The RTC held a workshop on writing letters of recommendation. The panel members provided these tips:

Mac Haas, College of Engineering:

• Ask students to provide information about what they’ve been up to recently, things they’ve done or made
• Ask students for updated resume
• Harder and more time-consuming if you have less to go on.
• Length: generally one page
• Explain your relationship to the student
• Look for things they’ve done that can help them stand out
• Be concise and forcefully expressive leaving an impression
• Want that application to stand out.
• Can use a template that’s not “fill in the blanks”—more blanks that not. “Goalposts to write toward”
• But there are reasons to break this guideline, especially if its needed to explain something about a student and their situation. This information works better in a recommendation letter than in the student’s own personal statement.
• One time-consuming thing is dealing with different websites and interfaces to upload letter

• Ask students for spreadsheet with timelines, deadlines, what they’re asking for etc.
• Use a templated questionnaire that students write in 3rd person. Students therefore use their own verbiage. This is one way to ensure that letters are unique
• Quantify student in the final paragraph (Top 10%, for example) Importance of qualitative assessment of student
• Alway show students letters so they can see what’s being said about them
• A good idea: getting students to describe their weaknesses and how they overcome these weakness
• Important to give students work to do—sending them a form to complete, for example

Jon Feaster, College of Communications & Creative Arts:

• Sees letters as collaborative, asking students “how does my letter fit into your argument?”

Kaitlin Mallouk, College of Engineering:

• Use a Google Form that students fill out and send back, in addition to providing the information that she needs to write the letter.
• Require the students to provide information and background
• Shared letter samples that were Blah, Good, & Best.

Tips from the discussion:

• Include information about letters of recommendation on your syllabus
• A shorter letter is weaker letter
• If you can not write a strong letter, suggest the student ask someone else who might be able to write a stronger letter. Make it clear that your letter is not going to help them
• Importance of diversity and including it in letters. The job of the letter writer to speak to this in collaboration with the student.
• For some students and some opportunities, it’s worth spending a lot of time writing a great letter.