump all the information from your accounting resume to the accounting cover letter.
Avoid all information that is redundant so that the accounting internship cover letter becomes relevant and impactful.
Research about the Job and the Company
This is one of the most prime factors while writing an accounting internship cover letter.
All your other sections of the accounting internship cover letter will lead to this moment where you summarize why you are the right fit for the accounting internship job.
Hence it is mandatory to thoroughly read up on the company and its core values.
If you have been following the company for some time, even better.
Not only about the company but also research about the job that you are applying for. The more data you have, the more tailored your accounting internship cover letter will turn out to be.
Utilize all the key information from your thorough research and exploit it to your advantage by writing an impeccable accounting internship cover letter.
Cover Letter Design
Let us not commit the mistake of overlooking the design of an accounting cover letter while accounting for the best ways to write an irresistible accounting internship cover letter.
The design aspect of the accounting internship cover letter is as important as the content.
The way we present the information is of paramount importance because the hiring managers will have to sort an enormous amount of applications.
So naturally, the hiring manager would only spend a fraction of his/her time glancing through your application.
Hence the accounting internship cover letter design is as important as proper formatting.
It is better to choose a professionally designed accounting internship cover letter template while applying for the internship of your dreams!
By using a good accounting internship cover letter template, you let the professionals handle the design aspect and focus only on the content.
Want to reach out to an expert for a detailed analysis and help?
We have got you covered.
Hiration’s Accounting Internship Cover Letter Builder for Resume
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- 10+ cover letter designs
- 1 click design change
- Choose a color scheme
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All the features mentioned above are available on our cover letter builder to make sure that every applicant stands out as the best candidate for an accounting intern to go ahead in their career.
Make the best use of Hiration’s Resume and Cover Letter Builder and give yourself the chance to outshine any other average applicant.
Key Takeaways
In closing, let us summarize what we have learned so far:
- We had a brief overview of a good accounting professional
- We understood the significance of writing an accounting internship cover letter
- We deconstructed a sample accounting internship cover letter into various sections
- We understood the nuance of crafting a well thought out accounting internship cover letter
- Last but not the least, we are aware of Hiration’s potential to help job seekers around the world
We hope that this information was thorough and helpful to you. We would love to hear your thoughts on this and if required, we are willing to help you better.
Go to Hiration career platform which has 24/7 chat support and get professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries. You can also write to us at support@hiration.com and we will make sure to reach out to you as soon as possible.
