The time of asking teachers for recs is fast approaching. As such, I have a couple questions about the process.
HI there,
The best way to ask a teacher for a recommendation is to see them in-person and respectfully ask for a rec letter. It’s that simple! It’s always suggested that you ask for a rec letter early, like even before summer vacation so they have more time to think about it.
As for requirements, most colleges that I applied to required one math/science and one humanities teacher. You would have to look at their website. Also, make sure that the teachers you ask know you well, and have a positive image of you. It’s very beneficial for teachers to write rec letters that highlight your extracurricular interests and your passion. So if you are involved in a club or are an officer, and also have that teacher who is your sponsor in a class, and that teacher also seems to like you, then that would be a great rec letter. Try to avoid teachers that don’t particularly have a special interest in you, as their recs will likely be bland and average.
Hope this helps!
Thank you so much!
every student asking for recs should ask the teacher(s) whether they can write a positive letter for you. This is always appropriate, phrased politely of course. For example, “Am I a student you would write a strong letter of reccomendation for, or do you suggest I ask someone else?” Don’t argue or question why if the answer is ask someone else, simply to thank the teacher for their honest answer. While it can be uncomfortable for a student to ask a direct question like this to a teacher I would never assume a teacher will write a positive rec.
In “The Gatekeepers”,in which a NY Times reporter followed the admissions committee at Wesleyan for a year, is a real-world example of a bad rec. Obviously when the student asked for a rec she assumed it would be positive, but here is what she got:
This could have been avoided if the teacher had been asked if they would write a strong rec. The student did not get in.