<p>I read on the college websites that the colleges want teachers who know you well and can give them an accurate snapshot of your character. </p>
<p>I am going into either Business or Economics, and my current BC Calculus teacher has only been teaching me for a few months, but my counselor insists that I should get a recommendation letter from her instead of my last year's math teacher or my AP Psychology teacher (who had taught me last year as well for AP Comp. Gov). </p>
<p>My counselor assures me that a letter of recommendation from the teacher of the highest level mathematics course I'm currently taking is essential if I'm applying to Business and Economics programs. </p>
<p>It's not that I don't think my current math teacher won't right me a good letter, she seems to have a good opinion of me and was more then willing when I asked her to, but I'm scared that the fact she has only known me for two months could hurt the effectiveness of the letter.</p>
<p>The question on their form about “How long have you known this applicant and in what context” would hurt you. A lot.</p>
<p>Colleges won’t understand why you would get someone who has only known you for two months as opposed to a teacher who has had at least a year to get to know you.</p>
<p>I say that as long as you have one math/science and one humanities recommendation, there is no need to get your BC teacher to give you one.</p>
<p>That’s why when you ask for recommendations you start with, “Mr./Mrs. X, do you feel that you know me well enough to give an accurate portrayal of how I am in your class as it relates to work ethics, talent, ability, collaborative skills, etc.?”</p>
<p>Then you can screen his/her answers to see if the recommendation’ll be strong or weak. Make sure your teachers elaborate instead of just saying “yes.” Merely saying yes without looking at you in the eye may not be a good sign. Note, MAY, not IS.</p>
<p>melin720, I didn’t exactly ask the question in such detail, but I did bring up the fact that “I know she has not taught me for very long” when I asked her to write my recommendation, to which she replied, “I’ll just talk to your teacher from last year and he will say all sorts of nice things about you”. She is the head of the mathematical department at my school and has a reputation for writing excellent recommendation letters. Again, I have full confidence that she would write me a strong, if not excellent, letter, my only worry is the amount of time she has taught me.</p>
<p>HYPhoper, thanks for bringing that question to my attention.</p>
<p>My counselor can be rather stubborn at times, what should I do if he absolutely insists that getting my Calculus teacher to write the letter is the best decision, and will most likely take offense if I act otherwise?</p>