<p>This week, I began asking for recommendations- my first interview is in early December. However, Lawrenceville has a specific recommendation form that needs to be filled out. Other schools that I am applying to do not require their own application form. Do I ask my teachers to fill out two different recommendations?</p>
<p>No need to be dramatic. This has been covered in other recent threads. It’s really not a big deal to ask teachers to fill out more than one recommendation form.</p>
<p>Thanks SevenDad,
I also ask them to make photocopies of the recommendation as well?</p>
<p>@sandol, why are photocopies needed? Usually, the teachers do NOT give the student a copy of what they write in the rec, and treat their evaluation of the student as confidential.</p>
<p>@ GMTplus7 </p>
<p>Wouldn’t photocopies be needed for the other schools that sandol1010 is applying to so that the teacher doesn’t have to fill out the same form multiple times? Or do schools require the originals.</p>
<p>The fact that students sign a waiver foregoing any right they may have to compel the school that they ultimately matriculate to from disclosing application recommendations as part of their academic records does not mean there is any obligation or duty of any kind on the part of the student or teacher from communicating this information directly between themselves.</p>
<p>The waiver is needed from the schools to ensure candor on the part of the teacher. A student can obtain that information if it is retained by the school that s/he matriculates to as part of their regular academic records on the student. The records would be disposed in the ordinary course of business by schools that the student does not attend, so the student cannot look to those schools as a source. Only the school that the student matriculates to…in which case, why would a student really be concerned about that?</p>
<p>Still, if a student asks the teacher/recommender to see the recommendation, the teacher is free to refuse. And, regardless of whether a student first asks, the teacher can share his or her recommendation with an applicant. In fact, the teacher can ask the student to review it for accuracy in advance of sending it to the schools. The waiver is not a promise to never learn what the teacher says.</p>
<p>As for what teachers can do, they can write out a recommendation on your school’s letterhead or on their own stationery or on plain old 20# inkjet paper, staple it to the recommendation forms for each school, and check off any boxes or questions on those forms. There is nothing that says that the written comments have to be typed onto the school’s specific form. It just has to be returned and the teacher’s submission needs to be responsive to what the schools seek from the teachers. If more than one form needs to be mailed in, you can let your recommenders know that you’re okay with them taking whatever steps they want to make it as easy and as uncomplicated as they want to make things as long as they’re responsive to the requested information. If I had to prepare multiple recommendation forms, I would very likely print out one narrative many times and sign each one, attach it to the various forms (also signed in the appropriate places if so required) and write “See Attached” on the form. Teachers aren’t idiots and they’ll figure out how to economize their effort if it’s allowed, so I wouldn’t worry so much about them. They’ll figure it out. But if you want to sleep easier at night, you can just let them know that you’d be happy for them to do some economizing of effort.</p>