How to Write a Graduate School Letter of Recommendation?
Writing a letter of recommendation for graduate school needs preparation and requires the recommender to follow some rules of crafting this document. Before drafting the letter, determine whether you’re the correct person to do it.
Moreover, ensure you know the aspirant well since you are putting your reputation or approval rating on the line. An excellent recommendation letter comes from someone who recognizes the applicant properly. It needs to be someone who has seen some of the accomplishments of the contender and who believes in their abilities.
When composing the recommendation piece, you should as well understand what the person is pursuing. There is also the issue of using the correct recommendation letter format for graduate school. Some formatting instructions might be included in the requirements and should be followed strictly.
As a way of guiding you to what is expected of your final draft, we have created a grad school letter of recommendation example.
Structure of a Grad School Letter of Recommendation?
The recommendation write-up has a structure that needs to be followed when writing to ensure neatness and guarantee that the reader is able to navigate easily.
Regarding structuring, one of the key things that come to mind is whether a recommendation letter letterhead is a requirement. While it might not be clearly stated, it is better to print the write-up on letterhead when possible. They provide a good presentation. The structure of an endorsement letter is made up of three main parts:
- Introduction
- Body of the letter
- Conclusion section
In the introduction of a recommendation letter for graduate school, start by making it clear that you’re recommending the particular individual. Then identify yourself, as the recommender and elucidate how you recognize the contender.
In the body segment, go into detail, providing examples that show why the aspirant is a good fit for the institution. Specify any achievements of the aspirant, their character, and any other info that would make them appear suitable for the program.
The conclusion for grad school LOR only requires a few sentences, where the recommender echoes the main points in the rest of the letter to support why the contender should be selected.
If you want to master the letter of recommendation format for graduate school, and how each segment should be, our LOR examples will be helpful. The samples have been written articulately with our experts who have much experience with these documents.
How Long Should a Grad School Recommendation Letter Be?
The required length of a grad school recommendation letter is usually between 300 and 500 words or even just a page long. This way, it will be easier for the admissions committee to go through recommendations from various students. This means one has to be very concise when writing. Outline the letter and highlight all the main points you will include before you start your initial draft.
What to Include In a Graduate Recommendation Letter?
When writing a recommendation letter for grad school, the aim is to make it serve its purpose. Thus some critical info shouldn’t miss in it. Here are the details that comprise a strong letter of recommendation for graduate school:
- Nature of your association with the aspirant – indicate who you are to the contestant, and the duration you’ve known them.
- Your title and status – This emphasizes why the admission personnel should take your opinions seriously.
- Character traits and accomplishments that you’ve observed concerning the person. Give good examples.
- Why you feel the contender is qualified for the program. This can be in the form of discussing the student’s values, character, interests, and abilities that contribute to the case.
Most Common Types of a Grad School Recommendation Letters
There exist different applications where a letter of endorsement is required to swing the odds in a student’s favor.
An academic letter of recommendation for graduate school is a common sight for students with their sights set on grad school. In this instance, the person could prefer a lecturer in college to write one on their behalf since they are familiar with their academic performance and traits in class.
In most cases, you’ll find that the referees who are supposed to craft a letter of recommendation for graduate college admission are busy individuals, and therefore, it might be a challenge for them to draft an endorsement letter. If so, an individual can request to draft the document by themselves and then forward it to the recommender to review and sign it. In such circumstances, the person will include all the right information and also save time.
For those aspiring to be future teachers, there is a letter of recommendation for education graduate school that has to be crafted by a person who recognizes the aspirant well. The alternative is finding a professor or another relevant figure and providing them with all the essential info they require about you. It could be a CV, a list of achievements, GPA, and lists of activities that you participate in, for example, volunteer work and extra-curricular activities.
For those eyeing a particular fellowship, a glowing recommendation letter for fellowship could go a long way in aiding them to land the chance. The referee has to include their knowledge of the student specifically and also and how they are involved in the student’s life. They also need to describe how the individual is the embodiment of what the fellowship is seeking in applicants.
