<p>Im thinking of who to ask next year. But I realized that there are ratings like academic achievements and motivation/initiative things...</p>
<p>My question is will the teacher just evaluate those for you based on only the subject she teaches, or will the teachers rate you in terms of you overall performance in all the academic subjects...</p>
<p>And what are the primary factors that I should use to consider who to ask</p>
<p>PLEASSS give advice</p>
<p>Thankyou</p>
<p>The teachers can write/evaluate whatever they want. The key to a good recommendation is finding a teacher who knows you well and LOVES you. It also helps if the teacher is a good writer, but that is less crucial (sometimes less "professionally" written recs sound more heartfelt and sincere)</p>
<p>but it says like compared to the other students in your class...does that mean we are evaluated on that class??!! or Im I misinterpreting it</p>
<p>You are evaluated on your academic ability and personal qualities. Some teachers follow the prompts more closely then others.</p>
<p>How important are teacher recs? Will it hurt my application if I don't get a "glowing" letter?</p>
<p>How important - who knows? Just keep in mind that you will probably be competing with a few thousands of aplicants that will have everything you do, plus the glowing teachers' recs...</p>
<p>Make sure you provide your letter writer with your other accomplishments outside of that particular classroom. It gives them more perspective on what you were able to accomplish in that class, and may help you stand-out compared to others they are writing for.</p>
<p>Also make sure it is one of your academic teachers that you had your junior or senior years.</p>
<p>Recs are very very important. Just like nngmm said the teacher must know you and really like you.
If your report cards include comments, see which teacher writes well about you.</p>
<p>Recs can be harmful if they are lukewarm and dull. "[name] is a good student, who always turns his/her work in on time and can be counted on to study. He/she is well-groomed, etc."</p>
<p>They only really help if they are rave reviews of your personality and performance.</p>
<p>Are lukewarm recs always harmful? Can recs be neutral?</p>
<p>They can be neutral, but remember that almost all teachers will write positive recs. Something that lacks any enthusiasm will stick out.</p>
<p>Does it help to send in the extra recommendation so that the college will get a better picture of you, or is that too much?</p>
<p>It depends. Only send in an extra recommendation if it will add to the application. Is there something you are very passionate about outside of the classroom? Is it necessary that they hear about your passion, dedication, success, etc. from someone involved in that activity? If you're a star athlete, a talented musician, etc. it might make sense to get that extra rec, especially if your coach/teacher knows you really well. I did a summer program at Stanford so my extra letter of recommendation was from a math prof here who knew me well.</p>