<p>My son got to the page that deals with waiver of rights to read your recommendation letters or guidance file. He saw no reason to waive his rights. Then he read me the warning that if you didn't waive your rights, the college might disregard your recommendations and reports. Am I wrong to feel this is coersive? Why should they threaten the weight of these important components for not waiving your rights. He left it unfinished for now. Thoughts?</p>
<p>Colleges wonder if the teacher and GC have been completely honest if they know the student is seeing the letter. Most students choose not to see their letters.</p>
<p>Why should they wonder and why should it matter?</p>
<p>Reverse roles for a minute.</p>
<p>You’re hiring someone.<br>
- Applicant #1 hands you a list of references and says feel free to contact them in confidence and the references know their input will be in confidence.<br>
- Applicant #2 hands you a list of references and says I’ll forward along the reference after I read them and the references know I can read them.</p>
<p>As the person reviewing this applicant will view these recommendations equally. There certainly are people who would prefer the references done in confidence. I can’t imagine any reviewer preferring recommendations that are not in confidence.</p>
<p>PS - there are lots of folks on CC who argue not to waiver your rights for a couple main reason … 1) don’t give up any right you don’t have to … 2) reviewing the recommendations might find issues in the recommendations.</p>
<p>It is not coercive; it is the right thing to do. People do tend to think carefully about this, but after understanding the situation, very nearly everyone waives their rights. </p>
<p>Students are not giving up civil rights. They are allowing the recommenders to write privately, without looking over their shoulders. If the child does not waive rights, teachers will be apprised of this by the common app and can decide not to write recommendations. </p>
<p>Note that under FERPA if a student chooses not to waive rights, the only potential opportunity he/she will have protected is the right to review the recommendations next year or at some other later time at the college where he/she ultimately enrolls, and then ONLY IF the college saves the recommendations. </p>
<p>No matter what FERPA election the applicant makes, the applicant never has access to recommendations through the application process.</p>
<p>In the old days, before recommendations were submitted online, schools routinely demanded that they be sent in a sealed envelope, directly from the recommender, with the recommender’s signature across the seal so they knew the applicant had not had access to the recommendation.</p>
<p>This is not new, and it is not a slippery slope towards the erosion of your son’s civil rights. It is a courtesy to both the recommender and the school reading the recommendation.</p>
<p>Ask for recommendations from teachers your son trusts, and move on to more important things!</p>
<p>If you lack confidence in the recommenders, I have found it is good to chat with the school GC. Our GC knows which teachers writes good letters and which ones don’t.</p>