This page tells you what to do to work for a good letter of recommendation, and what you need to give me when you request it.
If you wish to list me as a reference for someone to call me, then you should work for the recommendation in the same way you would for a written recommendation, as described below. When requesting to use me as a reference, provide me with the items listed under numbers 3, 4, 5, and 6 in "What you need to do to ask for the recommendation:" below.
There are different kinds of letters of recommendation. Employers, internship site managers, and grad school admissions officers may want an academic recommendation, a research recommendation, or a work or personal recommendation.
An academic recommendation is about your performance in one of my classes. You should try to perform above average in my classes (a grade of B or A) in order to enable me to write you a really useful letter of recommendation. Additionally, you should try to be a student that I am likely to remember by name because you have stood out in the class. You can make yourself stand out by your excellent attendance and by having made good contributions to class discussions. It is also helpful if you have made yourself known to me by engaging me with questions and discussions outside of class, either before or after the class period, or by visiting me in my office.
Finally, you should be aware of all of the characteristics, some academic, but some personal, on which a referrer is asked to rate a student. This is important because I can only comment on such attributes if I have witnessed evidence of them. For example, reference forms ask me to rate not only such academic characteristics as intellectual ability, breadth and depth of knowledge, written and oral expression, and analytical skill, but also such personal characteristics as seriousness of purpose, organizational ability, maturity, integrity, professionalism, self-reliance, self-discipline, initiative, reliability, co-operativeness, and so on. For a reference for a counseling program I am often even asked to rate you on self-knowledge, insightfulness, concern for others, and ability to remain objective.
If you have stood out in my classes and you have demonstrated to me that you are strong in the personal characteristics mentioned above, then I am happy to give you an academic recommendation, and I will make it as strong as I can.
If the above is not the case, then I will still give you a recommendation if you wish, but there are some things that you should be aware of. If you are only an average student (a grade of C), but meet at least some of the criteria above, then I can still give you a recommendation, but it will not be as strong. The same would be true if you have a B or A, but don't meet the other criteria above. Such a recommendation may not help you, and, depending upon how the requester interprets such a recommendation, there is no guarantee that it would not hurt you.
If your grade is a C or lower and you don't meet any of the criteria above, any recommendation I could give would not help you, and could definitely hurt. Therefore, except under special circumstances, I would not give such a recommendation.
Many graduate programs require you to provide recommendations from professors with whom you have conducted research. I recruit undergraduates as volunteer research assistants in my research program to provide them with the opportunity to gain such experience. You can also gain such experience by an independent study or research practicum for course credit.
You should seriously consider seeking such experience early in your college career even if you are not sure about your future plans. It may turn out that you need such letters of recommendation later. If you start too late in your college career, then you may not have enough time. It usually takes several semesters to make enough of a contribution to earn a letter that will help you.
If you volunteer for my program and then, for whatever reason, you do not make enough of a contribution, then I might not be able to write a letter of recommendation. For example, students sometimes volunteer thinking that they will be able to devote sufficient time to my program, but find that, due to other commitments, they can not. Your lack of contribution, however, is not held against you in any other way. Therefore, nothing is lost, and you may have still gained an experience that is valuable to you in other ways.
I require my volunteer research assistants to keep a log of their activities in, and contributions to, my research program. Volunteers decide for themselves how much time and energy they can devote, and this determines how much of a contribution they can make. That contribution, in turn, determines the strength of their letter of recommendation. Therefore, if you want a strong letter of recommendation, you should devote a good deal of time to my research program, be looking for opportunities to make valuable contributions, and you should accurately and completely document them in your log.
Research recommendations often ask about many of the same specifics that I noted above in regard to academic recommendations. In addition, they may ask about potential for success at graduate study, leadership ability, receptiveness to constructive criticism, and flexibility. Recommendations for a clinical or counseling program may also ask about self-knowledge and insight, realistic attitude, knowledge of the real world, cultural sensitivity, ability to manage stress, and ability to hold information in confidence. I can only comment on such attributes if you have made them known to me.
A research recommendation is something like a work recommendation that is specific to a certain kind of work. However, a true work recommendation is usually about the job skills and work ethic that an employer is looking for. I could only give you such a true work recommendation if I had the opportunity to observe the characteristics that the employer would want to know about. To observe such characteristics, it would be best if I had hired you, for example, as a paid research assistant with funds from a research grant.
A personal recommendation is usually about such things as character, honesty, integrity, and interpersonal skills. I consider my relationships with my students to be professional, not personal. I may be able to say something about such characteristics if I have observed them in the academic or research setting, but my comments would be specific to those observations, not more general, as in a true personal recommendation.
Sometimes students end up in dire need of a recommendation even though they have not met the requirements above. There is sometimes hope for such students if they have demonstrated some other qualities for which they can be recommended. For example, a student may have struggled academically and not done any research, but may have demonstrated a good work ethic and interpersonal skills that could be useful for some entry level job. I am willing to try to help you with a recommendation in such a situation, but you must have actually demonstrated those characteristics to me in some specific way in order for me to recommend you.
NOTE WELL: If at any point in your college career you have even a small suspicion that you might be headed for such a situation, then you should meet with me (or other potential recommenders) in advance to discuss your special needs and what can be done about them. We are here to help, but we need you to do your part.
1. If you have a hard copy of a paper recommendation form, then that form needs to be in the envelope. Be sure to sign the waiver of your right to see the recommendation. Such recommendations carry more weight than if they may have been seen by the requester. If the recommendation is to be submitted online, then make sure I know to be watching for an email from each institution that will email me. Online recommendation forms usually require you to fill out some information in advance, including the waiver of your right to see the recommendation. Be sure to waive that right in order for your recommendation to carry as much weight as possible.
3. Written instructions (that refer back to any instructions on the forms) regarding where you want each letter sent (or what to do if it is to be done online). Please note that sometimes the recommendation form has instructions specifying it is to be sent directly to the address of the place where you are applying. Other times they specify to send the form to you in a sealed envelope with my signature across the seal. Sometimes there are no instructions or instructions to do it either way. There can even be times when, in spite of the instructions, you may want me to not follow the instructions on the form.Therefore, I need written instructions from you that are very specific. They should refer to any instructions that are in the forms. For example:
4. A resume that indicates what kind of graduate program or job you are applying for. I need to know this in order to judge your suitability for the program or job.
5. A list of whatever courses you have taken from me. Identify the courses so that it will be easy for me to look up the records of your performance and attendance in the classes. Include the course number (the three letter prefix with the first three digit number), the section number (the second three digit number), the course name, and very importantly, the year and semester that you took the course.
6. If applicable, a clearly legible, neat, organized, easy to read log of all you have done in my research group. Make sure every entry is dated (including the year - this can be important to establish how long you worked with me). The log should be objective, accurate, and complete.
7. If you want me to take into consideration anything else, then also include a written statement of what you want me to consider and why. For example, for an academic recommendation, you may want to remind me of some specific valuable contribution that you made to a class discussion, or an interesting conversation we had outside of class.