It is the beginning of the Spring term, about the time I am frequently asked to provide recommendations for academic fellowships, scholarships, or graduate school applications. Because these recommendations are important, I take writing them seriously. So I have a few rules and requirements that you should keep in mind before requesting that I do so.
1. Your recommendation will reflect your performance in my classes, your overall success in college, and my impressions of you. Students earning less than a 3.6 GPA in my courses and in college are generally not eligible for a recommendation. Mitigating circumstances do exist, so if you believe you may qualify, please talk with me.
2. I do not provide written recommendations for non-academic internships or job applications. These lay outside the field of my expertise, and you are better advised getting someone with the requisite qualifications to write for you. This includes summer jobs in the private, public and non-profit sectors.
For example, if you will be working in a law firm, city hall, a lab, or in the field, and you will not be producing an written academic paper (or its equivalent) from the experience, then I am probably not the best recommender for you. Someone else with closer ties to that world will be a better source of information, advice and contacts in this regard.
That said, I am happy to provide such venues with verbal recommendations. So with my prior permission, you are welcome to pass on my contact information to potential employers.
3. Your first step is to contact me by email to see if I would be interested in writing you a recommendation. You must contact me at least two weeks before the deadline for which a recommendation is due.
4. Assuming I do, your next step is to provide me with a complete package of information regarding your application. You must do this before I write the recommendation.
This package should include a pdf of your unofficial transcript, a pdf of your letter of application, and any other material you believe I should know about. Send this package to me as a set of attachments to one email.
Please do not send me a link to a website where you believe the information is found. Instead, extract and organize all the relevant information and place it in the body of your email. Such information includes the fellowship or scholarship title you are applying for, contact information, and description of the opportunity.
5. Note that I always write blind recommendations. This ensures the recommendation is taken seriously. You must therefore provide me with the name, title, affiliation and address of the person(s) I am writing to. Include this information in the email you send with your attachments.
6. All recommendations are sent via email, not post. Please make sure you include the correct destination email.
Cheers!
