Writing an Internship Thank You Letter (with Examples)

Internships are something that organizations offer as a means of work experience for graduates. It’s usually offered for a specified period of time. While professional internships used to be offered mainly in the fields of medicine, many more companies are starting to offer them in various fields, such as in government agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations. An internship can help you to grow your professional network, as well as job prospects for the future. In some cases, you may get the chance to be hired by the company you have done your internship with.

A post internship thank you letter is something that you should send out once you have finished your internship. You would normally send this to the supervisor you worked with and any other key people that worked with you during your internship.

Being offered an internship is often the first experience and introduction you will have when it comes to building your professional network. Aside from it being a polite thing to do, it also shows your respect for the time you were given for your job experience. It’s also a way to remain memorable to the people you have worked with, which can be important when career opportunities open up. It’s a way to help you stand out from all of the other interns that came before, and potentially, after you.

The benefits of writing a thank you letter:

• Makes a lasting impression on those you worked with
• Can help expand your network
• Helps to develop a professional connection with those who can help you progress in your career
• Allows those you worked with to remember you in a positive way

You should begin by sending a thank you letter to the supervisor or line manager that you interned under. It’s also a good idea to send a letter to those who had a hand in training you, such as senior members of a team that you worked with.

Internship thank you letter will be as unique as the people writing them. However, there is a basic format that your thank you letter should follow.

• Salutation – how light or formal your salutation is will depend on the atmosphere of the company. You can look back at any old letters or emails as a reference; for example, if most emails had a light, informal address, like “Hi everyone,” you can start your thank you letter to the supervisor as “Hi Thomas.” Address them as you did while on the job. If you addressed your supervisor as “Ms. Benning” while you were there, then use the same address in your salutation.
• Opening – whatever you write in the first line of your opening, it should include “thank you.”
• Body – in the body of the letter, you can include specific experiences and how they have helped you, such as speaking about knowledge and skills that you learned.

You can download one of our free templates or samples to get a better idea of what a good Professional Internship Thank You Letter should look like.

Now that we have the basic format, we can go over how to make the thank you letter more specific to your experience and the field you worked in. There are key points that you should include in your letter if you want to make it memorable.

Expressing gratitude

Your letter should start by expressing your sincere gratitude to both your supervisor and others who helped you along the way. Mention specific skills you learned or that were enhanced through the training you received, and explain how it has helped you develop professionally. Mentioning certain moments or projects that you worked on and how valuable they are in helping you progress.

Keep things to the point

When writing, try to be as concise and clear as possible. Keep in mind that the people you are sending your letter to tend to be very busy, so choose your wording wisely and don’t ramble.

Contact details 

Always remember to include your contact details in your thank you letter. It will help you keep in touch with the people you worked with. You can ask to connect on social media platforms that are work-related as well. Many professionals have a LinkedIn page that is part of a large pool of connections in their industry.

Tailored

When writing to a few people that you wish to thank, be sure to tailor your thank you letter to each one rather than using the same letter for all. You can do this by talking about individual experiences that you had with them, which you found beneficial.

Sending your letter

Sending a hand-written thank you letter is one of the best because it adds a more personal touch to it. There are some companies that don’t use traditional mail services, though, and in these cases, it may be best to send your thank you via email.

The Do’s and Dont’s

There are some things that you should and should not add to your thank you letter:

• Express your gratitude and be sure to actually say thank you in your letter
• Mention some specific details regarding what you have learned and the experiences that you found useful.
• Include your contact details, which can include a link to your LinkedIn page.

• Never ask for a job in your thank you letter. While it’s ok to pave the way for a potential job down the line, it comes across as tacky to ask for a job in your thank you letter.
• Refrain from being negative about any employees or experiences you had that you were not happy with. A thank you letter isn’t the time or place to bring these things up.