Extra Rec Letters help?

Colleges & Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>I have always wanted to attend Harvard as an under-grad, but considering the overwhelming number of applicants, I no longer find comfort in my application.</p>

<p>What do you think my chances of getting in are? My High School is arepeat Academic Decathlon winner and I am ranked in the top 10 out of 1008.
GPA unweighted: 3.974
GPA Weighted : 4.56</p>

<p>SAT I: 2220
SAT II: US History- 730
MATH 2 - 700
Literature - 700</p>

<p>Sports: Played club soccer for 8 years</p>

<p>Extra Curriculars:
-Created a Mock Trial team
-President of Junior Statesmen of America for 3 years
-Vice president- Philosophy club
-Secretary- Key Club
-Vice-President- National Honors Society
-Captain of Envirothon Team
-Future Lawyers of America-member
-President- French Honors Society</p>

<p>Charity Work:
-Created a charity to send clothing and school supplies to orphans in Armenia four years ago. Recognized by the UN and the Red Cross as well as a few U.S. legislators.
-Collect and distribute holiday gifts for Orphans in Southern california through Childhelp USA for over 6 years.</p>

<p>Total Community Service= 1100+ hours</p>

<p>A former Senator sent a rec letter two weeks ago directly to the dean of admissions stating the following: (wondering if it'll help much?) Some of what he said:</p>

<pre><code> I am a former two-term United States Senator. Every day, I have the opportunity to work and communicate with many young men and women who express their passions and concerns in the political arena. ....Sometimes, I come across an especially unique student who exhibits truly exemplary skills and intellectual potential. I have come to know XXX as an extremely disciplined young man, brimming with potential. XXX’s passion for politics is unrivaled among his peers and he constantly seeks to gain knowledge across a variety of disciplines. He is truly determined and has exhibited a broad array of leadership capabilities which I believe can be further cultivated at Harvard College. In our conversations, he has presented novel ideas which I find highly mature for his age. I have conveyed to him the enormous obstacles that lay ahead along the path to achieving success in a political career, but he consistently responds that he believes that receiving a proper liberal arts education at Harvard College would prepare him for any obstacle that would ever have the audacity to stand in his way.

 Upon facing obstacles in the past, I have seen XXX draw upon his creativity and resourcefulness both to solve the problem at hand and to prevent it from reoccurring. I am confident you will find that XXXs passion and thirst for knowledge are surpassed only by his persistence. Something he may not have mentioned in his application is the fact that he has successfully maintained an unblemished academic record in the face of multiple familial crises. During the course of his high school career, his mother has had cancer twice, his grandfather has died of lung cancer, his aunt has triumphed over breast cancer, and his brother has had open-brain surgery to remove a tumor. Yet, he has maintained his focus and simultaneously led his family through the toughest of times. He is no ordinary young man&#8212;never having played the role of a victim, he instead seeks to turn a new page and make the most of what he is given. He has led charities aiding vulnerable populations of impoverished orphans in Armenia for over four years, a task which he continued with determination even while he juggled hospital visits and schoolwork. I believe that no obstacle will dissuade XXX from his path to becoming a leader simply because of the kind of young man he is.

 While I realize that you review thousands of fully qualified applicants for admission to Harvard College, I urge you not to pass over XXX. He is unique from most other applicants in the way he thinks; he has an extraordinary ability to think ahead and plan for success in the future. XXX&#8217;s foresight and discipline for delayed gratification, combined with his leadership skills result in a young man whose potential will be extraordinarily difficult to match, a young man asking for the privilege to cultivate that potential in our nation&#8217;s greatest educational institution. I urge you carefully to examine XXX&#8217;s application and to give him the opportunity he so richly deserves. I recommend XXXwhole-heartedly as I believe he will be an asset to your university.

</code></pre>

<p>Sincerely,
Senator YYYYY</p>

2

<p>I think that is a truly outstanding recommendation letter and can only help immensely. Doesn’t mean you are “in”, of course. But it certainly enhances your very nice stats.</p>

<p>Is the Senator a Harvard alum?</p>

3

<p>because you’ve sparked my academic decathlon interest, what school?</p>

<p>i agree that the letter can not hurt you, but it sounds a little canned, like he/she might have used the same letter with different names in the past. i wish you the best of luck in your application!</p>

4

<p>acadec, we discourage members from giving specific identifying information such as their school name, etc.</p>

<p>Funny, but I saw the letter entirely differently from you. I thought it’s strength was that it is not at all generic; showed lots of details and in-depth knowledge of the student and the student’s family.</p>

<p>Well, anyway, it’s up to Harvard how much it means.</p>

5

<p>cool, i understand.</p>

<p>obviously, the second paragraph is crafted specifically to fit this student, but the general feel was quite generic, in my opinion. and yes, it would be harvard’s opinion in the matter that really counts. i guess we’ll see in a few weeks.</p>

6

<p>I also think it is a great letter. Compassion for others, maturity, self-discipline, resourcefulness and resiliency all come to mind when reading it. I don’t “chance” kids, but certainly think those are admirable qualities which would appeal to the admissions readers. I hope you get in as you sound like a great guy, but think you’re wise not to count on it, given the number of applicants. Wherever you attend, with those qualities you will succeed in life. Please let us know how things turn out!</p>

7

<p>what a cool letter, how do you know the senator? (internship, personally, or what)</p>

8

<p>Thanks everyone for tolerating such a long post! I appreciate the responses. To answer Student 2008’s question, I met the Senator through my uncle a few years back and we kept an open dialogue about politics for the most part. He knew what was going on with my family in terms of medical conditions and offered his support many times. </p>

<p>I realize how difficult it is to get into any school simply with regards to the rising number of applicants, so I’m not relying on Harvard as the foundation of my educational hopes. As my experiences with my family have taught me, after a certain point, you realize that there are far worse worse things that can happen to you than not getting into any one school.</p>