<p>How can you guarantee a teacher or counselor will write a good recommendation for a student? Aren't you at their mercy, since letters are never given to students to read.</p>
<p>I'm not sure what you're asking here. I guess the short answer is "you can't." Hopefully, by senior year you have built positive relationships with teachers and staff. If you are an exceptional kid (engaged, studious, invoved in school activities) they will write that. On the other hand, if you don't do homework, blow off assignmennts and are not involved in school or community activities, that may form his/her opinion of you and your college readiness. Please don't think that you are "at their mercy." That makes it sound like you have no responsibility in the matter.</p>
<p>I understand what you are saying. Beyond that, if the student is conscientous, is there a good way to optomize this?</p>
<p>Most teachers will be honest with students as to whether they feel they can write a "good" recommendation on behalf of the student. Other students from the school may be able to provide info about which schools write "good" recs, but it really DOES matter how your child performed in class & at school, particularly in comparison with peers.
Schools do recognize that some teachers don't write good, helpful recs while others write much more helpful ones. Some kids give teachers a one-page summary that highlights things the student believes are relevant and might be useful in writing the rec (like why the student wants to go to University X, student's particular experiences in subject Y that are relevant, etc.)
In any case, how much recs affect an ap can vary greatly. An exceptional rec may help tip a student but otherwise the recs are just one part of the application.</p>
<p>A few ideas for optimizing the recommendation:
1. (obvious) choose teachers whose classes you have done well in
2. Ask the teacher at the end of junior year (at DS' hs, they require this) giving the teacher plenty of time to do a good job.
3. Phrase your request in such a way as to filter for success - "I would like to have you write a recommendaiton for me. Do you think you would be able to write a strong recommendation?" The better teachers will steer a student in the right direction even if s/he doesn't ask, by suggesting s/he go elsewhere; saying that the teacher only does x per year and is already booked... If the teacher seems diffident or distracted, move on.
4. If the teacher does not know you really well (and maybe even if s/he does), provide a resume of your highlights in and out of the classroom - there are many threads on this; a list of the schools you are targeting and why</p>
<p>Yeah, it's easy to get paranoid when you don't know what's being said about you, but I would be more worried about getting a letter that's too guarded or vague than one that is openly negative (since most people would probably just decline to write it). To make sure you get letters that show the real you, if you can, (in addition to picking people who think highly of you) find out what process/effort different teachers at your school go through to write the letters (maybe recent grads can help with this). </p>
<p>D's math teacher has a rule of only writing letters for students who will provide her with a list of accomplishments and activities and will meet with her to talk over their strengths and weaknesses before she writes the letter. The teacher ends up writing very few recommendations, because students tend to ask another teacher instead of following through. D went through with it, and got wonderful letters (the teacher let her take a peek at the basic template she used for D's letters). </p>
<p>This particular teacher also knew a lot about the environment and expectations of the schools D. had applied to (from keeping up with former students of hers who went on to study or teach at those places). So she was able to customize each letter with specifics about the school that made her think D. was a good candidate.</p>
<p>For the counselor letter, D's school has the students complete a senior essay that is read by the guidance counselors for consideration in writing their letters. I didn't read D's senior essay (and have no idea how her counselor letters came out), but this process strikes me as a good way to make sure your counselor knows what you think is important and has access to information (such as community service) that might not be in your file. This is probably especially important if there are weaknesses in your application that warrant additional explanation or consideration for extenuating circumstances.</p>
<p>I know that most schools and teachers probably aren't going to go through all that for each individual student. D. is fortunate that her school (it's our state public math and science high) has a set up where the teachers keep office hours like in college and the counselors work with only about 50-60 seniors each. But you can try to emulate some of this, even if your school is large and impersonal. </p>
<p>Once you've identified some likely letter writers, I'd approach them by acknowledging that they are very busy people and then ask to make an appointment to speak briefly to them at their convenience about your college prospects. At the meeting, before asking them to commit to writing the letter, I would first explain why you are interested in the opportunity and ask if they feel you are a good candidate for the award/school. If something is a reach for you, acknowledge that upfront (to ease any potential awkwardness) and explain why you are pursuing it (because it's your dream school, for example). Ask for their input into anything they feel you can highlight- explain - improve to increase your chances. </p>
<p>This will help you screen out anyone who is lukewarm about you or the opportunity before you ask them to write the letter, and it might help your potential letter writers feel more invested in your success. It will also establish you to them as someone who is professional and serious about the opportunity and who values their opinion, especially if you take their advice to heart. </p>
<p>Once you get the commitment from the person to write the letter, it couldn't hurt for you to ask if it's ok to submit one page of background information that they might want to consider for reference (have copies ready). Definitely approach this as a courtesy to the letter writer and not as an effort to dictate the contents of the letter. If you can, include a brochure or other official description of the school/award, with highlighter or margin notes showing one or two specifics about the opportunity that you think make you and it a good fit.</p>
