Reusing letters of recommendation for scholarships?

Parents Forum
1

<p>Not sure if I should ask this here or in the F. Aid forum but I'll try here first.</p>

<p>There are a couple of big scholarships at several selective universities that require letters of recommendation. My son emailed one school, WUSTL, and asked about using the letters from the Common App. for the scholarship. They said it would be ok but I'm wondering if they really meant it.</p>

<p>What do your kids do in these situations? Obviously, his recommenders would tailor the letter to reflect the specific scholarship but they wouldn't have to reinvent the wheel. I just feel kind of bad that my son keeps having to ask these same people for more recommendations; I mean, these people are busy. They seem to be fine with it but I still feel guilty. He could go with totally new people but his three from the Common App. plus his music supplement recommendations are all really strong, so it would be a real stretch to get others.</p>

<p>Just wondering what others do. I think he's got 3-5 more of these to go.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>Actually, once a teacher spends the time writing that first recommendation, he/she probably just boots it up on the computer and tweaks it for subsequent requests. What helps is if you ask for all the recommendations at once, so it’s not in dribs and drabs. Each recommendation request should be given with a note as to what the recommendation is for, what information about himself the student thinks is pertinent, as well as stamped and addressed envelopes or directions to the website for uploads.</p>

3

<p>Thanks, parentoftwo. I just know my son isn’t that on top of things. It would be simply too much for his shaky administrative skills to think ahead and ask for all the LORs at once. I will try to get with him in the next few days and go over the remaining apps that need LORs and then he can put out his requests next week or during the Thanksgiving weekend. Hopefully, we won’t miss any.</p>