Students & first jobs
Recent Graduate cover letter example
A graduate cover letter has to show that you can already do parts of the job, using placements, part-time work, societies and coursework as evidence instead of relying on enthusiasm.
Opens with the matching recent graduate resume, in the same design, so the two read as a set.
The letter, as text
Dear Ms Marsh,
Kettle & Crane is building its direct-to-consumer audience on social media and email, and your Graduate Marketing Executive role would sit at the centre of that work. Those are the two channels I spent my placement year running, and I would like to keep developing them with your team.
During my placement at Northbridge Retail I managed £40K of paid social spend across Meta and TikTok and achieved a 3.6× return on ad spend. I also wrote and scheduled more than 200 posts and 18 email campaigns, and our email open rate rose from 21% to 29% over the placement. To keep the team focused on results, I built a weekly performance dashboard in Looker Studio that the head of marketing used to review campaigns.
Outside work, I served as president of my university’s Marketing Society, growing membership from 90 to 260 and securing four industry sponsors. As a part-time brand ambassador for StudentPerks, I signed up more than 600 students to the app through campus events and social content. My dissertation on short-form video and brand recall among Gen Z consumers also gave me a research-based view of what makes a short clip memorable.
I graduated from Leeds Beckett University with First Class Honours this summer and can start immediately. I would be glad to bring a few campaign ideas for your next product launch to an interview.
Kind regards,
Jacob Turner
Why this recent graduate cover letter works
- It treats the placement year as real experience, with a budget, a channel mix and a return on ad spend.
- The society and brand ambassador results show leadership and initiative outside the classroom.
- The dissertation is linked to a practical marketing question, so academic work supports the application.
- The close states availability and offers campaign ideas, giving the employer a reason to interview.
Tips for your own recent graduate cover letter
- Treat a placement or internship like a job: give the budget, channels and results you were responsible for.
- Pick one society role or part-time job with a measurable result, such as members, sign-ups or sales.
- Mention your degree classification and graduation date, and say when you can start.
Questions
How long should a recent graduate cover letter be?
Three or four short paragraphs, about 250 words, never more than one page. Hiring managers skim; every sentence should add proof the resume does not already give.
Do I need a cover letter for a recent graduate job?
Send one whenever the application allows it, unless the posting says not to. It is your chance to connect your experience to this employer’s needs, and many candidates skip it.
Can I use this cover letter for free?
Yes. Open it in the builder with the matching resume, replace the details with your own, and download both as PDF or Word, free, with no account and no watermark.
Write yours in minutes
Start from this letter and its matching resume. Same design, both free to download as PDF or Word.