Application Process: Letters of Recommendation

Writing Effective Letters of Recommendation for Rhodes, Truman . . . and Beyond

Your letter must be a very special one, written especially for this student and for this competition. The best letters are from 1½ to 2½ pages in length, and take several hours-often more than a day-to write. You may find it helpful to sit down with the candidate and discuss his or her academic work, extracurricular activities, and future educational and career goals.

An effective letter will:

State how long, and in what capacity you've known the candidate.
Describe the candidate's personality and work ethic, using concrete examples that demonstrate a strong relationship.
Be vivid and specific, including personal memories of the candidate, suggestive anecdotes, something to indicate that you know this candidate very well and think highly of him or her. Letters that matter to selection committees bring the candidate to life on the page.
Describe and evaluate in detail the student's scholarly work, especially a major research project. The letter should help the selection committee understand the significance of this research, the contribution it has made, and include examples of the student's ability to make future contributions as a scientist, policy maker, environmentalist, etc.
Address the scholarship criteria specifically in ways that demonstrate your abundant confidence in the student and your knowledge of the candidate beyond grades and classroom performance.
Provide evidence of the candidate's leadership and service: the more concrete examples that you can give of a candidate's public service-altruism, volunteerism, activism-the better. The most effective letters use narrative technique to highlight the student in action, as a teaching assistant, researcher, volunteer, innovator, and activist.
Reflect, refer to, and elaborate on themes in the candidate's essay. A generic letter of support is not helpful in these competitions.
Rank the candidate in relation to other students you have taught, and if possible, compare the candidate to Rhodes, Marshall, Truman or other Scholars you have known.
Comment on the likelihood that the candidate will prosper in graduate school, in a tutorial-based learning environment (for Rhodes, Marshall, Gates Cambridge), as an independent thinker and solo voyager (Watson), etc.
Avoid common pitfalls. Unhelpful letters will:
- Focus more on the letter writer's own resume, achievements, and stringent standards, than on the student's qualifications for the scholarship.
- Be so generic that almost anyone's name could be inserted into the text of the letter.
- Provide no more information than could be gleaned from the transcript and application, or merely list the student's accomplishments without a sense of personal contact on the referee's part.

For more information on writing letters of recommendation for specific scholarships, see the Truman Foundation's advice to faculty representatives at http://www.truman.gov/fac_reps/fac_reps_show.htm?cat_id=477&doc_id=247591, and consult Writing Recommendation Letters, by Joe Schall, on file in the Office of Student Academic Grants and Awards.