FAQ: Can you write me a recommendation letter?

Yes, but...

Writing a letter of recommendation is time-consuming. Because non-truthful or vague letters damage the recommender’s reputation and ultimately the chances of future students to get into graduate programs, I take this process seriously and I established a protocol for this.

The conditions under which I write letters of recommendation for graduate programs are the following:

  1. The student ranks in top 10% of the class they took with me. This should be taken seriously but not strictly: I recently wrote a letter to a student who was not in the 10% of my class but showed exceptional performance in the program as a whole. She got into a great program and I'm happy when this happens.

  2. Conditional on 1) holding true, I ask to meet (or video conference) with the student and discuss their career aspirations, strengths/weaknesses so that I can write a proper informed letter.

  3. Before I accept to write a recommendation I need to receive the following upon request:

a. updated CV

b. transcripts

After I accept to write a letter, when the time comes:

c. a list of schools with deadlines

d. a reminder email a couple of days before each deadline

e. 3 paragraphs in which you describe your profile, your aspirations (education and profession), and how long I have known you and in which capacity.

4. I NEVER send letters to students, but I allow students to list me as a reference and then the school will request the letter to me directly.

If a student does not meet 1), I generally recommend that they identify a more suitable letter- writer, as they will need someone who can write a really strong letter, so to maximize the chances of being admitted to the program. If a student insists, I will write a letter but it may not be strong.