So I don’t have any relationships with any teachers. I’m friendly enough and a good student (As in all but math, participate a lot in discussions, do all work on time, respectful) but I wouldn’t say any of them know me particularly well. None of my junior year teachers were leaders of clubs I was in or anything. So I don’t really have a go-to for my letters of recommendation. I really want to ask my youth group leader who I feel knows me really well but it’s not academically and all the schools seem to really want 1/2 teacher recs and then the counselor rec. I asked my science and English teachers from junior year because my history teacher just had a baby and was only writing 10 (and I didn’t ask in time) and math is not my strength. They know me well enough as a student I guess but I’m worried about the personal side and my mom is annoyed I didn’t ask a sophomore English teacher whose class I got an award in and I wonder if I should have? Or should I use the science and junior English teachers and then get a supplementary letter from my youth group leader to show my extracurricular/personal side? Or just send the teachers’ letters and add some extra things about me (like my intended studies and extracurriculars) in the naviance teacher recommendation forms? I’m really worried and my counselor is always too busy.
Thank you and I’m sorry this is so long stress makes me so long-winded and wordy.
I can relate to your pain. This is a tough area for a lot of students with great grades, test scores, and EC’s. The trick is to find someone who thinks you are awesome and can speak to what makes you awesome. Don’t fall prey to choosing someone who may be in an academic area you’re thinking of going into. What really counts is that they think you’re awesome. Another approach is to use the rec to mitigate a low grade or SAT test score. If you did poorly in Math, you ask your Math teacher to write about how you appreciate the challenge, go for extra help, persevere, look for real life applications, etc. Most colleges want Junior year academic teachers or Fall senior year. But my best advice is to give it a lot of thought. It’s not too late to ask to meet with a couple of teachers and have heart to heart talks with them. The youth group leader sounds like a keeper. Research advisor? Coach? Get creative and think outside the box. If you look at the Common App buckets, lots of colleges are willing to consider youth advisors from many quarters.
Yes, ask the Soph English teacher you got an award from. Two of my kids got excellent rec letters from a Soph teacher, and that worked out well. Good Luck!