<p>You are correct – usually the school counselor or principal provides a recommendation. Teacher-provided recs are not solicited, at least not by the student.</p>
<p>I believe the prior “conversation” was about providing a supplemental recommendation with the hope of softening the effect of a “C” on the applicant’s transcript. I think such an extra letter will be either unnecessary or futile, but I can’t really say with certainty how the NMSC will regard any particular application and so will allow for the possibility that it might have some impact.</p>
<p>I’m curious as I have a daughter who has a decent chance at NMSF this fall in Kansas. I know last year’s score of 214 was an historic high. Understanding that it’s tough to predict what will happen with this year’s cut-off…does anybody who’s better versed in this have any idea of whether the cut-off score will go up, stay the same, or go down?</p>
<p>No way of predicting. My guess would be that it won’t go up more after the big jump the previous year. If I had to pick a number, I’d guess 213. But I’m not betting any $ on it!</p>
<p>RE: letter of recommendation–can’t remember exactly how it worked at S’s school last year, but I think S got to ask one teacher to write a letter (based partially on info. he’d provided about himself and his activities). The counselor also had students submit answers to several pages of questions. Then all of this–the teacher’s letter + info.-- was used to put together one recommendation for the Finalist application, which came from the counselor.
(Either that, or the counselor just sent the teacher’s letter.–Other info. might have been for college applications–all happening around the same time in the fall.)
Anyway, I’m sure each school has its own procedure–ask your own counselor how it will be done. My older son also went through the process a few years back at a different school. That counselor used info. and quotes from 3 different teachers to put together her letter.</p>