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Requesting Letters of Recommendation/References
Whether
you apply for a scholarship, graduate school, or a job, you
will need people to serve as references or write letters of
recommendation for you. Understanding the terminology and
having a plan will permit you to make it easier for your recommenders
and get the best possible letters for you.
Terminology
References
vs. Recommendations
A job/scholarship/program
requesting "references" wants a name and address
and phone number of someone they can contact to ask about
you.
A recommendation
is a letter written on your behalf sent in for a scholarship/job/program
Frequently
Asked Questions:
How
do you determine whom you should ask to write your letters
of recommendation?
First,
determine what the job/scholarship/program selection committee
wants to know about you:
-academic
qualifications?
-social
skills?
-leadership
or commitment to service?
Choose
people who know about the areas that you want to highlight
in your application. For academically oriented awards, faculty
or instructors who have had you in class would be best. For
awards that seek leadership skills or service, you may be
able to ask employers, club sponsors for organizations you
are active in, advisors, or mentors.
For some
people this is a painful lesson in how few people they know
among faculty and staff on campus. Keep in mind that when
a scholarship has an academic component it would be a mistake
NOT to send in a letter from someone who had taught you or
who had supervised your academic work in some way. If you
are in the position of really having no one appropriate to
write for you, approach a person you know and trust and explain
what you need and provide for that person enough detail about
yourself to allow that person to write a letter.
Should
I get a letter from someone famous?
This is
a common question from students, especially those who have
had internships with political office holders or with other
well-known individuals like a full professor or dean. In general,
it is best only to ask these 'famous' people when you have
had an opportunity to really work with them and let them get
to know you. Having a letter from someone who knows you and
understands your goals and abilities generally works better
than a weak letter from a well-known person who clearly doesn't
know you well.
How
do you ask for a letter of recommendation?
The most
appropriate way to ask someone for a letter of recommendation
is in person. If you are asking someone that you have worked
closely with, or someone who has written for you in the past,
email is probably okay. However, some people may dislike this
and prefer a personal contact. When you ask someone to write
for you, tell them what the letter is for and what the due
date is at the same time. Keep in mind that you really only
want people who can write you strong letters to write for
you. You may want to state that you know the person is very
busy and may not have time to do such a letter. This gives
the person a chance to say no if he/she wouldn't have the
time to write you an effective letter.
Once the
writer agrees to write for you, provide as much detail as
possible about the scholarship, job or program and about yourself
(more detail follows on this.) This will generally involve
you providing an update on what you are doing. If a scholarship
asks for information on a topic that you have never discussed
with the writer (career goals etc.), you need to fill the
person in with the relevant information. It is generally a
good idea to schedule an appointment to talk over the details
with the person, but see what he/she prefers. It is ok to
provide information via phone or e-mail if it works better
for the writer, but personal contact, especially if you haven't
seen the writer for some time, is usually best.
How
much do I need to tell each letter writer about the awards?
Put yourself
in the letter writer's shoes. If you want to write a strong
letter recommending someone for an award, you would want to
know what qualities the committee is seeking in its ideal
applicants. Ask yourself the following questions when providing
this information:
-Do they
want to know about academic qualifications only?
- Do
they want to know about personal characteristics?
- Do
leadership and service experiences make a difference to
them?
-Is financial
need relevant?
-Is it
significant if you have overcome hardship?
-Are
interpersonal skills and experience working with diverse
groups important to the committee?
- What
would this award entitle you to do, and how are you suited
to doing this? (Study abroad, receive a grant for a particular
project, reward him/her for going into a career the committee
deems desirable?)
-Is there
any particular format or length that the letter must conform
to?
If you
want a strong letter of recommendation, you need to let the
writer know what the award is seeking so he/she can address
those qualifications adequately. You can provide this information
in a concise way, either by providing a form describing the
award or writing your own description of it. If you then seek
another letter from the same person for a different award,
don't assume the same letter will fit, especially if the award
committee seeks different characteristics in its winners.
Some recommendation writers will use the same letter for you
in every circumstance you request one, but others will modify
their letters appropriately for each situation, so provide
them with the information they need about the award/job/program
to write a strong letter.
What
if you are applying for more than one award? Should you ask
for more than one letter?
It is ok
to ask people to write multiple letters for you, especially
if you prepare them in advance. Make a plan that includes
everything that you're applying for instead of coming to someone
over and over, if possible. In this way, they can prepare
the number of letters you need more easily. However, recognize
that 1) you may need to vary your recommendation writers and;
2) that you need to prepare some of the writers for the fact
that they will be writing more than one letter. It is not
generally a good idea to make copies of one letter of recommendation
and send in a letter with the name of one award in it when
you are applying for another one. Generally, people keep copies
of letters on their computers and can easily change addresses
and other details.
How
do I decide which recommenders to use for a particular award?
If you
are applying for two scholarships and one focuses entirely
on your academic ability and the other focuses on both academic
ability and leadership and both want three letters of recommendation,
you will probably not use the same three people for both of
them. You might ask two academic references to write for both
awards, but then ask a different academic reference to write
the third letter for the academic award and someone familiar
with your leadership, like a club advisor, to write the third
letter for the academic/leadership award. Do your best to
match the scholarships goals with the recommender.
How
can you make the process easier on your letter writer?
-Give your
recommendation writer from 2-4 weeks advance notice about
the letter(s).
-Provide
an envelope or file with the following included:
o The
deadline for mailing the letters or when you will come to
pick them up
o A description
of the award
o A resume
o An
updated transcript or printout of grades
o The
personal statement asked for in the award if one is requested,
or if you haven't yet prepared the statement, an outline
or description of what you plan to write
o Any
forms or other materials that should accompany the letter
o An
appropriately addressed envelope
How
much time should I give my recommenders?
Two weeks
is a good minimum amount of time. More than a month is not
necessary and may make it easier for someone to forget your
request. When you make a request for a letter or letters of
recommendation, provide a letter or list specifying the deadline(s).
What
if I ask someone for a letter and that person says 'no'?
There are
many reasons a person might say no, ranging from not having
enough time, to feeling he/she doesn't know you well enough,
to not having good things to say about you. If you get no
for an answer, don't push. The person has reasons for saying
no and you don't want to risk the kind of letter you might
get from someone who feels coerced into writing. If a person
you ask to write a letter says no, don't take it too hard;
instead, seek out someone else to write for you.
Should
the letter be confidential?
It is considered
a sign of faith in yourself to trust that a recommendation
writer will say good things about you. Some scholarships actually
provide a waiver in which you are given the option to waive
your right to see the letter. If you have this option, I encourage
you to select that you waive your right to the letter. You
will likely be perceived as overly controlling or doubtful
of your own abilities if you do not waive this right. If such
a form is not provided, and you are compiling the parts of
the application, including the letters to mail in, your recommender
may give you the letter in a sealed envelope. You should NOT
open this letter. On the other hand, if a writer provides
you with a copy of the letter, it is acceptable for you to
read it.
How
should I follow up?
After you
have asked for a letter of recommendation, you may want to
send an e-mail message to the writer 3-4 days before the deadline
as a polite reminder with a brief thank you. Then, a few days
after the due date, send an actual (not virtual) thank you
note. This final note can serve as a reminder if the person
has not yet written the letter, but more often it is just
a nice recognition you can offer for the effort this person
has expended on your behalf. It will also keep this person
more positively disposed toward you, which will help in the
event you need more letters in the future. In addition, keep
the writer informed of your progress. Let him or her know
if you won the scholarship, got the job, or were accepted
into the program. Whether the news is negative or positive,
it is good to keep your recommendation writers informed.
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