Tips On Writing a Letter of Recommendation For College
In the body of the letter, focus on who the student is rather than what the student has done. Between test scores, transcripts, and the dozens of questions on the application, admissions representatives
Introduce the student
In the body of the letter, focus on who the student is rather than what the student has done. Between test scores, transcripts, and the dozens of questions on the application, admissions representatives have plenty of information about the applicant’s academic and extracurricular experiences.
Write more about character, less about achievements
In the body of the letter, focus on who the student is rather than what the student has done. Between test scores, transcripts, and the dozens of questions on the application, admissions representatives have plenty of information about the applicant’s academic and extracurricular experiences.
Conclude with a direct recommendation
In the body of the letter, focus on who the student is rather than what the student has done. Between test scores, transcripts, and the dozens of questions on the application, admissions representatives have plenty of information about the applicant’s academic and extracurricular experiences.
if you can’t help yourself, one-and-a-half pages will do, but only if the student is exceptional. Even extra paragraphs won’t make the unexceptional sound exceptional.
Don't let your recommendation letter exceed one typed page
Don't cut and paste excerpts from a recommendation letter for one student to the letter for another. (We never hold this against the student, by the way. But, then again, it isn’t helping him or her either.) DO take the opportunity to explain the nuances of your curriculum that won’t be obvious to us (e.g., lack of AP courses available, scheduling conflicts that limit options or rigor for students, etc.)
DO explain your grading scale by providing us with context. This is especially important for schools that don’t rank, calculate deciles or provide school profiles. Knowing that you have a particularly strong graduating class (with examples to back that up) can be helpful as well.
DO provide perspective if there is a tough course or teacher at your school. Of course, a student’s entire body of academic work will carry the day in most admission committees and decisions, but especially at highly selective colleges, one low-ish grade can make us pause.
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