Hi all, I am a college student and used to work in the coffee shop for XX corporate company about a year and half ago. I made a business acquaintance with one of the recruiters of the company. He told me that when I was close to finishing my studies to let him know so he could see if he could do something about recruiting. A year and half later and I added this person on Linkedin. I also just transferred to state university (junior standing), and seeking internship opportunities. I’m looking to message him on Linkedin about any 2016 summer internship opportunities he might know of within the company. Can someone write an example of a greeting message along with the info I require? Since he is the recruiter and I know him, I want to make it sound good enough to see if he can hire me for an internship. I used to joke around a lot with him about coffee and stuff - not sure if this would be appropriate to include some joke in the message. I appreciate your help!
I would keep it professional and succinct.
Dear Mr. Recruiter -
It has been great getting to know you over the past few years! I am nearing graduation and am looking for internships in summer 2016. I am very interested in working for company W because of X, Y, and Z. Can you put me into contact with someone who might be able to help me secure a summer internship? I have attached a resume detailing my qualifications.
Thank you!
juice650
@mademoiselle2308 this is great! I will be sending message directly from Linkedin; therefore, my profile alone serves as resume, correct?
Yes. Your profile is your resume unless they ask for one.
If you know the person better, hello xxx! Might be a better opening!
I hate LinkedIn. In 30 years those recruiters will drive you nuts!! ;). Good luck!
@juice650 Yes. Personally, I’d send a properly formatted one along too, but that’s just me. 
@HRSMom @mademoiselle2308 Thank you for the advice! Since this is my first semester as a junior, I’m not close to graduation yet (class of 2017). I’m looking for a summer internship, do you think it’s too early to send the message or should I wait around December/January?
Assuming your LinkedIn profile looks good, you won’t need a resume at this point (unless he asks for one, or he connects you with someone else who asks for one). Hopefully you won’t need one at all, or you can wait and draft one specifically for an internship once you know more what the position might entail.
I got my current job by someone recruiting me off of LinkedIn, and they never asked for a resume at all. When I went in for interviews with HR and management, they just printed off my LinkedIn profile. It was great! Not all companies are so flexible, but this one was.
I agree with being more casual in how you start off the message, and feel free to include a joke somewhere if that was really how you interacted regularly.
It’s important that you research internships at that company before sending this message, so you don’t look lazy. They may have already advertised internships on their website, e.g., or explained somewhere how to get one. See what you can find out first, and then contact this person. I would also specify what type of internship you are most interested in. Something in the marketing department? Finance? Customer relations and sales? Purchasing? Making coffee?
You could start a dialog now…
Hi @mommyrocks ,
I agree with the casual start off message - how about something along the lines like “Hello Recruiter, it has been great getting to know you over the past few years and serving you the usual coffee! …”
This company does a great job advertising internships. I am looking for a finance internship. Although I could just apply from the website, I want the recruiter to put me directly in contact with someone who could put my resume to the top (if thats possible).
I like the start – should have the Recruiter smiling from the start.
I would mention in your message that you are looking for a finance internship at the company and have seen one advertised that you are interested in, and say that you were planning to apply from the website but thought he might be able to put you in direct contact with the hiring person instead.
I wouldn’t mention “put my resume to the top…” as that message will be understood.
He will likely either instruct you to go ahead and apply online, or give you contact info for someone, or both. It’s possible that they will require you to fill out the online application no matter what, as that is pretty common these days so the data is in their system in a format that they can easily compare to other candidates. I hope this works out for you!
Thank you! I will use your suggestions and send him a message soon. @mommyrocks
It’s not too early. My daughter was contacted 2 weeks ago and she ignored recruiter, thought it was a hoax. It turned out its not a hoax. So she has to send this HR her resume. She also graduates in 2017.