College Recommendations -- Asking Sophomore-Year Teacher

<p>Would it be okay to ask a teacher I had sophomore year for a recommendation? She teaches AP Environmental Science, so there are students of all grades in that class. I just decided to take her class sophomore year, and she is also my club adviser.</p>

<p>Bump</p>

<p>If it’s an AP class, it’s generally OK, but you might want to check out your the websites of your prospective colleges to be sure.</p>

<p>It’s for Harvard SCEA. I don’t see a reference to it anywhere on the Harvard website…</p>

<p>In which case, I would normally tell you to pick up the phone and call the Harvard admissions office, which you may still want to do to double check me. However, I am also applying SCEA to Harvard, and I called and asked if it was OK to submit a rec from my AP Physics C teacher that I had sophomore year (he’s also the advisor to one of my clubs) and they said no problem.</p>

<p>Students are typically advised to request recommendations from teachers they had as juniors or seniors, but there is no fixed rule. I think the underlying theory is that colleges will wonder why you had to reach further back, and would prefer someone who taught you at a higher level. If the subject is a particular strength or interest of yours, then it’s a good choice, but it isn’t usually recommended.</p>

<p>My D used a Soph Chem Teacher - honors, but not AP Chem, which she did take later. However, the Soph teacher is an A+++ outstanding teacher, and made a big impact on my D. And the Rec Letter she wrote for my D was tremendous - I am sure it helped her get into Northwestern. So the bottom line OP, to answer your original questions - is that yes, you can have a Soph teacher rec. Good Luck!</p>

<p>Awesome, thank you!</p>