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A well-written finance cover letter can be the difference between getting the finance position you want or being overlooked by a recruiter. On this page, you’ll learn the five key elements to writing a good finance cover letter as well as hard and soft skills that are needed for a financial job, and get a variety of finance cover letter examples for inspiration to write your own letter.
In addition to using our expert tips to create a strong finance cover letter, take a look at some finance cover letter examples like this one. Take particular note of how the letter is formatted and how achievements are highlighted. Use this finance cover letter sample as a starting point and edit it in our Cover Letter Builder in just a few minutes!
Here is another winning example of a cover letter for finance which targets a specific job – financial analyst – that can be used to build your cover letter. If you’re applying to a different finance role, you can still gain inspiration from this letter by adding your own information and intended job role.
Whether you're just starting a career as a financial analyst or are a seasoned financial professional, these five key tips to writing an effective cover letter will still strengthen your own letter.
Open your letter with a showstopper of a statement describing why you’re the best candidate. Mention skills or professional achievements that make a strong first impression and incentivize the reader to continue reading and learning more about you. Whether you’re a recent graduate applying for an entry-level financial analyst position or a higher level finance manager role, start off your finance cover letter with a strong opening statement.
To understand what the prospective employer needs, read the job description carefully to pull out specific keywords that detail the job role, such as skills or qualifications. Use those same keywords in your letter so that applicant tracking systems (ATS) pick up those keywords and deems you a good fit for the position. The ATS is set up by the hiring manager to make easy work of selecting only qualified applicants. To understand the company’s values, look on the company website for a mission statement and get an idea about the company work culture.
Finance jobs at every level will require an effective variety of hard skills and soft skills. You’ll be required to have technical hard skills that range from math and financial analysis to forecasting, accounting and data management. Soft skills for a cover letter for finance may range from good communication and analytical skills to problem-solving and critical thinking. The job posting will provide you with the expected skills so be sure to strategically mirror those skills in your cover letter.
Simply stating that you’re successful in finance will not be enough to “wow” a prospective employer, especially one that is used to seeing quantifiable results. Take the time to jot down your achievements and make them measurable. How much profit did you help the team earn? Did your team’s financial gains exceed company goals? Did the number of clients increase throughout your tenure at a previous or current organization? Impress the reader with your stats but remember to always be truthful in your calculations.
As a job candidate who puts in the effort to create a powerful cover letter for finance, be sure to take the time to review your cover letter for grammatical errors or typos. A professional sounding and looking cover letter should read well and be error-free. You may even ask a friend or colleague to proofread your letter and provide feedback. This will ensure that you make a great first impression on the person reading your cover letter.
Every cover letter you write should be tailored for the finance position that you’re applying for. In other words, don’t just send the same cover letter with every job opening. You want to be sure the information you include proves that you’re a qualified candidate and that you meet all the job requirements as listed in the job ad. While all letters will say something slightly different, you will follow the same format and sections of the letter. Here are 5 steps to follow for all finance cover letters:
The header should contain all relevant contact information such as:
You’ll also need to include the contact information of the hiring manager or the company including the hiring manager’s name, company name, title and email address, along with the company address.
Example:
John Smith
123 Main St.
Los Angeles, CA, 12345
Cell: (123) 456-7890
johnsmith@email.com
Address the letter directly to the hiring manager, recruiter or potential employer’s full name. This shows you have taken the time to research the company you are applying to. Hiring managers go through dozens of applications daily so you can create a more personal connection with the reader of your cover letter.
Example:
When writing the first paragraph of a cover letter, you need to grab the reader’s attention. Start with your elevator pitch right away. What do you excel at? Mention a top experience or two that applies to the financial position you want. Explain how you can benefit the hiring company.
Example:
As a finance analyst professional with over 10 years of experience, I believe that I am a good fit for the senior finance analyst position at Example Bank. Having provided my analyst services for more than 50 long term clients with a 98% customer retention rate, I’m confident that I can do the same for your successful company.
In your body paragraphs, you will brag about some of your most impressive achievements as a definite way to stand out from the competition. Elaborate on the experiences and skill set that fit the position you want. Demonstrate your financial know-how by going more in-depth into what you’ve accomplished at previous firms or companies. Make sure you’re concise. Cover letters should express who you are as a potential candidate with a few brief paragraphs.
Example:
I have advanced through several challenging positions within the finance field. My background includes key roles as a Teller in New York Bank and a Financial Analyst at Wells Fargo, which have allowed me to master my communication skills, team development, and leadership abilities.
In my most recent position as a financial analyst at Wells Fargo, I supported the senior analyst team via market research, client outreach, and setting up meetings between managers and executives. I not only assisted customers with my enhanced interpersonal and customer service skills but my accounting and forecasting skills helped senior staff boost revenue by 10%, exceeding our quarterly goals for five consecutive years.
In the final paragraph, reiterate your enthusiasm for the position and emphasize how you believe you would be a good fit. Finish your letter strongly with a call to action; your sign-off should urge the recruiter to reach out to you for a job interview.
Example:
My passion for numbers and knack for forecasting patterns will help me make a smooth transition into your company’s senior finance analyst position. Senior staff at my present company can attest to my dedicated work ethic and how they repeatedly request my services. Thank you for considering me. Please do not hesitate to reach out to schedule an interview at your earliest convenience. I am looking forward to hearing more about this exciting opportunity.
End your cover letter for finance with a formal sign-off line, such as “Sincerely” or “Best Regards.”
