Hey, so it’s mid-summer, and I’m thinking that I should send some of my teachers and early email letting them know who I’d like Rec’s from ahead of time so I won’t have to stress later. Is it a good idea to do this now, or are there unforeseen factors that would make it better for me to wait until Sept/Oct?
bumpity bump
I would say you do it now; I already asked my teachers if they’d be willing to in june.
^Same here. I mean several students may ask that teacher and you want yours to be well written. While the teacher has some time now, they can start pondering it and will give yours more attention for handing it in earlier as opposed to another student who may hand it in later.
MODERATOR NOTE to “Teacher Rec’s??” thread:
I’ll merge this thread with: asking for recommendations sticky thread.
I asked a science and a math teacher to write me a reco since I will be targeting Engineering schools. Then I found out some schools prefer a science/math and a humanities teacher. Is this true for all schools? One other question is I am doing a nice research work for a professor in an University. How can I add his recommendation as well? Will 3 letters be too many for a college? Should I substitute a teacher’s for the professors? Thanks!
just ask them and be polite
Regarding Post#303:
Most top schools are fine with a supplementary recc additional to their
2 required reccs. The additional recc. should add something to “who
you are” more improtantly than what you do.
If who youa re = what you do in your mind then it makes sense to
send the supp as described in your post.
Ok, probably been asked before, but are the same 2-3 rec’s usually recycled for all the colleges you apply to, or do most kids get separate rec’s for each one?
the core 2 reccs and the GCs recc is the same across colleges;
If you sending in an additional recc it could be different for different colleges
for example you may choose to have a recc from an alumni fo a certain
college to help you out more or to a particular set of science-math
heavy colleges have a mentor send inthe additional recc - depends on
what you are planning to highlight about yourself
so I asked my last year’s English teacher to write me a rec and he asked me today if a few lines would suffice because he’s never done this as there are very few students who actually go to an American university straight from high school.
Would it be enough though?
here’s probably some great advice, which one of my teachers told me.
the key here is you just have to man up, and ask two questions:
- would you please write me a recommendation letter?
AND, perhaps more important, here’s where you need some guts: - will it be good?
there are many teachers who do not understand the “recommendation” aspect of the letter and will rather say anything they want about you, positive or negative. if the answer to the second question is iffy, just tell the teacher you’ll get back to them later (but don’t).
Regarding Post#308:
A recc letter with a few lines could potentially kill your app?
It implies the person giving the recc does not know you well enough
or does not have enough to write about. Typical recc letters are
1 page+ to almost 2 pages typed (~300-600 words). Should include
insights ot only about your academics but you as a person. It should
be done in the classic “show not tell” mode. The admissions officers are
trying to know you better by looking through the eyes of your teacher.
Your teachers favorite memory of you and your weakness as well
as strengths would also make a credible addition.
Instead of making another thread I was wondering if anyone could answer my questions…
I haven’t asked any teachers yet for recs. I’ll be applying to a few schools early so I’m thinking about sending 2 teachers e-mails asking them if they would graciously write a recommendation for me. Is this appropriate? I really don’t want to wait until the first week of school because it will be so hectic.
Also, if I do send them this e-mail and they accept my request should i reply with some sort of document outlining my goals/aspirations and reasons for attending some of the colleges I like? Should I attach my resume, or this all overkill?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Okay, I’m back for a minute because I wanted to ask someone a question about Swarthmore and found an interesting bit of info about admissions that I thought I’d give you guys, so I might as well answer a few questions before I leave again 
It’s fine to e-mail your teachers and ask. You might want to tell them why you’re e-mailing them (because although you don’t want to bother them during their vacation, which is slowly winding down, the first week of school will probably be hectic). Then ask if, if they even accept your request in the first place, whether they would like the document? Then see what they say.
ok cool thanks.
I’m applying to many schools, but I have two questions:
<ol>
<li>I’m going to have 3 recc letters: one from my English teacher, one from the principal of my dance school and one from my boss. Is 3 too much and do my teachers have to send them in or do I have to do that?!</li>
<li>Do they need to sign each paper to show it’s real? And it’s normal to send the same reccomondation letter to each college right? </li>
</ol>
Thanks in advance!
<ol>
<li>Two of the letters should come from teachers of core subjects–math, English, government, history, science–dance doesn’t count. Check with what the application says. You arrange it with your teachers how the letters will be sent. Some teachers want you to send it; some want to send it themselves.</li>
<li>Yes. Absolutely.</li>
</ol>
i noticed as i was working on the common app online that there is the option to have your school officials do their rec letters online. I always thought that rec letters were to be physically done and then snail-mailed out… Has online become the new standard?
oh yeah that reminds me… when the teachers/counselor finish the recs will they make copies and send them to all the colleges, or do I have to do that?