As a student teacher, you do plenty of work that’s invisible to most parents and students.
Besides the regular school day and your studies, you have other responsibilities you need to take care of. Lesson planning, grading, parent communication, faculty meetings, and student’s extracurricular activities are some of the additional tasks. Oh, and add your commute time to the school, which can be an hour every day, to the list of things that sap your time.
It’s no wonder the number of student teachers has plummeted in the past decade. That’s why some states, like Pennsylvania, have introduced a bill that would help you get paid for that teaching position.
On top of all these activities and tasks, the schools will still ask you to write a cover letter and hand it in with your matching resume and a complete application.
Our way of helping you out is by guiding you successfully through the cover letter and application process. Getting that ideal job won’t be a breeze, but it will be way easier if you follow the elements that we’ll present in this article:
- What are the five essential elements of a great student teacher cover letter.
- What are the most important things hiring managers focus on when reading your cover letter.
- How to write the perfect introduction, body, and closing paragraph of your cover letter
- Why data is the one thing that will make you stand out from other applicants.
Student teacher cover letter example
If you want your student teacher cover letter to be this great, you should include the following elements:
- Clear example with results. Ira showed how the teaching techniques improved the SAT scores by 55%.
- A presentation of skills and how-to knowledge. Ira clarified that she adapted her teaching style to include video and digital presentations to improve results.
- Character traits. Ira presented character and personality traits that prove her perfect match for this role.
- The brevity of the letter. Ira presented all the points of why she’s the perfect match for the role with clarity and conciseness.
How to format a student teacher cover letter
It’s essential to format your student-teacher cover letter the right way. According to a study done by Zappia in 2023, 26% of recruiters always read cover letters. So it’s essential that you write the best possible cover letter to stand out among other candidates.
Student teacher cover letter formatting tips:
- Length: Your student teacher cover letter needs to be skimmable— keep it up to one page long. Hiring managers want to quickly review your cover letter and determine if you’re the right fit. The same Zappia study stated that 70% of employers prefer a cover letter to be half a page or less.
- Font size: Hiring managers should be able to read your cover letter with ease. Don’t put a smaller font that’s hard to read. Also, keep the font size the same so that the cover letter looks professional.
- Font type: Cover letters are professional documents so you should stick to traditional fonts. Arial, Calibri, Lato, Exo 2, Helvetica, and Times New Roman are good options — Comic Sans and Papyrus aren’t.
- Color: A cover letter needs to look professional so stick with a simple color palette. You can use one color for the heading and another for the copy, but limit yourself to that. Having a resume with your cover letter will make you look more professional. You can use Enhancv to create both your cover letter and your resume.
- Scanability: Once you complete the cover letter, you should print it out and look at it in the physical form. The cover letter should be scannable and look professional. If anything seems out of place, change it.
What recruiters want to see on your cover letter:
- Enthusiasm for wanting to work in a classroom.
- Experience working with kids.
- Results that you achieved working as a teacher.
- Strengths and solutions you will bring to the table that would make you the perfect candidate for the role.
Let's look at some student-teacher cover letter templates that include these four elements.
Student teacher cover letter templates
When you’re creating a cover letter, you should use a template that’s both professional and situation-specific. There isn’t a “one size fits all” cover letter — you will have to adapt your cover letter when applying for various organizations and institutions.
When to use a simple cover letter template:
You should use a simple cover letter template in the following situations:
1. When applying to a traditional organization: When applying for a school or an institution with a long history, like the Boston Latin School founded in 1635, a simple design is the right way to go. When applying for establishments like private schools and religious institutions, follow the same norm.
2. In formal settings: If you’re applying for a position where a high degree of formality is expected, you should write a simple cover letter. Doing this will show the institution that you did your homework (researched the school) and that they can take your application with utmost seriousness.
When to use a modern cover letter template:
You should use a modern cover letter template in the following situations:
1. Progressive institutions. When applying for schools and institutions emphasizing modern teaching methods, you should opt for a modern design in your cover letter. So think about modern schools like the Florida Virtual Schools, tech-focused schools, and institutions focusing on contemporary pedagogies.
2. Creative positions. When applying to a position involving creativity, you should have a modern cover letter. Send your modern cover letter if you're applying to any job that involves arts, media, design, or music.
Including a date on your student teacher cover letter
When writing your student teacher cover letter, remember to add the date to it.
Use the date of when you’ll be sending your cover letter and here’s the proper way to format the date:
- Example 1: Month DD, YYYY (for US and Canada)
- Example 2: DD, MM, YYYY (for Europe and rest of the world)
How to write a cover letter as a student teacher
When writing a student-teacher cover letter, you should follow specific rules that will make your cover letter effective.
What a student teacher cover letter includes:
- Header: Your header should include your name, title, and contact info. On top of that, you should add the addressee's details and the date of sending the cover letter.
- Salutation: Did you know that an entire section of the brain activates when we hear/read our name? When writing the salutation, try to find the person’s name and address the cover letter to them. Use the form Mr./Ms. [Name] if you know the name. If you can’t find the name, use the person's title, such as Dear Hiring Manager/Recruiter in your salutation.
