Motivation letters can help you make your application stand out, especially if you are applying to a university, a volunteer position, or even for a scholarship. Your resume or cover letter are the documents that would showcase your accomplishments or experiences, but a letter of motivation is what tells your story. This document gives you a chance to explain why you’re applying for the position and what drives your intent or interest.
Writing a strong letter of motivation that gets noticed can be a challenging task especially if you don’t have much prior experience or aren’t familiar with this type of writing. This is why in this guide; we are going to cover everything you need to know starting from the structure and tone to tips and examples.
So without any delay, let’s start from the basics…
Most of you wouldn’t know, but a letter of motivation is also what we call a statement of purpose or personal statement. This is a written document that explains or outlines the several reasons why you are applying to a specific program or opportunity. It talks about your goals, experiences, skills, qualifications, and other things that showcase you as a popular candidate.
In the letter of motivation, you can also explain how a certain program or opportunity aligns with your interests or ambitions. Usually, people confuse this document with a cover letter, but you must know that a CV is commonly used for job applications, whereas a motivation letter would be more focused on your passion, ambition, and future goals as a candidate.
A motivation letter is generally required when you are applying for certain positions or opportunities that require you to demonstrate your passion and enthusiasm. Below we have listed some of the detailed reasons why a motivation letter is needed:
Motivation letters are important for scholarship applications especially when applying for graduate programs or higher education such as Masters or PHDs.
Many universities around the world require motivation letters to assess your suitability for competitive programs and to understand your understanding of certain subjects.
Internship programs, especially those that are focused on specific skills, would require a letter of motivation that would highlight your passion and suitability for the role.
Cover letters are commonly used for job applications, but you must know that a motivation letter can be valuable for roles where you need to showcase your enthusiasm and tell the company why you are a strong fit.
Motivation letters can help showcase your commitment and willingness to dedicate time to a cause or organization.
Motivation Letter | Cover Letter |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Here are some of the most common reasons why you would need a motivation letter:
Motivation letters are documents that are different from resumes and CVs as they can showcase your personality, motivations, and specific reasons that might be important to present when applying for a particular opportunity.
You need motivation letters as they provide a platform to express your enthusiasm for the opportunity, your understanding of its goals, and how your skills and experiences align with the role.
A professionally written letter of motivation can be a deciding factor in whether your application will be noticed and processed. When applying for competitive positions or opportunities, it is essential to include a motivation letter.
Now that you know about the different reasons, let us move to the next important part of our guide.
A good quality motivation letter follows a three-part structure. Below we have broken it down for your knowledge:
In the introductory section, you have to first state the purpose of the letter. Afterwards, you need to mention or specify the program or position you are applying for, as different candidates would be applying for different opportunities. Most importantly, in the introduction passage, you have to briefly introduce yourself to the recipients/committee.
Once the introduction has been finished, you need to move to the main body of the letter. This should not be more than three to four brief paragraphs as this is a letter of motivation, not your autobiography. You should describe your background, achievements, and experiences. In addition to this, you should essentially explain your motivation and long-term goals. The recipient or reader of the letter should be convinced that you are a great fit for this specific opportunity.
The conclusion or summary of the motivation letter is an important section. Here you have to summarize and reaffirm your interest in the specific position. You have to politely express your appreciation to the committee for taking the time to consider your application and reading your letter and lastly, you need to be professional while signing off.
Now that we have covered the structure, let’s discuss the steps that would help you write a professional letter of motivation.
Before you get down to the writing stage, you must understand the requirements of the opportunity. You have to be aware of the values and goals of the institution or company offering the position. It is important to ask yourself what kind of candidates they are looking for, what values they promote, and what kind of candidates usually succeed. For example, if you are applying for admission to a Master's degree at a competitive university, it is important to understand the research areas, interests, and ongoing projects of the institute.
When writing the introduction of your motivation letter you need to make sure that your opening content is clear, concise, and most importantly engaging. A very common mistake that most applicants make is that they use clichés such as “I am writing this letter to….” or end up making the intro wordy. You need to be professional, specific, and direct if you want to win the interest of the committee.
The main body is the heart of your letter. You need to break it down into two to four paragraphs and not more than that. These passages must be divided into two sections. In the first section, you can talk about your academic or professional journey, where we would advise you to only focus on mentioning relevant experiences. In the second section, you must talk about your long-term goals and motivation. This is the section where you would explain why you are applying for this opportunity and why you are fit for it.
The conclusion section must not be redundant. You have to wrap it up by expressing your gratitude to the committee for considering your application and reassuring them of your enthusiasm and passion for the opportunity. In the end, you have to sign off professionally.
Now that you know the steps you need to follow, we would like you to go through this sample letter, which we have produced for your reference.
You need to make sure that your letter of motivation is also written in a similar pattern. You mustn’t drag any details and must ensure that your letter is direct as it is the only way to win the interest of the committee.
Here are some key points that you need to keep in mind when writing a letter:
When writing a motivation letter you must follow any given formatting guidelines provided by the school or institute. If there are no specific guidelines given, it is best to write text with a basic 12-point font and a simple style such as Calibri, Arial, or Times New Roman.
When writing a motivation letter you must be authentic about your goals and experiences. Don’t exaggerate as this would put out a bad impression.
As mentioned earlier, you have to make sure that your letter is focused and doesn’t include any unrelated details.
Your biggest mistake would be sending the same letter to multiple places. You must personalize each letter and its contents according to the opportunity or position you are applying for.
Typos, missing punctuation, grammatical errors, wordiness, and poor presentation can damage your credibility as an applicant. To improve the quality of your letter, we would suggest you rewrite your content with the fluency or formal mode of our AI rephraser.
Now that we have mentioned the tips, let’s get down to the things that are big red flags.
You need to make sure that you describe yourself. Instead of saying “I like physics”, you can say “My physics research taught me the importance of the subject”.
A big blunder that most inexperienced applicants make is that they copy the content of their cover letters and use it here. Your motivation letter should complement your CV or resume, not plagiarize it.
When writing a letter of motivation, you must make sure not to use uncommon or overly complicated words or phrases. This would make your letter sound robotic and less impressive.
A motivation letter is a very important document as it can make a real difference in your application for a certain position or opportunity. This letter is your chance to be more descriptive about not just your accomplishments but also your goals, interests, and passion.
In this comprehensive guide, we have discussed in detail what a letter of motivation is, why you need one, its different benefits, and most importantly, the steps that you need to follow to create one.
Today you also have access to AI tools like ours that can help you through the process. So we would suggest you take your time when writing the letter and don’t forget to proofread it before submission!
Try our AI Tools
Rephraser
Humanize AI
Paragraph Rewriter
Article Rewriter
Plagiarism Remover
Essay Rewriter
Paraphrasing Tool
Summarizing tool
Grammar Checker