Example:
Sincerely,
John Smith
If you’re looking for more inspiration for your perfect cover letter, ResumeHelp has plenty more cover letter examples and cover letter templates for you to use. Feel free to tailor these professional cover letters to best suit your needs and work experience.
Regardless of whether you’re applying for a position as a financial analyst, underwriter, accountant or finance manager, you will have a set of skills to bring with you to the job. Your hard skills will be technical abilities learned through education or professional training and experience. Your soft skills, or personality traits, show how you can be a successful team member, effectively handle customers or clients and perform your job role with the right attitude.
If you’re currently in a job search, ResumeHelp offers you the tools, templates and examples to write a cover letter and accompanying resume in minutes. Before you submit your next job application, check out these expert guides, tips and tools:
Cover Letter Builder – Rather than write a time-consuming cover letter from scratch, build a cover letter fast with ResumeHelp.
Cover Letter Templates & Samples – A cover letter template provides a base outline for your letter and organizes its overall appearance to look professional, including colors, fonts, spacing and more.
Cover Letter Examples and Writing Tips – Job seekers of all levels can find professional cover letter examples for just about every industry and job role, along with cover letter writing tips.
Cover Letter Formats – Follow these cover letter formats to create a job-winning finance cover letter that coordinates with your resume and enhances your job application.
Finance Resume Examples – If your job search is in finance, we can help you build a professional resume that tailors the job description through your skills, experience and education.
Financial Advisor Resume Examples – Discover the best ways to showcase your financial skills in a job-winning cover letter by following our tips and financial advisor resume examples.
Staff Accountant Resume Examples – These staff accountant resume examples guide you to creating a professional resume that shows you’re the right job candidate for the position.
Staff Accountant Resume Examples – Use our resume examples to gain inspiration and wording suggestions to create your best staff accountant resume and land your next job.
Senior Accountant Resume Examples – Follow ResumeHelp’s expert tips and accountant examples to create a resume that allows you to stand out from the competition.
Accounting Manager Resume Examples – Our expertly prepared accounting manager resume templates give you a quick jump start to create a strong, job-winning accounting manager resume.
Accounting Resume Examples – Learn how to turn your standard accounting resume into an outstanding professional accounting resume.
Bank Teller Resume Examples – Follow our bank teller resume examples and many tips to create your own banking resume.
Have questions? We’re here to help.
A cover letter for finance should be a one-page letter, generally between 250-400 words long. To make a great impression on the hiring manager as you give a glimpse into your personality and work history, means that you need to get to the point quickly and be concise. Include a professional header, salutation, introduction, pitch and conclusion. Your goal should simply be to say enough good stuff about yourself to land a job interview when you can elaborate further. Expert tip: Look at the finance cover letter samples on this page and cover letter templates to see exactly how your letter should look.
To write a cover letter for finance with no experience, look to highlight qualifications you already have and ways you can benefit the prospective employer. Focus on your most relevant skills, especially soft skills that demonstrate your work ethic. Include hard skills learned through education, training, volunteer work, extracurricular activities or internships. Browse through the ResumeHelp industry-specific job cover letter examples for inspiration and suggested wording.
Cover letters will require different styles depending on the job you’re applying for. An investment banking cover letter will differ greatly from a cover letter for an internship. Be sure to tailor your letter accordingly. If you are applying to a more traditional bank position, do not use bright colors or nonprofessional fonts. Your cover letter will stand out for all the wrong reasons.
If you still aren’t sure what style to use for your finance cover letter, ResumeHelp has plenty of tools for you to use, including our Cover Letter Builder. This tool offers cover letter templates, examples and tons of sample phrases and advice to make your letter stand out.
When listing your achievements in a finance cover letter, focus on the needs of the job. After all, you do not want to discuss web development if your goal is to get into banking. Remember, your letter might be run through a computer program looking for specific keywords (e.g., “investment banking experience”) before reaching a hiring manager, and filtering out letters that don’t use these words.
Using these finance industry terms increases your chances of your letter being noticed by the right people. Look to feature investment terms such as ROI, asset allocation, shares and shareholders, yield, liquidity and any other relevant terms that match the job description and your potential duties.
Make sure your achievements reflect what the position requires and that you discuss them as concisely as possible. If you helped boost your previous firm’s quarterly revenue, give some details on how you did so. If you have successfully dealt with difficult clients, managed successful outreach campaigns or completed something as simple as a team leadership exercise, then honing in on those particular skills can be key factors in setting you apart. There is more to finance than simply dealing with numbers all day. Communicating effectively is a critical skill in any field, and demonstrating that, along with your finance expertise, can be crucial in landing that first job interview.
Remember that your cover letter should be a supplement to the resume. This means that the cover letter should elaborate on the experience listed on your matching resume rather than just echoing the same achievements. For instance, the tasks you had in previous finance positions are often summarized in one sentence per task on your resume. In your cover letter, you need to explain how that work experience fits with what the company is looking for.
For instance, if you had to deal with clients or customers as a part of your previous position, you might note that on your resume. The finance cover letter lets you discuss how that experience makes you the perfect fit for the current role. You might explain how you helped your firm close deals with clients as a Finance Analyst or helped customers open new accounts as a Bank Teller. Applying that experience to the position at hand can help recruiters better connect how you might fit into this role you are applying for.
You can also use ResumeHelp’s Resume Builder to help you craft the best resume for your finance job search. With resume templates and samples, plus expert-guided suggestions on how to fill out each section of your resume, you won’t have to deal with most of the hassle it takes to create a strong resume.
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