<p>Hi for one of the colleges I am applying to I have a good adult friend who is an alumni and he said he would write me a letter of recommendation but he asked me whom does he make it out too, and I'm not sure. What do I say? </p>
<p>I suggest the Director (or Dean) of Undergraduate Admissions.</p>
<p>This said, you should understand something. A very few alumni recommendations (the alumnus donated $10M, or Chairs the Board of Trustees, or heads the Alumni Association, or is the Secretary of State) can be quite influential, but most alumni are neither notable supporters nor highly-prominent at their alma mater. Therefore, a recommendation from a graduate in this substantial majority will not have any meaningful selection impact. By all means, have the letter sent, but please don’t feel it’s a panacea. </p>
<p>I agree, make the letter out to the head of undergraduate admissions. But unless he/she is a huge donor, is very active in the alumni association, or has something particularly wonderful to say about an activity he/she has done with you it likely won’t make a meaningful difference to your admissions decision.</p>