Deadly Sins of Recommendation Writing

When evaluating an application, officers will certainly start by assessing the student’s numeric qualifications. A student’s grades, SAT scores and course rigor help define the applicant’s intellectual skills. Once the numeric evaluation is complete, a reader will quickly turn to the teacher’s recommendation. Sadly, many international school teachers struggle with the process of writing letters of recommendation.

For many this may stem from the fact that they were not educated in, nor are they familiar with, the holistic evaluation process employed by most universities in the United States. The issue is never the writing, rather one of content. At times teachers are just not clear on the purpose of the letter, nor do they understand the rules and expectations attached to the recommendation.

Let us open then by discussing the purpose of the teacher recommendation letter. Specifically, the teacher’s recommendation letter should be an honest appraisal of a student’s academic performance. The key words: “academic performance.” The teacher’s recommendation should focus entirely upon what the student has done in the classroom. When I hold workshops for teachers, I stress that their letter serves as a “spotlight,” zeroing in on classroom achievement. Other issues or factors should be saved for the counselor’s letter of recommendation.

More than just serving as a spotlight on the student’s abilities and achievements, a great letter includes specific examples of vitality, provides valuable context to the grade on the report card, and includes comments on the unique and important personal qualities of the student.

I have been holding writing workshops for several years now, and I have discovered that it is often helpful to point out what a recommendation should NOT be. Or, as I like to call these mistakes, The Deadly Sins of Recommendation Writing.

The first and most egregious of all is the sin of negativity. Quite simply, the role of the letter is to recommend, not evaluate! Teachers must be reminded that their letter is quite different from a report card comment that goes home to parents. Rather, a good letter advocates in a positive fashion. And, if the teacher must take the time to address a student’s weakness, the letter should also take the time to show growth and a willingness to change.

Next up is the sin of wandering. Too many teacher letters include information that has nothing to do with the academic qualifications of the applicant. Teachers must remember that they are the experts, the only experts, who can communicate information to the admissions officer regarding a student’s skills in the classroom.

“So,” many teachers ask me, “what exactly should my letter of recommendation cover?” In my opinion, a good letter will address a student’s creativity, curiosity, initiative, growth, independence of mind, interpersonal skills and potential. Of course, strong and clear supporting evidence must be used in the letter. Not only does this give validity to the teacher’s assertions but it also provides the admission officer with the information needed to effectively advocate in committee.

Finally, letters of recommendation should emphasize an applicant’s genuine, not presumed, qualifications. While the fact that a student is nice, hard working, clean and honest is wonderful, these qualities will not push an applicant into the “admit” pile. Any selective university will assume that a student can bring these traits to campus.

No, a good reader will want much more than that. Finally, if the teacher has nothing interesting and positive to say about the student, there is nothing wrong with encouraging the applicant to look elsewhere for a letter.

Next up, some teachers are guilty of the sin of boredom. By that I mean they spend too much time writing about the content of their course or their experience as a teacher. Anything more than one or two sentences on this topic should be plenty.

Finally, teachers must avoid cutting and pasting huge paragraphs on to the end (or beginning) of each letter. Remember, admissions offices are broken into geographic territories. Meaning, odds are the same reader will review each of your letters of recommendation. Lots of repetition will do little to capture and hold the attention of your reader.

Next, there is the sin of controversy. My advice to all teachers: choose your adjectives wisely. Let us look at two real examples. One teacher wrote, “Martin never hesitates to question authority.” Now if I were an admission officer that sentence would certainly be cause for concern. Will this student cause problems in the classroom, in the dorms and learning communities? The next teacher wrote: “Martin is an independent learner who is not afraid to bring up tough issues as he probes for answers. He questions everything—even his teachers!”

Clearly the second teacher paints a picture that is a bit more complete and, quite frankly, provides a clearer picture of the personality of the applicant. Is this student a shrinking violet? Clearly the answer is no. But the second letter eases the reader’s concerns about the applicant’s potential negative impact on campus.

Furthermore, teachers must be concerned about providing the reader with too much information. Specifically, it is not the teacher’s job to reveal sensitive information to the admissions officer. The focus of the letter should not be on the family or on anything personal.

What the admissions office wants to know from you is how the student functions academically. With that information, personal difficulties or high school growing pains merely create a sad case, not a compelling one.

Finally, if you teach at a small school, you can avoid filling out the check boxes commonly found on the common application form. More often than not the check marks fail to correspond to the content of the letter, creating more confusion than help for the admissions officer.

In the end, what are higher education institutions expecting from teachers? A 500-word letter that covers academic qualifications, with examples, and provides context to the report card. Comments on the unique and important personal qualities of the student, based upon the observations and experiences of the teachers, are always useful.

From December 2012.

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