<p>I requested 3 teacher recs (English, History, Math), but most of the colleges I'm applying to only require two. Because I'm not allowed to read them due to legal stuff, I had my guidance counselor read through them and select the 2 that were the best. However, he selected my English teacher's rec and my History teacher's rec. My question is this, should I have him replace one of those with my math teacher's rec, even if it's less favorable, or should I just stick with the English and History recs? I know a recommendation from a math teacher is pretty important, but the math teacher at my school writes very general stuff for each student. On the other hand, I know my english and history teachers extremely well, and they most likely have a lot more to say about me that would add to my application.</p>
<p>It’s more important to get a letter of rec from someone who really knows you. I would go for H.</p>
<p>But would it be really bad to not have a math teacher rec? I’ll add that I’m applying to engineering schools, if that makes a difference</p>
<p>If your Math teacher will write almost the same letter of rec for a friend of yours there’s no point then. You should stand out from a very large pool of applicants, so having a good letter of rec is of great importance. The main gist of every letter is to show what your qualities really are.</p>
<p>And if you’re applying to engineering schools, your grades can say a lot about your knowledge. Don’t worry about it.</p>
<p>sorry to partially disagree. i evaluate applications and it raises a red flag when someone aspiring to go into science has no science or math teachers writing the letters. This causes me to dig a little deeper into the application to look for signs of weakness in that area. If your are equally strong in math/science, I’d probably attribute it to what the other responder wrote. But even here, I have to ask, why didn’t they get to know these teachers better. Unfortunately, you are caught between a rock and semi-hard place. </p>
<p>Your GC violated his/her colleague’s trust. Such behavior is unprofessional. Now, if he/she chose to send two of the three letters for you and did not reveal whose was sent, that’s acceptable.</p>
<p>If there is a preference in recommendation teacher, it should be mentioned cleared on the admission website or documents. You cannot blame the student on that.</p>
<p>luvthej, oddly enough, it’s actually the opposite for me. Math is one of my strongest subjects, I’ve taken courses two years above my grade level since freshman year, 800 on math 2, 5 on the BC calc exam, AIME qualifier, VP of math club, etc. it just seems that I’ve made more of an impression on my English and history teachers because they’re subjects I have to truly work at in order to excel</p>
<p>Being so strong in math/sciences as you’ve indicated would lead me to conclude that there were other reasons for you to ask letters from non-science teachers. A strong letter from the faculty mentor of the math club would be best, but if that can’t happen, so be it.</p>