Letters of Recommendation

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pittsburgh
1

DD20 is working on her app to Pitt (in-state) and plans to apply to the Honors program and hopes for some merit as well.

On the Pitt website, it states “We prefer you to respond to these questions instead of submitting letters of recommendation, resumes etc.” but then it also states, “We do not require recommendations, but they provide strong support for scholarship candidates and borderline situations.”

She did ask two teachers for recs in the spring because her other schools require them, but school doesn’t start for another few weeks, so we’re not sure when they will be ready and she wants to apply to Pitt early as it is a top choice.

She will answer all of the short answer questions for admission as well as Honors, so is it preferred that she send letters of recommendation with her application or not?

2

Just call admissions and ask them. they’ll give you the best answer.

3

Hi @samsmom20,
The direct answer to your question is no.
As our website states, save letters of recommendation for special circumstances. While we appreciate your teachers, counselors, and other mentors taking the time to write recommendation letters on your behalf, we find letters are beneficial in very limited circumstances (for example: providing context for variance in your overall academic performance). We recommend using the Short Answer Question Responses to cover what you typically would in a recommendation letter.

-Pitt Admissions Staffer

4

@hailtopitt1787 Thank you!