<p>I was hoping if people could give me some thoughts or advice about my peer evaluation. My older brother goes to Dartmouth (and is doing really well there), and we are very good friends. We went to a small HS, and multiple opportunities to work together in clubs and varsity sports. Would you recommend me use my brother as my peer evaluation? Would that seem a little cheesy/ desperate? Dartmouth is the college of my dreams, and my brother is absolutely loving it. I get to visit him a lot and stay in his dorm. I REALLY don't wanna mess this up. So, do you think it is too risky to ask my brother?</p>
<p>I would love to here a response to this because I'm also struggling with the idea of who to ask for my peer evaluation. I really want to use my sister because she is more like a best friend/ teammate (we horseback ride competitively together) and we are in many clubs together. I know she could write it in a very "non-sisterly" way, but does it seem too desperate to use a sibling?</p>
<p>it may give the impression that you have no friends that you are close enough to to trust to write a good recommendation. don't you have a best friend who would do a good job on it? i had my best friend that i've known since the 6th grade write mine.</p>
<p>You could get the best of both worlds. Have your sibling do the recommendation but have your sibling talk with some of your friends and get quotes and ideas that he or she can use in the recommendation. Or vice versa. </p>
<p>This can be a very effective way of doing a recommendation. Some of the best GC recommendations are done this way, making generalizations that are each backed up by a quote from a coach, a teacher, or an extracurrricular activity source.</p>
<p>Faced with having "too many" recommendations or recommendationds from all over the place, some applicants don't send them but instead gather them together (or "sound bites" from them) and put them in the hands of the most effective writer, who then can write a really strong recommendation that gathers even more strength from clearly having the views of many others behind it. And the recommender comes off as REALLY knowing the applicant and his or her world.</p>
<p>Solves the dilemma of worrying that a sibling might seem too biased or that using a sibling makes it seem as though you have no friends. Instead, the sibling (who has known the applicant longer than the friends have) says that the applicant has friends and can remark about special qualities that characterize the applicant's friendships.</p>
<p>If you are good friends with your sibling, do it. I also second the idea of the sibling going and getting some opinions from your friends.</p>
<p>It is not unusual to have siblings write the peer recommendations (mrmogul, as you may already know there are quite a few siblings at Dartmouth and the the school seems to like siblings). </p>
<p>As with any of the peer recs I think that as long as your peer (sibling or not) can write objectively in a way that shows, not merely tells who you are using antecdotes, etc. it should be fine.</p>
<p>Cowtipper, my D is an only child so yes, she had a friend who she has known since 6th grade write her peer rec ;)</p>
<p>good luck</p>
<p>i would go with a friend.....they already will know about your
brother at dartmouth and that of course will help..so why not give them
another opinion from a more objective source</p>
<p>i had someone i barely talked to write my review.......I got in.</p>
<p>the peer evaluation specificaly states that the evaluator should use anecdotes to describe the applicant</p>
<p>awesome... great advice!</p>