I will be happy to write letters of recommendation for current and former students, advisees, research assistants, teaching apprentices, etc. Obviously, the level of enthusiasm will vary in direct proportion to your performance. If you are concerned about my level of enthusiasm for your candidacy, ask me. If it is in your interest to seek a letter from someone else, I will not be shy about sharing this information with you.
In order to request a letter, you should contact me via e-mail with your request. It is in your interest to ask me at least two weeks before such a letter is needed. I cannot guarantee that last-minute letters will be as finely crafted as those which are written under less time pressure.
Once we agree that I will write on your behalf, I will require the following:
– A note with the following information:
- purpose of letter (employment, grad school, law school, business school, internship, etc.).
- deadline.
- years during which I was your acadedmic advisor (don’t include time you were studying abroad).
- titles of research papers you write for my classes (ideally, I’d like to see a copy of any papers with my comments on them).
- any particular things you’d like me to mention in the letter (special abilities/activities, explanation of why your grades tanked sophomore year, etc.).
- your e-mail address, so I can let you know when the letter is done.
– A copy of your resume
– A copy of your (unofficial) transcript
– A list of the names and addresses of where the letters should be sent.
Job, internship, business school, and grad school letters are best kept on file at the Credential Service in the Career Resource Center. They will make as many copies of the letter as you would like and send them to potential employers/schools. You should arrange to set up a credential file with them and give me one of their pink “requests for letter of recommendation” forms.
Law school letters, I believe, are generally handled by the Law School Admissions Council, but you should check on this for yourself.
Other letters (summer study, study abroad, etc.) can be sent directly.