Peer Rec How-Tos

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>hey guys,
I've been asked to write a peer rec for one of my best friends -- a great kid. Anyway, I was just wondering about how to handle some of the delicate questions on the form. </p>

<p>When they say they want anecdotes -- do they mean a whole story about the one time you fought off the lockness monster with your bare hands (and what if you don't have anything that cool?) -- or will stuff like, "he's the kind of kid you can do anything with, for example...[stuff you do together]" work? Basically, what if you don't have any specific stories?</p>

<p>Also, what about length? I'm not sure I can write that much, because its essentially a few paragrpahs of praises and "admit this kid, for heavens sake!!" kinda stuff.</p>

<p>On that note, should I have any negative attributes? On the form, they say "Do you have any reservations about his/her application to Dartmouth? We welcome all comments you feel are relevant. " -- but does that mean if all you write is sweet, fluffy stuff they'll throw it out, thinking this person is just trying to be a good friend?</p>

<p>Attatched below is what I have so far. By all means, don't spend you're day reading this stuff!! If you've got some awesome advice, I'd love to hear it - but I don't wanna give you homework... like some college whose name starts with a D.... and ends with artmouth...</p>

<pre><code>I see Dan as one of the friends I’ve known since I was born, even though we’ve only been acquainted for less than 7 short years. In sixth grade, we met in our first year at Friends’ Central, discovering we’d lived for several years only two blocks apart. That year I made a lasting friend– the kind of guy you can talk to for hours about anything, from a vast, expansive discussion about life, to a detailed examination of what makes a pizza great.

I feel like all you need is one connection with DPS (the now ubiquitous nickname I gave him in middle school) and your friendship will be off and running. And with him, it’s not that hard to find some common ground. He’s one of the most multi-talented people I know, from his Arabic aptitude, to his talent on the varsity soccer team. Because of that, with just about anything I want to do, it’s more fun when he comes along. We’ve spent days skiing and playing tennis, where we can trade tricks or shots, but we’ve also tackled the academic. I remember weekends where he’s taken time to explain how to integrate an inverse trigonometric function.

In short, Danny would be a fantastic addition to any college. In or out of classes, in clubs or on the field, he is always a great addition and a productive leader. For these reasons, and for the sake of Darthmouth College as a whole, I unreservedly recommend the admission of Danny Paul-Schultz.
</code></pre>

<p>In short: Specific anecdotes? Length? Need for "con"s?</p>

<p>Thanks so much!</p>

2

<p>I think you should definitely go for a specific, recent anecdote. With the peer rec, they want to see another side of the applicant that teachers, counselors, etc. don't see. Maybe an interesting event that happened when you two were hanging out, or if you two had ever volunteered together and there's an interesting twist to that. Blanket statements about talents will only go so far, as the most powerful recs utilize the "show, not tell" concept (just like essays).</p>

3

<p>good to know, thanks :)</p>

4

<p>Sorry I can't be of more help, but you misspelled Dartmouth.</p>

5

<p>one outta two aint bad --</p>

<p>thanks</p>

6

<p>i wrote one for my best friend, too, and found it was harder than i thought. basically, what i ended up doing was go through everything we did togehter (activity wise) when it asked for negative comments, i sort of made a negative into a positive (i.e. her enthusiasm and commitment might wear out the faint of heart...but if it's dedication you need, she's the one to ask). i included a few mini anecdotes, like events and activites she's worked hard at, but not really full stories. also, i asked a bunch of other peopel to how they felt about her, and kind of worked it in. i had a few teachers read it, and they all loved it. i was sure not to make it seem adult...i figured if they wanted an adult to write a rec, they would ask for it. i thought it was a lot of fun...mine was about two pages, but i have no idea if that's good or not. i just wanted to do everything i could for her. sorry that probably didn't really help, but if you have any other questions, i've done three so far!</p>

7

<p>i also did a peer recommendation for dartmouth. if you would like to read it i can share it with you, just private message me.</p>