<p>Which of these colleges absolutely HATE supplemental letters from research mentors explaining the applicant's work and tell something about him which may not be eveident from the normal recommendations etc etc :-</p>
<p>Princeton
Dartmouth
Yale
Caltech
Duke
Tufts
Lafayette
Columbia
Brown
Rice
Oberlin
Swarthmore
Amherst
Dickinson</p>
<p>Thanks!!</p>
<p>if the letter is really necessary, then I don't think any of the colleges on your list will mind. its usually only public schools that set caps on recs, or ask for none at all.</p>
<p>If the letter truly adds a new perspective, pretty much all schools will be okay with it (just don't send more than one and don't send other supplemental materials).</p>
<p>Its like this:</p>
<p>I have major scientific research outside school, most of which is independent. Now, the nice prof who reviewed my work wants to write a letter appraising my work. He has already written the letter, made copies and put them in 15 sealed envelopes and given 'em to me. My principal wants to include this letter in the package sent from school citing a reference to it in her recommendation. That letter from the prof really says a lot about me, goes into how I think and work and also reviews the two most important projects of mine. So in short it's pretty darn important. </p>
<p>The second one is from the Secretary of an NGO alongside whom I carried my work in the villages here in India. It's not much of a character study as it is a work-study as in what work I have done(which is really, really significant) and that letter is short, like 8 lines. And even that's arrived in sealed envelopes and my Principal has agreed to do the same with this letter too.</p>
<p>What do I do?</p>
<p>send the 1st one, and don't send the second, because you probably already touched on it in your actually app, and its not very insightful if its only 8 lines.</p>
<p>OK. So I just mention what work I did in my app? I was thinking maybe a stamped and singed document would have larger gravity that what I would mention. Though the letter is short and precise it does say the concepts like Micro-credit and problem solving techniques I introduced int the village systems in the Eastern regions of India. I am kind of confused ... does it have the same effect if I just mention it in my app? Or do I let my Principal mention it exclusively in her recommendation?</p>