If I Am Offered This Place: Conditionals and the Formal Application Letter – Careers (Senior 3 English) | Ganzaa

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Senior 3 · English

Careers

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Lesson 4 of 5

If I Am Offered This Place: Conditionals and the Formal Application Letter

25 min

Let's begin

An application letter is often the first thing an employer knows about you, and sometimes the only thing. It must be formal, short and exact, and it must answer the advertisement point by point. It also needs conditionals: "If you invite me for an interview, I will …". This lesson builds both, starting with the advertisement that Mukiza Samuel, an S3 student, answered.

The advertisement

The company, its address and the vacancy are imagined.

IZUBA SOLAR LTD, RWAMAGANA: HOLIDAY TRAINEE TECHNICIANS (2 places)
Duties	helping our technicians to install and test solar home systems; keeping simple records of materials
Requirements	S3 or S6 students; good marks in physics and mathematics; careful and reliable; able to communicate in English and Kinyarwanda
Period	the December–January school holiday
How to apply	send a letter of application, a CV and one reference to the Human Resources Officer, Izuba Solar Ltd, P.O. Box 310, Rwamagana, by 20 November 2026

A model application letter

Ituze Secondary School
P.O. Box 72
Rwamagana
9 November 2026

The Human Resources Officer
Izuba Solar Ltd
P.O. Box 310
Rwamagana

Dear Sir or Madam,

RE: APPLICATION FOR THE POST OF HOLIDAY TRAINEE TECHNICIAN

I am writing to apply for the post of holiday trainee technician, which was advertised on your notice board at Rwamagana bus station on 2 November 2026. I am sixteen years old and in Senior 3 at Ituze Secondary School, and I will be available from 5 December 2026 until 10 January 2027.

Physics and mathematics are my strongest subjects, and I have been a member of the school Science Club since Senior 1. Last term our club built a solar lamp for the school library, and I was responsible for testing the batteries and recording the results every day for three weeks.

I also have some practical experience. For two years I have been helping my father, who repairs radios and phones, in his workshop on Saturdays. I have learned to handle tools carefully, to follow safety rules and to explain a problem politely to a customer.

I am interested in renewable energy because many homes near my village still have no electricity. If I am offered this place, I will work hard and learn as much as I can from your technicians.

I enclose my CV and a reference from my class teacher. I would be grateful for the opportunity to attend an interview at any time convenient to you. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

(signature)
Mukiza Samuel

The body of the letter, its five paragraphs, is 219 words long. Samuel, his school and his family are imagined.

Definition

letter of application (also cover letter): a formal letter that asks for a particular job and shows, point by point, that the writer meets its requirements. It usually goes with a CV.

salutation: the greeting that opens a letter (Dear Sir or Madam). complimentary close: the words before the signature (Yours faithfully).

enclose (v): to put something in the same envelope or email as a letter. I enclose my CV.

How the letter is built

Part	What it does	In Samuel's letter
Writer's address and date	top right; the date written in full	Ituze Secondary School … 9 November 2026
Recipient's title and address	on the left, below the date	The Human Resources Officer, Izuba Solar Ltd …
Salutation	Dear Sir or Madam if you don't know the name; Dear Mrs Uwera if you do	Dear Sir or Madam,
Subject line	names the post, in capitals or bold	RE: APPLICATION FOR THE POST OF …
Paragraph 1	the post, where and when it was advertised, who you are, when you are available	"I am writing to apply for …"
Paragraphs 2–3	qualifications, then experience, each with evidence	Science Club, solar lamp; father's workshop
Paragraph 4	why you want this job; what you will bring	renewable energy; "If I am offered …"
Paragraph 5	what you enclose; a polite request for an interview	CV and reference; "I look forward to hearing from you."
Close, signature, name	Yours faithfully after Dear Sir or Madam; Yours sincerely after a name	Yours faithfully, Mukiza Samuel

The letter on the page

Language: if-clauses, types 1 to 3

A conditional sentence has two parts: the if-clause (the condition) and the main clause (the result). The tenses tell the reader how real the situation is.

Type	If-clause	Main clause	Meaning	Example
First	present simple	will + infinitive	a real possibility in the future	If I am offered this place, I will work hard.
Second	past simple	would + infinitive	an unreal or unlikely situation, now or in the future	If I had a driving licence, I would apply for the driver's job.
Third	past perfect	would have + past participle	an imagined past: it did not happen	If Olivier had applied before the deadline, he would have got an interview.

The two clauses can change places. Put a comma after the if-clause when it comes first: If you call, I will answer. / I will answer if you call.
Unless means "if not": Unless you apply by 20 November, you will miss the chance.
In formal English the second conditional uses were for every person: If I were the manager, I would hire her.
Could and might can replace would: If she had a degree, she could practise as a vet.

Worked example

Choosing the right type from the situation

Situation: Samuel may get an interview next week. Is it possible? Yes, so use type 1: If Samuel gets an interview, he will take his school report.
Situation: Samuel is sixteen, and the company's driver must be over twenty-one. Is it real? No, it is imagined, now: type 2: If Samuel were twenty-one, he could apply for the driver's post.
Situation: Last year Samuel's cousin sent her letter after the deadline and was not invited. Did it happen? The past is fixed, so we imagine a different past: type 3: If she had sent her letter on time, she would have been invited.

