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COLLEGE COUNSELING WITH MARTIN WALSH

Letters of Recommendation, in Three Rules

By Martin Walsh, TIE Columnist
01-Apr-14


For too many teachers, writing recommendation letters for applicants to college is an unpleasant and time consuming process—even for the vast majority who are eager to help their applicants and have good things to say.
A brief survey of my faculty always produces the same result: teachers feel pressed for time, and struggle to find the right words and phrases. The stress related to letters of recommendation is sometimes exacerbated at international schools, which are often staffed by teachers from all corners of the world; many are unfamiliar with the important, if not defining, role that letters of recommendation play in the admissions process. Throw a rapid and constant turnover of faculty into the mix, and international school counselors have a very real crisis to manage each fall.
As an admissions counselor I reviewed thousands of teacher recommendations, and I have seen what works and what does not. And, as a former high school teacher with experience writing hundreds of letters of recommendation myself, I certainly understand the confusion and stress felt by many teachers as they sit down to write their letter of recommendation.
So, let us begin with three of the rules I share with my faculty each fall.
Rule One: the teacher’s letter is the spotlight, the counselor’s letter is the backlight.
In other words, the admissions officer is looking for different things from different letters. The counselor’s job is to provide a broad snapshot of the applicant’s high school career and, perhaps, even the applicant’s life. The teacher’s letter of recommendation should be far more specific, with examples of the applicant’s performance in—and impact on—the classroom.
For example, admissions officers need to know if the student elevates class discussion with unique insights or merely sits silently in the back of the class, a spectator to the learning process.
Additionally, the teacher’s recommendation should include multiple examples that clearly illustrate the intelligence of the applicant. It is not enough to let the reader know that applicant is “smart,” and assume that enough has been written. The teacher’s recommendation letter must be filled with factual support.
The letter offers a great opportunity to discuss research papers, performance on examinations, or passionate presentations. A recommendation that lacks examples will be of no use to an admissions officer as she or he prepares to present a candidate for review to the admission committee.
Rule Two: teachers must recognize that writing letters is part of the job, and prepare accordingly. On more than one occasion I have worked with faculty members who were less than enthusiastic about writing letters of recommendation. I never “assign” letters to teachers, nor do I set numeric goals for faculty. Rather, each August I meet with the teachers of our upperclassmen and provide the team with a wide variety of sample letters.
Moreover, all teachers are asked to keep work samples for two-school years. And finally, each teacher is encouraged to design a student questionnaire that must be filled out by the applicant requesting the letter of recommendation. The questionnaire should be designed to provide the recommender with the evidence needed to support any praise found in the letter.
Rule Three: teachers must be savvy, and the tone must be upbeat. The savviest recommenders—usually those with the deepest experience writing letters—will do more than provide credible enthusiasm. They will also understand each applicant’s particular challenge and do damage control to offset them.
If a student flies red flags such as low grades or a lack of participation, teachers must be encouraged to compensate for these weaknesses by citing offsetting evidence. For example, “Juan’s grades were not in the top third of my IB History class, but they did show a tremendous upward trend during the last half of his junior year.”
So yes, it is fair to discuss a student’s faults, but efforts must be made to give the letter some balance. If a teacher is not capable of writing something positive about the applicant, then they must not agree to advocate for her or him.
Finally, each year I hold workshops designed to train teachers about the higher education admissions process and the important role that letters play in the evaluation of an application. Moreover, I make certain that teachers and administrators are invited to any admissions fairs or college visits. Additionally, before each school year the college counseling office sponsors a workshop on effective letter of recommendation writing. The workshop always includes plenty of samples for review, as well as a case study in which teams of teachers must evaluate a set of five applicants with the goal of choosing one student for admission.
Overall there is no doubt that writing college recommendation letters is a spiritual exercise, and that it requires a tremendous amount of faith. Each letter represents an act of faith that the message in it will reach someone. But teachers need to understand that their words, and their message, will reach someone with the authority to change the life of a teen. Counselors must encourage teachers, and stress that a carefully crafted phrase in a letter can cause an admissions officer to recognize an applicant’s potential and ability to succeed.
As a former admissions officer who has read thousands of applications, I assure you that a teacher’s letter of recommendation is, more often than not, the very tipping point in the evaluation process.




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COLLEGE COUNSELING WITH MARTIN WALSH