How Student’s Request a Letter of Recommendation

At some point in your student’s life, you are going to have to ask for a letter of recommendation specially during the high school. A recommendation letter comes in handy when it comes to get admission in your desired college or get hired for a dream job.

College admission, internship, job, scholarship, etc are some of the areas where you need to include a letter of recommendation with your application. These letters are typically written by teachers, mentors, or by people who can vouch for your qualification and character.

Asking for a letter of recommendation is a huge task specially for introverts who finds it awkward or embarrassing to approach a teacher for help. Knowing the right way to ask for a recommendation letter can save you from embarrassment. In this post, we have shared a step by step process of how to ask for a letter of recommendation.

Purpose of using letters of recommendation

Through recommendation letter, colleges and employers get to know about the applicant beyond their resume. A letter of recommendation gives an overall picture of who applicant is, his or her character, and qualifications, etc.

Recommendation letters are a part of college application, job application, internship, scholarships, etc. When you are applying for an undergraduate program then you may need to have 1 to 3 reference letters in order to strengthen your admission application.

Admission committees often look for more insights than they get from student’s application, this is why they accept reference letters from teachers and coaches in order to have a better understanding of applicant’s character and qualifications.

Having one or two reference letters is always beneficial as it could give you an edge over other applicants. A well written recommendation letter from a person who holds authority can strengthen your application and may even divert decision in your favour.

How to Ask for a Letter of Recommendation

Now the question comes, “how to ask for a recommendation letter”. Many students feel awkward or shy to ask for a reference letter. Here is a step by step process for all students to confidently ask for a recommendation letter,

Step 1: Choose the Correct Person to Ask

The first step is to choose the correct person who you should ask to write a reference letter for you.

While choosing the correct person, make sure to understand the requirement of the college or program you’re applying to.

Once you know the requirements then you need to identify the teacher who taught you and knows you well enough to write a reference letter for you.

What to do if No One knows me well?

If you feel like no teacher knows you well enough then you may still go ahead and ask for a reference letter.

To your surprise, your teacher may knows you well than you think they do. Anyways, a recommendation letters does not necessarily to be in depth.

Schedule a small meeting with your teacher, explain them what are you applying for? what are your goals?, and why you are a good fit?, etc. Having a short conversion with teacher will help them to write better about you.

Step 2: Always Ask in Person

Once you have identified the right teacher then go ahead and ask in person.

Asking in person is always better. Walking up to a teacher and asking for a letter is the most challenging task specially for introverts. But remember, this is a part of the process and most of the teachers wants to help you.

If possible then have a small conversation with teacher and let them know what you’re applying for? what are your goals? what makes you a good fit?, etc.

You need to find a time when a teacher is free and alone, do not rush to ask specially when a teacher is busy. Be respectful of your teacher’s time.

Your request should be polite and respectful. If a teacher say No, then accept it gracefully and reach out the next teacher.

If a teacher says Yes then let them know you’ll follow up with an email with all the details. And be Thankful.

Step 3: Time to Follow Up

Once a teacher agreed to write a reference letter, you’ll need to follow up with a written statement via email.

Start an Email by thanking teacher for agreeing to write a letter of recommendation for you.

And then provide the information that a teacher must know before writing a reference letter such as,

• what are you applying for (college admission, internship, scholarship, job, etc)
• include list of your accomplishment
• mention any specific details which must be included
• mention date when the recommendation is due

You can provide all important information that a teacher must include in a reference letter.

Step 4: Write a Thank you Note

Once your application is complete and you have received a good reference letter from teacher then make sure to write a thank you note or letter for them.

Let them know about the status of your application i.e. approved, rejected, in process, etc.

Everyone like to acknowledged and teachers are no exception. As a student you must acknowledge a teacher and thank them for writing a reference letter for you.

Final Words

Every student must learn and master the skill of asking for a recommendation letter. In your student’s life you may need to ask for multiple reference letter from different teachers, so educate yourself about recommendation letter and learn how to request them.

Getting a recommendation letter from a teacher is one of the best ways to strengthen your application. So never hesitate to ask for a reference letter. Most of the teachers are helpful and they will be ready to write a letter for you, so approach them in a polite and respectful manner.