- Introduction: Use the introduction section to pique their interest. Either lead with a number attached to one of your most relevant achievements or an attention-grabbing sentence.
- Body: In the body section, continue with adding data to your achievements. Remember to connect with their mission statement or vision. It's important to provide results and be the right person to work in their organization, so try to create an alignment between their mission and your educational philosophy.
- Closing: You need to use the closing section to thank the person for reading your cover letter and to include a call-to-action (CTA). It’s important that you request something from them, be it a reply to the letter, an invitation to an interview, or a phone call where they would present additional information.
Creating the header on your student teacher cover letter
There are certain elements that your student teacher cover letter needs to have. They are:
- name
- contact info (email, phone, Linkedin)
- address
- position that you’re applying for
There are also certain elements that your student teacher cover letter shouldn’t have. They are:
- Your picture. You shouldn’t put your picture on the cover letter. As a matter of fact, including a picture might be seen as an infringement of personal privacy laws in some countries.
- Links to your social media accounts such as Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram. This information isn’t required on your cover letter and it could make you look unprofessional.
How to write а salutation for your student teacher cover letter
When writing a student-teacher cover letter, you should use the proper salutation. It can be the difference between the hiring managers skimming over your letter or ignoring it altogether.
Student teacher cover letter salutations:
- Mr./Ms. [Name]. An example would be Mr. Smith
- Dear [Position]. An example would be Dear Principal
- Hi [Ms./Mr. Last Name]. An example would be Hi Ms. Scott
- Dear [Team]. An example would be Dear Hiring Team
There are also a couple of salutations that you shouldn’t use when writing your cover letter. They’re either too formal, outdated, or way too informal:
- Hello/Hey/Hi with an exclamation mark (!). An example would be Hello!
- Dear Sir or Dead Madam.
- To Whom It May Concern.
How to write an introduction to your student teacher cover letter
The following tips can help you write an introduction section of your student teacher cover letter:
- Show your excitement for the position.
- Provide data/results.
- Provide relevant experience for the position.
- Frame the letter so the institution gets what it wants (solve their problem first).
Here’s an example of an introduction section of a cover letter:
…,
The experience I had teaching at the Miami Dade College (a bilingual university) will make me the perfect match for the opportunity at John Muir Language Academy. As a bilingual teacher, I'll be able to connect with students of the school who learn in both English and Spanish languages.
…
What makes this introduction great is that the teacher had experience teaching at a university in Spanish language and can translate that experience into a bilingual (Spanish/English language) school.
How to write a cover letter for a student teacher job
The following tips can help you write the body section of your student teacher cover letter:
- Elaborate on your most relevant achievement with numbers (data).
- Present your qualifications and expertise, but don’t copy the info from your resume.
- Connect your experience with the role they’re looking for.
Here’s an example of the body section of a cover letter:
…One particular instance that stands out is when we noticed some students have problems understanding the tasks. Instead of blindly following the curriculum, we adapted our teaching style to ensure they understood these abstract concepts.
So we created visual presentations of the tasks, making them appear more tangible. This shift in perspective helped the students follow along and provided better results. The SAT scores improved by 40% for the entire group.
This experience showed me that I constantly need to innovate in teaching to ensure all students comprehend the matter that’s being presented.
…
How to write the closing paragraph of your student teacher cover letter
The following tips can help you write the closing section of your student teacher cover letter:
- Write a clear call-to-action (CTA)
- Reiterate why you’re the ideal candidate
- Thank the person who invested their time to read the cover letter
Here’s an example of the closing section of a cover letter:
…I am confident that my innovative approach to teaching will be a great addition to the contemporary pedagogies you use in the classroom. I would be grateful if we had the opportunity to discuss the details in an interview.
Thank you for reading my letter.
…
Including an enclosure on your student teacher cover letter
When adding an enclosure to your cover letter, make sure to:
- Prepare all the additional documents, such as a resume or recommendation letter
- Limit the documents to the relevant ones
- Write that you have an enclosure on your cover letter
Here’s how an enclosure looks like:
Sincerely,
Ira Rivera
Enclosures:
<em>-Resume</em><br>
<em>-Recommendation letter</em>
How to sign your student teacher cover letter
You should keep your signature at the end of the cover letter:
- Simple and straightforward.
- Add your current position, or if you don’t have any at the moment, add the one you’re applying for.
- Use professional signatures such as Sincerely, Regards, or Best.
A good example would be:
Sincerely,
Ira Rivera
Student Teacher
Pair your student teacher cover letter with a resume to match
When sending a cover letter, it would be beneficial if you had a matching resume. This would make a good impression on the hiring manager.
So when writing your cover letter, make sure that it matches the color schemes, fonts, and style you used when creating your resume.
Key takeaways
Let’s summarize:
- Use data and numbers when explaining your achievement in the cover letter.
- You shouldn’t repeat the information from your resume in your cover letter.
- Make sure your cover letter has all five essential elements (header, salutation, introduction, body, and closing section).
- There’s not a “one size fits all” cover letter. Use modern and simple cover letters appropriately.
- Ensure that your cover letter and resume match in fonts, style, and color schemes.
Ready to write your cover letter? Explore our cover letter templates and find your perfect one!