<p>Final bit of advice. Don't overdo it. The counselors at D's school stress to the kids that the process of applying to colleges and scholarships should be a search for a match and not a "trophy hunt." You should apply to a range of schools from safety to super-reach and to awards that sound like you, but don't apply to things and places that you know you don't want, just for the sake of seeing how you do. Setting this limit will help increase the accuracy and thoroughness of the letters you get, because the writers will have fewer demands on their time, and they will also know that you are really serious about each letter you ask them to write and not just wasting their time.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>P. S. Wow, a lot of this got said a lot better while I was writing and editing. Sorry for any duplication.</p>
<p>Our HS had all teacher recommendations filed with the Guidance Office where the students' GC could review the letters. While my son could not read the letters, his GC could remommend which letters to use in each individual application.</p>
<p>It also had the added benefit of limiting the number of letters and application forms teachers needed to complete. For his 6 applications, our son needed to ask only 3 teachers for recommendations and that was even one more than absolutely necessary, but in addition to the science and math teachers he asked, he wanted to ask his CompLit teacher for applications to the 3 LAC's he applied to.</p>
<p>It also guaranteed that COMPLETE applications where sent out from the HS in a timely manner, usually a one day turnaround. It was a great system.</p>
<p>This is very helpful. Before I began asking questions here I thought the entire process was straightforward and if the student filled out the applications, asked a few teachers for recs and was as honest as possible that was enough. I read many threads in all the college discussions and started to get nervous. It seems as if a student can't possibly figure this all out by junior year. From what friends tell me, they don't seem to start even thinking about college until the summer before senior year. I do not plan to get too involved in my child's actual process but it sounds like I will need to at least be a guiding influence in all of this.</p>
<p>What I heard from others (the reason I asked this question even though I could have picked up some of this from old threads) is the examples people have given me. A teacher who writes excellent recommendations and whom the students love, who only gives out 20 maximum a year because so many students ask. An excellent math teacher whose first language is not English who teaches beautifully but doesn't write very well. Or a student with very strong athletic skills who wanted a coach to write a letter only to find out that the colleges being applied to wanted recs from academic teachers only. </p>
<p>I have one more question. I've read in articles that were mentioned here that students should not send more then 3 recs because it is too much for the admissions offices to read. They should send 1 from a GC and 2 from teachers. What if a student has pursued a related field outside of school and that person (music teacher, dance teacher, employer in a related field) wants to write a recommendation? Would it be considered as strongly as one of the high school teachers? Or would the student add that as a 4th resource?</p>
<p>Also, if a student has a relationship with a professional in a field (such as a musician who has taken classes or workshops with a renowned musician) would that person's recommendation hold more weight or would it be considered superfluous?</p>
<p>I do understand that recs are just part of the process, but some of the schools on my child's list do give them greater weight than others.</p>
<p>The question of additional recs will vary from school to school. You have to look at each individual school's application instructions. Some are ok with it, some seem to encourage it. Some discourage it. I always remember the Stanford Admissions Dean who spoke at our info session. In discouraging extra recs, she told of their "record holder," who had submitted 32 recs, including one from his dentist saying he "had great teeth." Being the butt of the Admissions Office jokes is probably not a good thing ;).</p>
<p>At DS' hs, extra recs by Music Director, other teachers, etc. are provided to the GC. She then excerpts from them in her overall GC rec. This would work for the school-related extras, but not for the outside resources.</p>
<p>My school sends out "progress reports" twice a year, where teachers basically write a short paragraph about each student to let the parents know how their kid is doing. I've found they're a good way to gauge which teachers would write the best recommendations. In my case, I'd choose my chemistry teacher ("She thinks outside of the box and should be congratulated on her original thought process") but probably not my biology teacher ("She is very detail oriented and thinks through assignments carefully"). I have high grades in both classes, and the quality of my work is the same, but the difference between "she works hard" and "she's an independent thinker" is enormous.</p>
<p>As for additional recommendations: I plan to submit a photography portfolio, even though I don't intend to be a fine arts major. Would a recommendation from my photography teacher (I take classes outside of school) be beneficial, or would I be better off not sending one?</p>
<p>Why would they need a portfolio if you aren't majoring in art or photography?</p>
<p>It's a major EC, and something that I've invested a lot of time and effort in. Non-music majors who are accomplished in music still send in recordings of themselves, right? Or am I completely off-target?</p>
<p>my daughter sent two recommendations from teachers and one from her college counselor
I think her college required 3 essays and a graded paper.
I would not send anything extra- schools are just looking for ways to weed out the numbers of applications they view and submitting extra material is a way to make their burden weightier.
Particulary since you are not planning to major in it.
Write an essay on your EC if you wish, but don't submit unasked for material</p>
<p>My kids' GC allows students to choose whether they want to apply on-line (which most do, especially since most colleges seem to prefer it). They also have the option of asking their teachers to give the recs to the GC or send them straight to the school themselves. My son asked them if they could give the recs to the GC so he can send the schools one big packet with the letters from the 2 teachers & himself & the transcript & the school profile. NONE of the schools son has applied to have lost this packet. All schools which got transcripts get the 1st semester grades as well, without further requests from the student. The process works pretty well.
I haven't seen any of son's recs, but believe the teachers & GC write pretty good recs because the students who have used them have gotten into most of their dream schools. Son hasn't heard back--we're taking that as good news, since there have been no denials & no deferrals.</p>