<p>I know Phillips academy asks for English and math recommendation letter.. Is it bad to send in more than 2? Please answer! :)</p>
<p>Anybody???</p>
<p>Most schools welcome a “Special Interest” recommendation - from a coach, or a music or art teacher - but it’s best to ask the admissions office.</p>
<p>Are you asking because you’re worried that you already sent in more than two recs? Or are you asking because you’re considering having more recs sent in?</p>
<p>I thought Andover had a pretty firm “final” deadline for materials of Feb. 1. It’s one thing for recommendations to be late if a teacher hasn’t sent them, but another thing entirely if they’re late because you haven’t even asked for them yet.</p>
<p>Here’s my advice: Provide the English and Math reccos only UNLESS your third is something totally outstanding or from a teacher/coach/mentor who knows/likes you MUCH better than the E&M teachers.</p>
<p>For our daughter last year, we sent in a supplemental recco where not explicitly asked for in the case of one school. She was admitted. The recco was from a science teacher.</p>
<p>Mountainhiker - thank you! I am in 7th grade now, I’m just getting prepared… And I was going to have my national junior honor society director write one, or should I have the teacher thermite me into njhs write one?</p>
<p>Oops, I meant to say *that got</p>
<p>It depends- choose the person who knows you better and likes you more. It’s just a simple decision of presenting the best you to the admissions office.</p>
<p>livieliz - </p>
<p>First, slow down and take a breath. And, second, please don’t post your requests as “urgent” when you’re not applying for another 11 months!</p>
<p>Now, about recommendations, one extra personal or special interest recommendation is fine. Any more than that is too many, at least for Andover - they don’t appreciate being swamped in paperwork.</p>
<p>But, about your chances of getting in . . . your enthusiasm is commendable, but that doesn’t change the fact that Andover is ridiculously hard to get into. By “ridiculously hard,” what I mean is that for each qualified candidate who’s admitted, there are at least two more equally qualified candidates who are turned away. And, no, there’s nothing wrong with the candidates who are turned away - they’re amazing kids. It’s just that there’s not enough space for all the qualified candidates who apply. So, no matter how qualified you are, that’s no guarantee you’ll be admitted.</p>
<p>I am not trying to discourage you. What I am hoping to do, though, is encourage you to spend the next several months not only studying for the SSAT, but also looking around to see what other schools you might be interested in applying to. I don’t know why you’ve picked Andover, but there are lots of other schools and, if you look, you may find some that you like just as much as Andover.</p>
<p>There are some really amazing schools out there - including quite a few with activities you’ll never find at Andover (horseback riding, zoo management, scuba diving . . . to name a few) . . . so look around and see what you can find!</p>