<p>My s gave his teachers a file with his rec forms and addressed stamped envelopes for each of the six colleges he is applying to, with two early action deadlines...FIVE WEEKS AGO!!! Here we are with less than 2 weeks before the deadlines at BC and Georgetown and they still haven't completed them. His apps/scores/school transcript/gc reccomendation/essays etc...are in. I never thought we would be waiting on these reccomendations. Any suggestions. My son has reminded one of the teachers and she said politely that she was in the middle of moving??? Should we switch gears and go with someone else?</p>
<p>Gosh, the same thing happened to my S last year. He kept pestering the teacher and she eventually got them done, but it was emotionally draining to have to worry about that! It might not hurt to get another teacher moving to get a rec done. It won't hurt to have another one anyway and it might make you feel more comfortable knowing something is getting done. Good luck!</p>
<p>I don't see what the problem is. The teachers just need to have the reccs in by the deadline. There's no need for them to have the reccs in early any more than there's a reason for students to finish weeks ahead of time the papers that teachers assign .</p>
<p>I think that your S should just ask the teachers if they need more info from him, and politely ask what date the teachers plan to mail the reccs.</p>
<p>I've done lots of recommendations for students and do tend to get them in just in time for the deadline. I'd be pretty ticked if a student acted as if I should have gotten the reccs in weeks early. </p>
<p>Teachers also have other things to do that need to be done earlier than your S's recommendations. That also includes writing reccs for students whose colleges have earlier deadlines.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, has your S gotten his applications in already? My experience has been that most applicants get their applications done at the last minute. The same is true for people writing recommendations. The difference is, though, that the recommendation writers tend to be adults, who know how to manage their time so that what needs to be done does make deadline. That's not the case for many students, who tend to be surprised by last minute problems.</p>
<p>I don't see what the problem is. The teachers just need to have the reccs in by the deadline. There's no need for them to have the reccs in early any more than there's a reason for students to finish weeks ahead of time the papers that teachers assign .</p>
<p>I think that your S should just ask the teachers if they need more info from him, and politely ask what date the teachers plan to mail the reccs.</p>
<p>I've done lots of recommendations for students and do tend to get them in just in time for the deadline. I'd be pretty ticked if a student acted as if I should have gotten the reccs in weeks early. </p>
<p>Teachers also have other things to do that need to be done earlier than your S's recommendations. That also includes writing reccs for students whose colleges have earlier deadlines.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, has your S gotten his applications in already? My experience has been that most applicants get their applications done at the last minute. The same is true for people writing recommendations. The difference is, though, that the recommendation writers tend to be adults, who know how to manage their time so that what needs to be done does make deadline. That's not the case for many students, who tend to be surprised by last minute problems.</p>
<p>Whenever S has needed a recommendation, he has asked for it very early and with rare exception, the teachers have done the recc right in time to make deadline. S has reminded them about the recss about a week before they are due. The teachers have appeared to appreciate those kind of reminders, but I don't think would have been happy if S had started pestering them to complete the reccs 4 or 5 weeks before the applications were due.</p>
<p>A final thought: Teachers may have learned (as I did) to wait until the last minute because a lot of times students don't follow through on their own applications. I used to do reccs right after students asked me, but was left hanging a couple of times because students didn't bother to submit their applications, and didn't even have the courtesy to tell me they'd changed their minds. After that, I started saying that I'd write the recommendations after the students showed me their completed applications.</p>
<p>North, wow, mean. In my s's case, he had actually asked his English teacher the year before to write a letter. She readily agreed, but being somewhat absent minded, forgot (on multiple occasions) to get it done. His apps were in, and the letter was the last thing needed. The college deadline was within a week and the adcom had contacted us to say that the letter was the last thing remaining. I have empathy for the op because I remember how stressful the whole process was, especially when going through it the first time. I don't think the op was indicting teachers, just expressing her nervousness. And, obviously her child has gotten his apps in, it is stated in the post. Just because you have had some negative experiences with your students does not mean that all, or even a majority of students are irresponsible, late at getting their apps in, and indecisive. And I think a teeny bit of sensitivity is not out of line with some posters.</p>
<p>Couple of thoughts. First, at my son's HS, the poor GC's frequently have the delightful job of extracting the letters from the teachers. Perhaps a word to guidance is in order. It is possible that they could also determine if the teacher who was moving could do the letter. </p>
<p>Secondly - if G'ton's son hasn't written thankyou notes yet, delivering these would be a gentle reminder. </p>
<p>In my (limited) experience, if most of the application bits were in on time (especially the application itself), having the rest a bit after the deadline seemed to do no harm. Not quite time to panic yet!</p>
