<p>at my school a girl gave a 250$ gift card to a nice restaurant as a thank you. but her dad is CEO of some corporation. 100$ sounds like a lot but depending on your circumstances it might be chump change</p>
<p>yea I mean if it comes off as a bribe it kinda works against you...</p>
<p>Whatever happened to a sincere note of thanks attached to some delicious cookies?</p>
<p>lol that's what my friends do....:O</p>
<p>I was a prof, so my viewpoint comes from that perspective.</p>
<p>If I were your teacher, I would be insulted. The gift is excessive and seems like a bribe. Frankly, I think virtually any gift card except to a teacher's store would seem like handing them cash -- like a bribe.</p>
<p>A handwritten note with specifics about what the teacher has taught and done that you treasure is the best gift of all. Teachers save those notes. Later, giving a small gift reflecting the college that you accept -- coffee club or pen set with the college's insignia -- is a nice touch, but not necessary.</p>
<p>Giving $100 gift cards seems crass. If your parents insist that you give those cards, see if your parents will let you do so after you graduate. At least then, the cards won't seem as much like bribes.</p>
<p>I'm a high school teacher and the parent of both a HS senior and a student at one of the top LAC's. I have experience from both sides of the fence.</p>
<p>Not all rec's are the same. Some are simple "check the box and write a brief statement about the student" type which take little time to complete. Other's require quite a bit of time and effort, especially for certain scholarships and upper-tier colleges. </p>
<p>Not all teachers are the same. Some faculty members reuse previous letters and just change information to make it student specific. Other faculty members take the time to review the scholarship requirements and purposes or ask the students what their goals are, why they want to attend certain colleges, and spend a significant amount of time molding the rec to portray the student in the best light they deserve. In other words, they know that adcoms get tons of cookie-cutter recs and work hard to write recs that are unique and specific to that student so he/she doesn't look like every other great kid out there.</p>
<p>If your rec was a simple "check the box" variety, a sincere thank you note is appropriate. Of course, cookies are always welcome! Both my D's had the more extensive rec's as well as additional rec's from the same teachers for a national scholarship program. Both D's gave the teachers a nice thank you note and cookies after the recs were sent out, as well as thanking them in person. As college acceptances rolled in, (or in the case of D2 who just got her first acceptance yesterday), my D's kept each teacher informed of the results and thanked them in person again for the roll they played. </p>
<p>Once D1 got into her dream school, she gave the teachers who wrote her recs a gift card to a local coffee shop (enough for 2 cappuccinos, which cost less than cappuccinos at Starbucks) and a lovely coffee mug made by a local potter. This was not an expensive gift, but it was greatly appreciated and reflected our schools efforts to support local small business owners and help our local economy. </p>
<p>I urge you to keep in touch with the teachers who wrote your recs and keep them informed of your results (both good and bad). It is a nice and thoughtful thing to do and truly let's the teacher know that you appreciated their efforts.</p>
<p>It is not a bribe. Teachers appreciate gifts in recognition of their efforts. S's teachers wrote many recs over two years with all of the summer programs, competitions, scholarships and colleges. Now that it is all over, after all recs have been written and sent, but with S never seeing the recs, we thanked the two teachers and the guidance counselor with $50 gift cards to a favorite restaurant along with a thank you note from S. The teachers and counselors were very happy. Of course they said there was no need, but they looked forward to enjoying a nice meal on us. S also gave them some of the "loot" he received from various competitions such as pens, flash drives, post it pads, all with the name of the competition on them. They loved those too. I think it is a good idea to give something to our underpaid public school teachers who go beyond the expected to write many recs, fill out many forms, read over papers that are not part of classwork, and encourage a child's efforts. Appreciation is not a bribe. And it is very sad to view a gift in that manner.</p>
<p>Let me share my story, which is kind of related to this gift card topic:
So I asked a biology teacher to write me a rec, and it was really great. I had her for 2 years, and now I'm her Teacher's Aide. To show my appreciation, I was thinking about getting her a gift, like a big box of her favorite candy (because she appears to live on those everyday), and a thank you card at the end of the year. Because, I reasoned, at the end of year, I have more to talk about in my thank you card. Instead, she got me a gift card ($20) at Starbucks for Christmas last Friday--for my helps in TA. It was just weird... Now I feel really bad for not giving her a gift/card/whatnot. </p>
<p>Now go back to the topic, $100 is a little too much in my opinion.</p>
<p>I gave my teacher a $20 gift certificate to my parents' restaurant:). I waited till she was done with all my recommendations and then gave it to her, so I don't feel that it is a bribe hehe.</p>
<p>"Instead, she got me a gift card ($20) at Starbucks for Christmas last Friday--for my helps in TA. It was just weird... Now I feel really bad for not giving her a gift/card/whatnot. "</p>
<p>You have no reason to feel bad. She was giving you a thank-you present for helping her out, and I am sure was not expecting anything from you except that you share your successes with her and your appreciation of her help when you hear back from colleges. That truly is the best reward for people who love to mentor.</p>
<p>I didn't think you should give gifts for recs. We gave Christmas gifts and the like to teachers we liked at our schools, but they were personalized. </p>
<p>You should send the gift cards to me, and just give thank you cards to your teachers.</p>
<p>I guess I'm in the minority, but I think giving gifts to teachers (other than token ones like cookies) is entirely inappropriate, period. A heartfelt note is the way to go. Even if the gift comes after the recommendation is written, what does it suggest about any younger siblings in the pipeline? And what about the subconscious (or conscious!) effect on grading for the remainder of the year? I wish schools would adopt policies banning the practice entirely, and I wish individual teachers would refuse to accept them. If I were a teacher, I'd set a policy on day one of each year that no gifts are allowed from my students--that's what I always did with employees who reported to me.</p>
<p>I got one teacher an $8 jar of cashews and the other teacher nothing. I guess I'm ungrateful. :x</p>
<p>"I guess I'm in the minority, but I think giving gifts to teachers (other than token ones like cookies) is entirely inappropriate, period. A heartfelt note is the way to go. "</p>
<p>I agree.</p>
<p>I'll give rewards when i get in >_></p>
<p>lol i actually never thought about giving a thank you to my teachers for their recs. I'll have to think of stuff.</p>
<p>for those wondering what I ended up doing here it is:</p>
<p>$50 macy's gift card and a heartfelt thank you note. </p>
<p>I go to a pretty competitive private school, probably the best in state, and the teachers, in addition to getting over 90% of our students 5's on AP exams, work extra hard on our recs, some even have to write recs for 20+ students, and so I know they put in a lot of work so I don't care if you guys think something more than a thank you card is "wrong" to give teachers. My teachers work hard and I'm thanking them in my own way, and they can take it however they like.</p>
<p>I agree that gifts should be small, but I know my teacher rec writer spent three weeks writing my rec and that it was very specific as well as my counselor rec, who took the time to get to know me better to write a better letter. (I go to a large public school)</p>
<p>What would be a better gift to thank them, a coffee mug from my school or bake them something? (cookies or brownies)</p>
<p>^ Coffee mug! They can keep it for years and will probably remember you by it. Plus, if I were a teacher, I would like a coffe mug better because I don't like sweet food... </p>
<p>I have decided to give one of my teacher Altoids mints. But my friend told me I'm a weirdo... So what does anyone here think?</p>
<p>Lol your teacher might think that you are implying that they have bad breath xD.</p>
<p>I think gifts are inappropriate. I'm going to write my teachers thank you notes in April. I like the cookie idea.</p>
<p>hahah yeah don't give Altoids. I definitely say go with the coffee mug. I bet some teachers probably don't like to eat too many sweets especially around the holiday season.</p>