Free apprenticeship cover letter template

For intermediate, advanced, higher and degree apprenticeships. A full example for an engineering apprenticeship, and what to mention in yours.

  • Free to copy
  • Matches your CV design
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An apprenticeship cover letter in the Starter design, with a made-up name and a typed signature

Apprenticeship cover letter example

Ryan Fletcher, Level 3 Maintenance Engineering Apprenticeship, food manufacturer · Year 13 A level student

Dear Ms Owen,

Your Level 3 Maintenance Engineering Apprenticeship is exactly the route I have been looking for: practical work on real production lines, with a qualification at the end. I am in Year 13 at sixth form college studying Maths, Physics and Product Design, and I want to start my engineering career on the job rather than at university.

I have always wanted to know how machines work. I service and repair bikes for friends and neighbours, and last year I rebuilt the gearbox on an old ride-on mower with my uncle, working from the manual and a parts diagram. In Product Design I use the lathe, pillar drill and laser cutter, always following the workshop safety rules, and my coursework project is a small conveyor model driven by a geared motor.

I also work two evenings a week in a supermarket warehouse, unloading deliveries and filling shelves. I have not missed a shift in over a year, and I am used to working safely around cages, pallet trucks and other people.

I chose Severnside Foods because your apprentices spend time in both mechanical and electrical maintenance before they specialise, and I enjoy both. I am predicted an A in Maths and a B in Physics, and I can attend an assessment day at any time.

Yours sincerely,
Ryan Fletcher

Or write yours from the job advert

What to mention in an apprenticeship cover letter

Keep it to one page. Pick what the advert stresses most, and give an example for each point.

Writing the CV too? See the apprenticeship CV template and our school leaver CV example.

Invited to interview? Read our apprenticeship interview questions, with how to answer each one.

Tips for yours

  • Read the entry requirements before you write, and show you meet them, especially English and maths.
  • Use the advert’s questions as a guide. If it asks why you want the apprenticeship, your letter should answer that clearly.
  • Make every example specific. "I like fixing things" is weaker than one thing you fixed and how.

  1. The apprenticeship and level

    The exact title and level from the advert, and when it starts.

  2. Why this route

    Why you want to learn on the job and earn while you train, in a sentence or two.

  3. Proof of interest

    Things you have made, fixed, built, coded or organised in your own time, with one detail.

  4. Your grades

    English and maths, and any subject linked to the apprenticeship, with predicted grades if you are still studying.

  5. Reliability

    A part-time job, volunteering or a school role that shows you turn up and can be trusted.

  6. Why this employer

    What you know about the company, its training or its products.

Apprenticeship cover letters: your questions

Do I need a cover letter for an apprenticeship?

If the advert asks for one or you are sending your CV straight to an employer, yes. Many apprenticeships use an application form with a few questions instead, and the same advice applies to your answers.

What do I say about why I want an apprenticeship?

Be honest and specific: you want to learn by doing, earn while you train and gain a recognised qualification, and you have a reason for choosing this field. Back it up with something you have done.

What if I have no work experience?

Use school projects, practical hobbies, volunteering, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award or helping in a family business. Our apprenticeship CV guide shows how to turn them into evidence.

Keep going

Cover letters for other jobs: Nurse Healthcare assistant Care worker Teacher Teaching assistant Retail Customer service Hospitality Administrator Receptionist Accountant Project manager Sales Marketing Software developer Electrician Warehouse School leaver Part-time job Career change

Your turn. Write yours

Paste the job advert and make the draft your own. Download it in your CV’s design, with your signature.

Write yours freeSee the example