<p>I go to the University of South Carolina and I am going to be a sophomore this year and I am majoring in Finance. I currently have a 4.0 and I really want to get in to investment banking in NYC, it's something I've had a desire to do since high school.</p>
<p>But I know coming from USC isn't exactly the most desirable thing so I am trying to get as much experience as possible to beef up my resume. I would like to get an internship this fall and spring semester and apply for one over the summer in NYC and then repeat again next year.</p>
<p>Since there aren't a lot of big banks in Columbia, I am going to cold email/mail several local boutique investment banks and wealth management companies and I would like you to review my email</p>
<p>Dear Appropriate Person,</p>
<p>I am writing in hopes of talking to the appropriate person who handles college internships. My name is XXXXX and I am in my sophomore year as a Finance Major at the University of South Carolina.</p>
<p>I am extremely interested in recieving real-world experience in the XXXX industry and I know that XXXXX is one of the larger firms in the Columbia area. XXXXX would be an awesome opportunity for me to see what happens behind the scenes in such a company and put myself in a position to succeed in the future.</p>
<p>I hope to hear back from you on the possibility of an internship during the fall semester or an opportunity to hear about your perspective on the banking industry and your work experiences.</p>
<p>Regards,</p>
<p>XXXXX</p>
<p>Also, any idea how desirable the University of South Carolina is for this industry. You can be honest, you won't hurt my feelings.</p>
<p>XXXXX would be a valuable/unique/excellent opportunity (not awesome)…</p>
<p>“such a company” => “a top XXXX company” </p>
<p>first sentence too wordy => “I am writing to express my interest in a college internship.” should be enough. If you send it to, say, head of HR and they care they will forward it to the right person; or they may be the right person themselves.</p>
<p>and insert a sentence somewhere expressing your expectation of being very useful to them, with a word about your wonderful qualifications. They don’t need you, you need them! :)</p>
<p>I know nothing about finance so can’t comment about USC, but best of luck with the internship! In my experience companies care more about your qualifications and willingness to accomodate them than about your major/college–hope this carries over to your field.</p>
<p>Don’t do a form letter. It’s painfully obvious when someone has just plugged in some buzz words and a company name, and I can tell you from personal experience that even when you think you are extremely careful, you may wind up plugging in the wrong company name in that letter.</p>
<p>Getting a job is hard, and those who accept the challenge without trying to cut corners will succeed. When you find a bank, do some research on its history, look at the news, do whatever else you can to learn, and then write an honest and personal letter to the appropriate hiring manager.</p>
<p>That is just general advice. Now for the specific stuff.</p>
<p>You’re not going to find an internship at a big time bank (think JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, etc) right now. Their interns started four weeks ago and are going until the end of August, and they will not be looking for new interns until after they have done FT recruiting in the fall. In my estimation, your best bet for getting a hiring manager to read your resume is to send it at some point in December. Also, for what it’s worth, while it is possible for a sophomore to get hired, it is rare… banks want juniors.</p>
<p>Check out your school’s career services… I’m sure at a school the size of USC, you get some interest from big companies. On campus recruiting is a highly popular hiring method.</p>