<p>hello everyone,
I recently got one of my teachers whom I had for one whole year last year to write my LOR. He showed me what he wrote..and these are the highlights of what he wrote:
(i'll just quote some of the sentences I think r important/significant)</p>
<p>1) When I think of "Innovative", the following adjectives come to mind:
personable, very mature, intelligent, focused, dedicated and multitalented.</p>
<p>2) Copied three activities (mostly research ones) from my resume and jsut listed them in bullet format</p>
<p>3) And the last few paragraphs are like: </p>
<p>
[quote]
I predict that he will make a significant future impact in whatever career field he chooses. I say this not only because he performed excellently in my class or because he has demonstrated a high level of intelligence, but particularly because he is dedicated to always doing his very best. For example, on every occasion that I suggested an enhancement in his work, he immediately made the necessary modifications
to improve it. When I told the class that I was expecting more of them, he forthrightly redoubled his efforts to better his performance.
Additionally, in my interactions with Innovative, I have always felt that I was talking to a well-balanced, thoughtful person displaying a level of maturity significantly beyond his chronological age. In my opinion this part of his character represents the main reason for having gained at <em>high school name</em> the respect of teachers and peers alike.
Innovative is someone that other students look up to, while teachers see a young man with a very promising future.
Without reservation, I recommend that you accept Innovative because I believe that you will make an excellent addition to your university.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>SO, my question is: is it just too generic? I'm asking cause, i can still ask another teacher who can write my LOR...should I try to get another LOR and decide btw if I'd wanna turn in this one or that one?</p>
<p>It reads pretty much like most recs for a strong student. Unless the other teacher is someone who has known you in a deeper way and can make more profound comments, it’s as good as you’ll probably get.</p>
<p>Yeah, it’s good. Either way, I don’t know how much weight admissions officers put on teacher recs, because they know some teachers strike deals with their students.</p>
<p>fhg: how’s it disrespectful? in common apps, u gotta choose which teachers rec u wanna send. and it’s not like, i wanted to look at it or anything…anyway, thanks everyone for ur response!
yea, i’ve the same question…how can teachers strike a deal w/ students?!</p>
<p>It’s possible that there have been deals.
Anyway, I think it isn’t a bad letter. Probably better than what I’ll get. haha.
As it was mentioned earlier, I’m pretty sure adcoms are just like “alright… he filled the recommendation requirement. <em>tosses in pile</em>”.</p>
<p>ar31791: i think it’s not quite the case. just say for duke: they ask for additional recs…ONLY if it can help them look at u as a person or something that ur application doesn’t already tell. Recs can actually hurt too! if a rec is too general, the admission ppl wonder if the student is just too inactive/absent in the class.and such. Recs can also definitely help more…it’s not just a check mark…the more personal a rec is…the better it is.</p>
<p>Certainly. They definitely help, especially at higher ranked schools. Where are you applying? I think if this is just one of a few recs, it is fine.</p>
<p>They can definitely help, especially if they’re really personal and revealing. That’s actually one of the reasons English teachers (though not all of them) tend to be good at writing recs, they’re generally good writers and they have more in depth knowledge of your writing, the way you think, etc.</p>
<p>It’s a very strong letter of recc because it contains some specific anecdotes which also indicate that the teacher put lots of time and thought into writing it.</p>
<p>I’ve served on scholarship committtees and have seen many recc letters. Typically, they are very short and say something like, "John Smith is a very friendly young man who got an “A” in my class. He is vice president of National Honor Society and also is on the track team. He’s very smart, and I’m sure that he’ll do well wherever he goes to college. "</p>
<p>I kid you not. That’s what many LORs are like. They also may be hand written and contain major grammatical errors.</p>
<p>I hope you’ll quickly take the time to give your teacher a hand written thank-you note that is as thoughtful and specific as is the letter your busy teacher wrote for you.</p>
<p>One last thing: The kind of comprehensive, specific letter that you got reflects the fact that the teacher probably spent an hour writing it. </p>
<p>Your teacher spent a lot of time helping you, and your teacher didn’t have to bother showing you the recc. Do take the time to write out your appreciation.</p>