As a professor, one may be requested to compose a law school recommendation letter for a tutee who desires to undertake law studies in a certain institution. In this matter, as the referee, make certain you are ready to deliver a glowing endorsement. If you don’t particularly believe in the student’s capabilities or you aren’t familiar with their habits and traits, it would be prudent to decline the request instead of delivering a piece that might hurt their chances. This applies to all referees.
Even for those pursuing their master’s degrees, there’s a letter of recommendation for masters program that needs to come directly from a tutee’s professor or even their boss. In this case, they don’t even want the student to see the letter written by their professor.
Hence, selecting the right person for the task is essential, someone who can genuinely vouch for the student. The referee needs to be provided with all the relevant information related to the individual and the program. Bias is easily detectable in these, and if one appears to praise the aspirant too much, the credibility of the document might be put into question.
For those interested in the field of nursing, a letter of recommendation for nursing graduate school will be a tool that propels them to achieve their dream career. It’s better if it comes from an individual you’ve worked with who understands you properly. It could be your former boss or colleague.
For those pursuing their Ph.D. education, a good Recommendation Letter For Ph.D. admission will work in a student’s favor in convincing the admission heads to grant you the opportunity to further their studies.
There also exists a recommendation letter for scholarship. The document aims to show that the individual deserves a certain scholarship. It requires the referee to know the student very well and also to believe in the student in question.
For students with sights set on joining a certain college, a recommendation letter for undergraduate student should be part of a student’s application to back their claim for a position at the institution.
Even students who intend to join university will be better off with a letter of recommendation for university, showing the reasons they deserve entrance into the institution.
Here Are Some FAQ About LOR for Grad School
There are some frequent questions that people who are required to submit letters of recommendation have concerning these documents. Therefore, we have answered some of the most common ones that a majority inquire, for example, who should a student approach to craft them a recommendation letter? How long is a letter of recommendation? Which we answered earlier and even whether a student can use the same LOR for different college applications.
Who Should Write a Letter of Recommendation for Grad School?
“Can I obtain a letter of recommendation from mentor?” Yes. You can request your mentor for a reference letter. What students need to ensure when asking people to compose their reference letters is that these people know them well. For example, a supervisor whom you’ve worked with for some years is an appropriate individual to write a reference piece since they recognize you.
As well, an employer you have worked for a significant period is able to craft an excellent reference write-up. As long as you worked well without issues, they’re a valid choice.
A coworker is also a right choice to craft your endorsement piece. Nonetheless, in this instance, try to obtain a reference from a higher rank individual attached to the organization. A good example is having one from an individual you work with and also one from the manager since you can have up to 3 recommendations.
Normally, people trust a commendation from a professor, academic advisor, or any person who holds a higher position than you and recognizes your attainments. However, some acquaintances, such as personal friends, can craft a good commendation write-up since they know much about your positive traits and attitudes. You could choose a close family friend, fellow volunteer, or a former classmate.
Can I Use the Same Letter of Recommendation for Different Colleges?
Yes. But it depends. It could be hectic to craft a reference write-up for each of the different colleges that a person might want to join. It is not even practical since most students have several choices in mind when applying to learn institutes.
So it would be easier if a letter of recommendation for college program does not limit the aspirant to some choices. So, a student can provide a list of the colleges they’re applying to the referee so that they will use the information from that list to produce a commendation letter that does not limit the student to a certain institute.
Regarding recommendation forms, if you are the aspirant, it would be safe to give the teacher all the different forms from the different colleges so they can fill them out accordingly.
Let’s Summarize
So, as you have probably realized, the endorsement letter is a big deal for an aspirant who wishes to join a graduate school. Thus it needs to be taken very seriously. We assist with commendation letters in terms of writing help as well as formatting and editing assistance.
We are a professional service that aims to help eliminate the struggle of writing that recommendation letter for graduate school and ensure that the contender gets a personalized recommendation that complements their application well. So entrust our prolific writers with that recommendation letter and be assured of the best quality work to be delivered in a timely fashion.