Recommendation letters

A good letter of recommendation takes time, thought, and information gathering. If you are thinking about asking me to write a letter for you, please initiate the conversation with me through email at least one month before your first deadline. If you ask me on less than a month's notice, your letter may necessarily be rushed and could be submitted late. 

There are four basic requirements I need to write a letter for you. 

1. I should know who you are. This is self-explanatory. When you request a letter initially, remind me of the course(s) you had with me, and what your experience was like. If you know me from outside a graded course, remind me about the context and what you remember about it. 

2. I should know why a letter from me is relevant to your goals. If you are pursuing a program or career in mathematics or a closely-related quantitative field, this does not need too much work. Otherwise I would need some additional convincing. For example, unless there is an exceptionally compelling reason, I would not be a suitable person to write you a recommendation letter for an MFA program, even if you were a top student in one of my courses. While MFA is probably a far-fetched example, if you are applying to medical school or law school, or a graduate program that is usually not considered a STEM field, you should explain why I am the right person to advocate for your candidacy. 

3. I need to have a good impression of your abilities. If you were in a graded class of mine, I can usually write a strong letter only if you got an A- or higher. Students who received a grade of B or B+ will need to make a compelling argument for why I should write a letter. Anyone with a grade below B in my class should seek another letter writer if your performance in a math class should have any bearing on the reason you want a letter. In any case, I will communicate with you in advance if I don't think I can provide a strong letter for you. 

4. I do not have a moral conflict with the program you are applying to. This one is slightly complicated. See the question "Why is Professor Weng not writing letters to some of the programs I am applying to?"

If you are uncertain about some of the requirements, you are welcome to have a conversation with me. 

Once I agree to write you a letter, the most important information I need includes:

• A signed copy of this release form. You can write "any" instead of listing all programs you are applying. 

• Your transcript (unofficial is fine). 

• Your most recent resume/cv. 

• Any personal/teaching/research statement you have written for the applications. 

• A Google sheet that contains the list of the programs you are applying to. For each application, include (1) the name of the program, (2) a brief description of the program (a link to the job/program/scholarship posting would be very helpful), (3) the application deadline, and (4) all relevant links/instructions to submitting a recommendation letter on your behalf. 

• If any of the programs involve paper applications (rarer nowadays), you should provide all paper forms along with stamped, self-addressed envelopes. 

• IMPORTANT: You must waive your right to examine my letters of recommendation. Many programs will not take a letter seriously as an honest assessment of the applicant if they know the student has access to it. I will not submit a letter if you do not waive this right. 

These materials should be received at least three weeks before your first deadline (Corollary: you should draft your application materials well in advance). In addition, if you have not addressed some of the following questions in our prior communication, please email me your answers. More detail is always better. 

• How long have I known you (in years and months) and in what relationships(s)? 

• For graded courses that you have taken with me, list specific course number(s), term(s), and grade(s) you earned. 

• At least three specific examples of interactions we have had and/or work you have done with me that might be useful to include in my letter. Each example should have a short description along with why it stands out to you. For example: Did you demonstrate mathematical growth and/or excellence? Did you overcome a specific challenge? Did you learn something exciting mathematically? If you are struggling to come up with these, come talk to me! 

• Who are your other letter writers? This helps me know what I should emphasize in my letter. Am I your only math letter writer? Am I the letter writer who's had you in a class most recently? Am I the letter writer who knows about your summer research or work in the department? 

• Is there anything in particular you would like me to address? Are there particular qualities you would prefer that I discuss? For example, you may want me to emphasize a TA experience you had with me because I am writing your only teaching letter. 

In any case, do not feel bad about reminding me when deadlines are approaching. I find these reminder emails helpful and I do not consider them annoying! I am usually good with these deadlines (provided that you have communicated with me in a timely manner), but I do not want your letter to be the exception that goes missing. A one-week and a two-day reminder will be greatly appreciated. 

Most online application systems will notify you when a new letter of recommendation is submitted through their systems. In addition, you will also receive a brief email from me that tells you I have submitted your letter(s) to certain program(s). 

As a matter of moral principle, I will not write letters of recommendation for programs or jobs involving any of the following: 

• Policing (including but not limited to predictive policing, development of algorithms that predict recidivism, etc.);

• Military applications (such as internships at the Department of Defense or any of its international counterparts);

• Weapons manufacturing, broadly construed;

• Intelligence gathering (such as internships at the NSA, CIA, or any international counterpart).

I am very happy to discuss this policy with any student who has questions. Conversations about when and how mathematics should be used are lacking in our community, so in fact I encourage questions and discussion! However, this policy is non-negotiable. Therefore, if it is invoked when I am asked to write a letter, know that it is not personal. 

For more details about making ethical career decisions, see career resources of the Just Mathematics Collective. 

In addition to the programs above, I will not write letters of recommendation for positions at Amazon.com, Inc., or any other companies known for their morally questionable practices in employee treatment.