Student Recommendation Procedures

Eligibility. I write recommendations for those who have taken a course with me and/or spent significant time with me. I should have knowledge of the person before recommending him or her.

Time frame. Only under very rare circumstances will I write a recommendation that is due in less than two weeks. It is best to ask me for the recommendation a month in advance. If this is your first time asking me to write you a recommendation, I must have at least two weeks to write it.

Waiver. Some applications ask that you sign a waiver saying that you have not and will not look at what I, the recommender, has written. It is up to you whether you sign the form, you are not obligated to do so, but if you do, you will need to give me a signed copy of that form (they often want it included with my letter). Please send it to my office by post.

Verbal recommendations.You must also ask me in advance about verbal recommendations; that is, whether I am willing to talk to the potential institution, professor, or employer over the phone or in person. To protect your privacy, I will never give information about you over the phone to someone whom you have not told me would be calling.

Recommendation Step-by-Step Process

Provide full information. If I agree to write the recommendation, please send me another email and in the body of the email, copy and paste the following list and provide all of the requested information, even if you think I know it:

• What is the exact title of the grant, fellowship, job, department, etc.?
• What is the address of the website that provides an explanation of the grant, fellowship, job, department, etc.? If there is no website, please provide a paragraph describing it.
• When is the deadline for the recommendation?
• Is the recommendation supposed to be in the form of a postal letter or entered onto some kind of print or online form?
• How should the recommendation be submitted: by email, on a website form, or by post?
• If by email, to which email address should it be sent?
• If by post, to which postal address should it be sent?
• What is the name of the person to whom the recommendation should be addressed, along with his or her title?
• What is the postal address of that person?
• What is your full official name?
• What course(s) of mine did you take?
• What is the best email at which to contact you?
• What makes you particularly suited for this grant, fellowship, job, etc.?
• What about you do you want me to make sure to mention?

Some other information that you may want to provide (depending on how important the application is, how long it has been since I taught you, or how detailed you want me to be):

• Who else is writing you a recommendation? (For instance, it helps if I know that I am the only professor writing on your behalf, that the others are former employers.)
• What kind of applicant do you think they are looking for?
• Why do you want this particular grant, fellowship, job, etc.?
• What are your main strengths and weaknesses?
• What are you career goals?
• Can you remember any relevant anecdotes that I know about you?
• What experiences outside of the classroom have we had together?
• What were the titles of some of your best projects/papers?

Attach your application. Attach to the email your own application letter or essay and, if they asked for it, your resume.

Sending. Once I am done, I will submit the recommendation online or print out the letter, sign it, and send it by post through my departmental office. I do not give recommendations to applicants to send.