<p>My favorite teacher that I had last year for Bio AP, and again this year for Bio HL was going to write me a letter of recommendation. I was at the top of the class throughout the whole year in her class, won an award in her class, and have had many talks with her after class about biology, school, and life in general. However, in this past week she stopped coming to school for reasons personal to her and is not writing any recommendation letters right now either. I am applying ed while selecting biology as my major. Since I cannot get a letter from her now, I also have my Physics AP teacher from last year whose class I excelled in. He is already writing me a letter or recommendation, but it isn't as strong as one the Bio teacher could have written. Would it be pointless to address this in the additional information section of the common app and explain the circumstances, or would it be smart to make mention why one of my letters of rec. is not as strong as it could be? Thank you in advance for advice.</p>
<p>Pointless to bring this up. “I could have gotten a better letter but the teacher wasn’t available” sounds like an excuse. If it makes you feel any better, it is rare for a teacher’s letter to make a significant difference to the admission decision: That letter would not only have to rave - it would also have to say things like ‘the best student of my career’ or ‘is on the verge of curing cancer.’ Otherwise, it’s just a way for them to verify that you are indeed the kind of student that teachers enjoy teaching and will contribute to the classroom environment.</p>