Worked example

Making a sentence formal enough for a letter

Draft: "I'm really into solar stuff and I'd love to come and help you guys."

Remove contractions: I'm → I am; I'd → I would.
Replace informal words: really into → very interested in; stuff → a precise noun, renewable energy; you guys → your company.
Link it to the job: name the post.
Result: "I am very interested in renewable energy, and I would welcome the chance to work as a trainee technician with your company."

Tip

Faithfully goes with Sir or Madam. Both are "unknown": if you don't know the reader's name you must trust them, so you are faithful. If you know the name, you are sincere: Dear Mrs Uwamahoro … Yours sincerely.

Warning

No will in the if-clause: wrong If I will get the job; right If I get the job. No would in it either: wrong If I would have known; right If I had known.
Don't use contractions, slang or text language in a formal letter: I'm, gonna, u, pls.
Don't copy the advertisement's words as a list. Show each requirement with evidence: not "I am reliable" alone, but what you did that proves it.
Don't mix the closes: Dear Sir or Madam … Yours sincerely is a mistake in British usage.

A review of conditionals, from BBC Learning English's English Class (about 2 minutes). For each example in the video, say whether it is type 1, 2 or 3, then write one sentence of your own about a job for each type.

Writing task

Read the advertisement and write a formal letter of application of 200 to 250 words (body only). Use at least one first conditional and one second conditional.

The nursery and its manager are imagined.

ISOKO TREE NURSERY, MUSANZE: HOLIDAY ASSISTANT (1 place)
Duties	filling pots with soil, watering seedlings, recording the plants sold each day
Requirements	an S3 student or school leaver; interested in the environment; careful with numbers; happy to work outdoors
How to apply	write to the Manager, Mrs Uwamahoro Claudine, Isoko Tree Nursery, P.O. Box 58, Musanze, by 30 November 2026

Checklist before you hand it in

☐ My address and the date are at the top right; the manager's name, title and address are on the left.
☐ I wrote Dear Mrs Uwamahoro and closed with Yours sincerely.
☐ A subject line names the post.
☐ Paragraph 1 says which post, where I saw it, and when I am available.
☐ Each requirement in the advertisement is matched by evidence: a fact, a number or a time.
☐ I used a first and a second conditional correctly.
☐ There are no contractions, no slang and no spelling mistakes in names.
☐ The last paragraph lists what I enclose and asks politely for an interview.
☐ The body is 200 to 250 words.

✦

Practice

Name the type (1, 2 or 3): (a) If I had studied harder, I would have passed. (b) If it rains, the installation will wait. (c) If I were a pilot, I would fly to Accra every week.
Put the verbs in the correct form: (a) If you ___ (send) your letter today, it ___ (arrive) on Monday. (b) If she ___ (speak) French, she ___ (get) the job at the hotel. (c) If they ___ (read) the advertisement carefully, they ___ (not / miss) the deadline.
Rewrite with unless: If you don't enclose a CV, your application will not be considered.
Write the correct salutation and close: (a) to the Human Resources Officer, name unknown; (b) to Mr Habimana Joseph, the manager.
Make each sentence formal: (a) I'm writing coz I want the job. (b) Pls call me back asap. (c) I've got loads of experience.
Find in Samuel's letter (a) the sentence that gives the job's source and date; (b) one non-defining relative clause; (c) the conditional sentence, and its type.
Write the third-conditional sentence for this situation: Kamana did not check his spelling. The manager noticed three mistakes and did not shortlist him.
Evaluate: a friend's letter says only "I am hard-working and reliable. Please give me the job." Write two pieces of advice, each with an example of a better sentence.

Show answersHide answers

(a) 3; (b) 1; (c) 2.
(a) send, will arrive; (b) spoke, would get; (c) had read, would not have missed.
Unless you enclose a CV, your application will not be considered.
(a) Dear Sir or Madam … Yours faithfully; (b) Dear Mr Habimana … Yours sincerely.
Sample: (a) I am writing to apply for the post. (b) I would be grateful if you could contact me at your earliest convenience. (c) I have considerable experience.
(a) "I am writing to apply for the post of holiday trainee technician, which was advertised on your notice board at Rwamagana bus station on 2 November 2026." (b) "… my father, who repairs radios and phones, …" (also "the post …, which was advertised …"). (c) "If I am offered this place, I will work hard …": type 1.
If Kamana had checked his spelling, the manager would have shortlisted him (or would not have noticed the mistakes).
Sample: (1) Prove each quality with evidence: "I have kept my class attendance register every day this year." (2) End politely and formally: "I would be grateful for the opportunity to attend an interview."

Sources and credits

Advertisements (imagined companies), model letter (imagined writer), layout table, conditional table, worked examples, checklist and practice: written by Ganzaa.
Diagram "The letter on the page": drawn by Ganzaa.
Video: A review of conditionals, BBC English Class, BBC Learning English, embedded from YouTube, not copied.

Written by Ganzaa.

1The advertisement

2A model application letter

3How the letter is built

4The letter on the page

5Language: if-clauses, types 1 to 3

6Writing task