<p>... And here's some possible background or rationale for Posts # 3 and #20:</p>
<p>One of my D's teachers indicated that as a sophomore my D was a solid student, but not quite as impressive a student as she became in junior & sr. years. Students & parents forget (unless a parent happens to be a teacher as well) that there are developmental levels of learning that manifest themselves throughout these years. While individuals may vary, it is common for students to "reach their stride" in their junior year. I guess I would encourage most students to use the Jr./Sr teachers unless you are quite sure that the soph. teacher's rec would be significantly stronger. In some cases, as in schools with a small faculty, teachers of all grades tend to know all the school's students well, either directly or indirectly, & in that case, perhaps a soph. teacher could verify by reputation that a Sr. student is continuing on the same path of accomplishment established 2 yrs prior.</p>
<p>Alternatively, I would use the soph. recommender as a supplemental rec for any high school & any college that allows that, rather than as one of my primary recs.</p>
<p>Our teachers know to tell students if they will write a good rec. or not. They won't accept recommendation forms if they don't think they can do justice.</p>
<p>My strategy: Me: ::hands over stamped-envelope:: "Hi, Mr. So-and-so. I have a teacher recommendation form from the University of Whatever. . . ." Teacher: "Will do!"</p>
<p>It's rather simple, as long as you know the teacher likes you.</p>
<p>when should we start handing them out if we are applying regular decision? can teachers use the same recs for like 10 schools and just change the name?</p>
<p>I just submitted my reccomendation request letters to my teachers. I more or less included the fact that I felt that these teachers would properly be able to let a school know about me and my performance in the past. I made sure to pick teachers who like me(a must do!), unlike one of my(rather dumb...) friends.</p>
<p>
[quote]
can teachers use the same recs for like 10 schools and just change the name?
[/quote]
They can but I'm not sure you want them to. The best recommendation will 1) provide a compelling case for the student and 2) tie that student to the school for which the recommendation is being written. If a student was applying to Williams and UPenn, for example, trying to accomplish the second goal would be tough with the same recommendation ... it would have to be pretty general to tie to those two very different schools</p>
<p>3togo, It would be nice to think that teachers are going to customize 10 or more recommendations for a single student, but, unfortunately, I think that is an unrealistic expectation, especially at larger high schools. </p>
<p>You may get a teacher here and there willing to change the name of the school in each letter of recommendation, or write one recommendation (perhaps say for an ED school) that is geared towards a particular school, but most teachers probably will not have time or inclination to do more than that. They will, obviously, need to check off the ratings boxes on each application separately, but most are going to attach a fairly non-school specific letter of rec. to the form and let it go at that. Realistically, that's about all students should expect, except in rare cases.</p>
<p>Now, that doesn't mean that students shouldn't give teachers a bit of information about each school, and perhaps a few hints about what the school values highly in admissions, but in general, teachers are just not going to write 10 different recommendations for 10 different schools for most kids.</p>
<p>junior/senior year recommendation is what colleges like Yale prefer? i had a really good teacher in my freshman year. she knew me very well, and i did i feel i accomplished the most in her class. i did the best in her class, so i was awarded the leadership academic award as well as college recommendation, which is what she said. so i know she'll write the best recommendation so far. ill definitely get recommendations from junior and senior years too, but is the one from freshman year ok too? thx</p>
<p>I think it is very important to ask directly if the teacher can write a strong recco. dd assumed she would get a good one from her Alg II & Hon Precalc teacher because she had an A and then was accepted by this teacher into Honors precalc and got an A and was accepted into AP Calc BC. But the teacher said she wouldn't be able to give her very best reccomendation because she didn't think dd had quite lived up to her potential.</p>
<p>
[quote]
3togo, It would be nice to think that teachers are going to customize 10 or more recommendations for a single student, but, unfortunately, I think that is an unrealistic expectation, especially at larger high schools.
[/quote]
agreed ... but I'd hope they might add a line or two that are specific for the school.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If I need, for example, 10 letters of rec from one teacher, and most of these colleges use the common app, but 1 or 2 need a certain format of rec letter, is it uncommon or rude to ask a teacher to format the letters of rec 3 different ways? How many DIFFERENT letters of rec do you think would be alright to ask the teacher for (I go to a pretty large school, with almost 700 students in the graduating class)? How many teachers do you think I should pick to write my letters of rec if I am applying to 10 schools?</p></li>
<li><p>What all should I be presenting my teacher when I ask him/her for letters of rec?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>How does one politely hint to a teacher that colleges don't want a laundry list of activities in the rec and would prefer anecdotes? These teachers have been writing recs for years but not for the top schools I'm applying to.</p>
<p>i'd be gratefull if somebody kindly tells me whether a student who has won the gold medal of the international math olympiad will be able to go to harvard or not?</p>
<p>i'd be gratefull if somebody kindly tells me whether a student who has won the gold medal of the international math olympiad will be able to go to harvard or not?>></p>
<p>Sirius,
This will not automatically guarantee you admission to Harvard, or any other school. Combined with top grades and test scores, other fine extracurriculars, and great essays and recommendations, it would, however, be a good plus on your application. Just not enough in and of itself to guarantee anything.</p>
<p>do you think it is advisable to get a rec from a teacher who is known to be "evil", shall we say. I didnt do well in her class first quarter, but in the end, I became one of the top students in her class. She has told me that I am very hardworking, "nice", and a pleasure to have in class. However, some of the questions that she asked me during class were very difficult and stumped me. I sometimes "fumbled" with the answer, eventually getting it right. </p>
<p>Do you think I should get a recommendation from her, even though she is known to be a *****? However, I have a feeling she like me.</p>
<p>I was wondering if a teacher can just write a same rec but just change the name of the school. IE, instead of saying Dear Cornell Admission to Dear USC Admissions</p>