Hi
I am hoping to apply to American colleges this year; I’m a student from the UK. I have for a number of years had a private tutor helping build my English grades, would it be appropriate for this tutor to write one of my letters of rec? He was previously a teacher at a top school but retired before starting to offer private tuition. If it is appropriate would he count as one of my Teacher Recs? Or would he have to be one of my ‘Other’ recs?
Cheers
No.
You paid him so biased.
@beerme Could he be one of my ‘Other’ recs?
@beerme I don’t really see the big deal though, I mean if I had gone to an independent fee-paying school then surely I would have been paying him anyway, just not directly?
Do as you wish.
My opinion won’t change your actions so go with your plans.
@beerme Clearly my actions aren’t set in stone, otherwise I would not have started this thread.
I really wouldn’t get a letter from him, as it looks bad as you are directly “paying him” to write your recommendation (I know you’re paying him to teach you, but there’s that indirect sense) which means he is biased towards you very heavily, which will look shady. If he really knows you well and you think it would be significant on your application, go ahead (it would be in the “Other” section) but…
@helpless2017 Thank you, that was so helpful
Apart from the oddness of getting a letter of rec from your paid employee, the other relevant issue is that you might think twice about advertising to admission committees that you need a private tutor. For private music lessons or a foreign language, OK, but a tutor for basic English skills (for someone living in the U.K) suggests that you might not be a top student. Or are you new to this language?
I would not recommend it, because you pay him directly for his services, which could create a conflict of interest.
When you enroll in a private school, you pay the administration. You do not have sole control over whether the teachers continue to work with you or not. That’s the difference between a teacher at a private school and a tutor. I wouldn’t bother with the rec since i assume it would be completely discounted in the way a letter from a parent would be.
OP has been in the UK for several years and done well on exams to date, so guessing that s/he is not brand new to English, but could be working to get to a higher standard? Would guess there is some application essay polishing underway as well, given that the OPs other posts emphasize a HYPS focus.