<p>I have been asked by one of my son's friends to write a letter of recommendation for a scholarship. While I have written many letters of recommendations over the years, I have never written one for a general scholarship. Can anyone give me suggestions of things to consider and things to avoid. It's for a very nice kid and I would love to help her.</p>
<p>Talk about her personal qualities, and those attributes that set her apart from other girls her age [ maturity, wisdom, intelligence, perseverance, her ability to overcome obstacles etc, etc]
And give examples of these attributes-they will help those reading the recommendation letter to get to know her as a person, not just a name on a piece of paper.</p>
<p>Here’s a list of suggested topics from my Son’s general scholarship app: How long have you known the applicant and under what circumstances have you become familiar with the applicant’s academic abilities?
Please assess the applicant’s exceptional achievements and ability to contribute to the University’s learning environment.
Indicate the applicant’s potential for success, leadership skills and specific areas of interest.
Describe adverse circumstances the student has had to overcome to achieve success.
How would you rate the applicant’s motivation and initiative in pursuing academic and career goals?</p>
<p>I would also ask for the student’s resume and list of activities or an essay discussing their goals or “dream job”. Good luck</p>
<p>Thanks! These ideas really help. One last question - how long should the letter be? It seems hard to fit everything into just one page, but I was under the impression it should just be a page. Thanks!!!</p>
<p>I think the letter of recommendation my older son got from a professor he’d done some work for was over a page. He described the project they had worked on together in a fair amount of detail. Of course I swear the letterhead they use at the place he works at (Med School) takes up half a page!</p>