<p>Holy mackerel. I have found myself in quite a conundrum. </p>
<p>So during the spring, my guidance counselor told me to ask for letters of recommendation from 3 teachers. I did so.
1.) my bio teacher
2.) My 11H english teacher
3.) My band director</p>
<p>This seemed like a good balance to me. However, I started reading that you should pick teachers based on how well they know you and your strengths and whatnot. Duh. I know my English teacher will write an exceptional letter since I know him very well and was his best student. My band director knows how passionate I am about music and leadership in Marching Band. Plus, he's seen how I handle disappointment (aka - completely messing up my nyssma solo) and how I've learned to ultimately rise above it, which I think is significant.
But here's the rub; I wasn't sure how well my Bio teacher knew me since I didn't have that strong of a relationship with her (I still did exceptionally well in her class. I would always do extra projects and whatnot and was a pretty exemplary student... probably her favorite in the class). </p>
<p>So... I ended up asking my counselor to withdraw her letter and asked for one from my Ethics teacher instead. I was also a really good student in that class. We did quarterly journals, and he would always rave about how well I wrote and how hardworking I was. He's a very intelligent dude, and I have no doubt his letter is probably going to be better than my Bio teacher's would've been. </p>
<p>Now I'm having second thoughts. I'm seriously considering Bard College, and I just noticed they recommend you submit a letter from an English/History teacher as well as a science/mathematics teacher. Crap. Then I realized most colleges would rather see letters from core academic subjects... not electives like Ethics or Band... </p>
<p>I honestly have no idea what to do. Should I ask my Bio teacher again? Because It seems I really have no choice. </p>
<p>It sucks because I know my band director (whom I've had for 4 years) and my Ethics teacher will write great letters. But I feel like my best option is sending my English and my Bio letters along with a guidance recommendation (since some schools require that too). I don't know what is more important: the subject they taught or how well they can write about me. Is it both? Is one more important than the other? </p>
<p>How does it work on the common app if some schools only want 1 LoR from a teacher and others want 2 from teachers? Do I get to choose which ones get sent to specific colleges? Help help help what do I do</p>
<p>Judging by the # of views and the 0 responses thus far, I probably exaggerated in using the term “fiasco”. My apologies.
Sincerely, a severely anxious and stressed student </p>
<p>I can absolutely sympathize; my first choice would be my band director as well, as I’m not particularly close with any of my academic teachers. A few of my colleges only require one academic teacher’s letter, though, so I’m thinking of getting a letter from him to supplement the academic one just for those schools, and that might be a viable option for you too.</p>
<p>For the schools that require two letters, definitely go with English and Bio. You’d be surprised at how willing some teachers will be to write good recommendations, even if they don’t know you very personally. Colleges ultimately want to hear about how you’ve progressed and performed academically, and it’s best if they hear it from your academic teachers.</p>
<p>Have any of the teachers indicated that they will let you see the letters before they submit them? Often if a teacher particularly likes you they will make that offer because they really want to help you and want you to be happy with the letter and will even welcome your input. If that is not an option, perhaps speak with your GC. If the letters are directed through them, ask for all 4 letters and let the GC screen them, and pick the strongest letters to submit. You can also ask for all 4 letters and then send different letters to different schools depending on the colleges preferences.</p>
<p>What about any teachers from this year? I had the same problem last year. My junior year didn’t go great and my APUSH teacher actually said no to writing a rec (he had too many) and I hated my english and physics teachers. What i ended up doing was asking my senior tech lab director (CS) to write one, since he had already taught me in precalc sophomore year. I had a couple schools that required two and that was a problem. I did not have a senior year english teacher because I took english over the summer and my gov teacher was not only brand new but had just moved back to the US from where he was previously teaching. I ended up asking my geosystems teacher, who was very nice, and explained my situation to him. We sat down for about half an hour one day and he asked me about what I’ve been doing and what I wanted to do. It was like a little mini interview and he took notes. I know he ended up writing me a great rec! I do realize I used two math/science people, but I didn’t have an option for humanities and my guidance counselor assured me it would be fine,</p>
<p>@sarahkayvoigt Thank you for your advice! I think that’s probably my best option. Also, I know some colleges hate when you send tons of LoR’s, but do you think 2 academic + 1 Band supplement will be alright? </p>
<p>@planner03 Hmm I’m not sure if my GC will let me see the letters. I think I remember her once saying she doesn’t even get to read them. I don’t know why, though. Darn. It seems so many people have better, more helpful guidance counselors than I do. :
It’s great to know you can choose which ones get sent to specific colleges; do you do that on the Common App, or do you have to physically mail them out? </p>
<p>@guineagirl96 Blah. My GC specifically asked for teachers from sophomore or junior year. It stinks because my AP Physics teacher next year is said to write great letters… But it’s interesting to hear that you were able to use two Math/Science teachers. I think as long as it’s two academic subjects, I’ll hopefully be alright. I just hope my Bio teacher will agree to write it after I already told her I didn’t need it… oops! </p>
<p>Thank you all for your words of wisdom! Tis greatly appreciated. </p>
<p>@nccc1701 As long as your director gives you a very strong letter, I don’t think including it with 2 academic letters would be detrimental. It sounds to me that they do know you well enough that the rec will contribute to your app, so I think you’ll be fine, though you should ask your GC about it if you still have any doubts.</p>
<p>Also, if given the option, DON’T choose to see your letters before they’re mailed out. There’s a specific form on the Common App that waives your right to view them, and often colleges will look at your application more favorably if they know you haven’t seen your letters; it shows that you’re confident that the recommendations will be positive and that you trust the recommenders. You do get to assign which letters go to which colleges, it’s all in the Common App.</p>
<p>Did your band director teach you music theory or something as well? If so, he or she can probably be considered an academic teacher. Otherwise, that letter would still be good to submit to the “additional recs” section. Be aware that some colleges don’t allow additional letters, though.</p>
<p>I would follow the instructions of the college and send two from academic instructors as they requested. Yes, it is a bit embarrassing to go back to the Bio teacher. But you can explain that you didn’t understand that colleges want core academic references, and now that you know that, could you please ask for a recommendation. Just leave it at that. And… unless you are applying as music major or something, I honestly would not send an extra recommendation unless the college specifically states that additional recommendations are optional and/or recommended. If they just say 2 from academic teachers, then just send two. They generally mean what they say… they have so much material to review during the admissions cycle, they don’t want stuff they didn’t ask for.</p>
<p>@Ranza123 @intparent Ok! Thank you both. I figured I’d only send the band LoR to one or two schools that allow additional recs, since you can do that with the Common App right? </p>
<p>I’ve had my Band teacher for 4 years (marching, pep, and concert). Consequentially, he knows me really well, so I figured he’d be perfect! But yeah, looks like I’ll be asking my Bio teacher again, however awkward it may be. </p>
<p>If the schools allow additional recs and you think his letter is really stellar, then feel free to send it. But don’t bog down admissions officers with too many recommendations. They don’t really want to read any more than they already have to. </p>