<p>My s could not have been more prepared. He wrote each teacher a cover letter thanking them in advance for their time. He pasted to the outside of the file folder each college he was applying to and their deadlines. My only worry is that both of my son's early action applications are in, everything received...accept the teacher reccomendations which my son first requested 5 weeks ago. He did not expect they would be done overnight. He gave them the file with all the infor over five weeks ago to give them plenty of time to get them done. My son is so respectful that he hasn't even approached his teachers yet NORTHSTAR... he enclosed a receipt card in each envelope and so far none have been received...His high school is not very competitive in fact most of the kids go to Ohio University because they don't have to write an essay. There aren't alot of kids that apply early so maybe that why I'm nervous. The teachers may have forgotten that the deadline is November 1st.</p>
<p>northstarmom that is not a fair assessment of the situation. when I applied to governors school last year, the teacher finished the rec letter AT LUNCH on the day the apps were due to guidance (about 5 days before the actual deadline, barely enough safety time). This was after I pestered her almost every day during the last week. I agree that teachers don't have to have them weeks ahead but isn't it fair that they have them in at least one week ahead? I mean, this is the rest of our lives here, its not a joke.</p>
<p>"I agree that teachers don't have to have them weeks ahead but isn't it fair that they have them in at least one week ahead? "</p>
<p>Why should they be expected to get reccs in early? What colleges, scholarship programs notice is when STUDENTS get their applications in, but such institutions don't judge the recommenders by how early the paperwork gets in.</p>
<p>Using your thinking, why shouldn't students be expected to get term papers in weeks early if they were assigned months ago (as occurs in colleges and for some h.s. projects)? After all, teachers are busy people and it would be far easier for them if they got to grade things over a period of time instead of all at once.</p>
<p>No teacher has to do you the favor of writing a recommendation. If a teacher is kind enough to agree to write the recommendation, then as long as they make the deadline, they've fulfilled their obligation. </p>
<p>"the teacher finished the rec letter AT LUNCH on the day the apps were due to guidance (about 5 days before the actual deadline, barely enough safety time"</p>
<p>THe teacher made the deadline, which is what counts. Meanwhile, the teacher's recc was in well before the actual deadline, probably something the teacher knew anyway.</p>
<p>I'm curious, foodisgood, how do you show appreciation when people write recommendations for you, and how soon do you show appreciatiion?</p>
<p>If I had had a student pester me every day for more than a week before a recc was due, I would have told the student to find another recommender. I would have felt very put upon by the student's sense of entitlement, rudeness and lack of appreciation for the fact that I had other things on my plate.</p>
<p>"My only worry is that both of my son's early action applications are in, everything received...accept the teacher reccomendations which my son first requested 5 weeks ago. The teachers may have forgotten that the deadline is November 1st."</p>
<p>My suggestion is that your son follow up with the teachers about 10 days before the deadline. He should remind them of the due date, let them know that his app is in, and he should ask them if they need anything more from him in order to get their reccs done. He can even politely ask if they need another copy of the recommendation form. This is what I've always had S do because things do get lost or messed up -- even by teachers. </p>
<p>The teachers have no reason to submit their reccs early. The deadline is Nov. 1, so they still have plenty of time to write the reccs. </p>
<p>Every time S has gotten a recc from the teacher, S asks weeks in advance, gives supporting info, let's them know the due date and the day by which he hopes they mail the recc, and the teachers end up writing the recc exactly on time to make the due date. We're just grateful that they're kind enough to take time out to do this.</p>
<p>I'd rather have a recommendation done just in time to make deadline by a teacher who is writing thoughtfully than a recc that is tossed off quickly, but is generic. Good reccs take longer to write than one would imagine.</p>
<p>If a teacher wants a period of time to grade papers/projects then he/she should just move the deadline up. Unfortuntely, a student cannot move the deadline for a college app. And I dont think you understand my point. I am not commenting on whether the teacher "made" the deadline or not. I am merely saying that it would be nice if us students got a little peace of mind that the letters are in at least a few days before the deadline (again, I am not saying weeks, just a few days). I am quite sure that the teacher who wrote my rec for Governor's school would have very well forgotten to write it if I didnt keep reminding her. Not that I'm bad or anything but she is absent minded in general (I needed her because she was my only science teacher for freshman and sophomore years). And I overexaggerated when I said pester. I just kindly reminded her each day until she did it. </p>
<p>I fully appreciate all efforts of my teachers to write recommendations. They are obviously doing this out of the goodness of their hearts but you must understand that it is very nervewracking to keep us waiting until the last minute. It is definitely possible that a teacher may forget to write the rec. What then? A teacher can take off points or not accept a late paper but a college will reject a late application. And somehow a college app seems a little more important than a high school paper.</p>
<p>I had no idea that starting this thread would strike a nerve. Northstar_mom, I thought you said a good reccomendation takes time to write. My son is looking at a November 1st deadline. If you figure mailing time of 3 to 5 days, my son's rec's should be in the mail no later than next Wednesday October 26th. That gives his teachers a week to write it, when they've had them for 7 weeks. One of the teachers is no longer teaching...but had my son for 3 years and the other is a foreign language teacher who doesn't get inundated with requests. Northstar, your posts lead me to believe that you might be one of those teachers who drags their feet and then pumps out the generic form letter 1 2 or 3.</p>
<p>No college will reject an application because a letter of rec comes in a bit late. This happens all the time. As long as your part of the application is on time, you're fine.</p>