Some applicants have this idea that if they can just get their company CEO, whom they have never met, to write their business school recommendation, then the admissions committee will cower in awe and immediately accept them. But this is really not the case. There are two simple rules for choosing recommenders: a. You should choose…
5 Tips for Requesting AACOMAS Evaluations (Letters of Reference)
Looking for the best osteopathic med school admissions advice out there? Ace those AACOMAS apps by reading our osteopathic application tips series – each post, another set of 5 expert tips that will help you get ACCEPTED. If you are planning to apply to osteopathic schools, the AACOMAS allows you to upload up to six…
MBA Letters Of Recommendation: Who, When, What, Where & How
Selecting your recommenders requires a strategy. I like to begin with the basics: Who, When, What, Where, and How. I also like to suggest that you waive your right to access it. The waiver makes the recommendation more credible to the admissions committee. Who? Who are the best people to address the questions the schools…
Deciding Who Should Write Your Letters of Recommendation
Letters of recommendation are a key part of your application. Strong ones provide meaningful support, but a lukewarm one can really hurt you. Who should write in support of your PhD application, and how can you make sure your letters are as good as they can be? For your PhD app, you need LORs that…
MBA Admissions: Selecting Your Recommenders
“MBA Admissions: Selecting Your Recommenders” is the latest post in our series, Navigate the MBA Maze. The best letters of recommendation come from people who have seen you perform. The weakest letters are of the “character reference” variety (from the clergy member who knows you only as a person who dozes during weekly services) or…
10 Tips for Medical School Recommenders
You’ve taken the MCAT, completed all the pre-reqs, and maybe shadowed a physician, done some research, and volunteered. Now it’s time to make sure you’re all in for the last legs of this long journey. In this series, we’ll discuss how you can continue to navigate your way to a med school acceptance by analyzing…
Add-Ons and Extras: Supplements to Your Law School Application
If your law school’s application offers optional or extra opportunities for submitting supplementary materials, you are wise to take advantage and give the admissions committee members more information about their most desirable applicant – you! Yet you want to choose carefully and write an essay that will make the admissions committee glad that they have…
Introducing the Common Letter of Recommendation
In an effort to streamline and simplify the letter of recommendation writing process, a few top business schools with the cooperation of GMAC have released the new Common Letter of Recommendation. This is an initiative, according to the GMAC website, to “help reduce the burden of asking for – and submitting – letters of recommendation.”…
10 Tips for Writing Letters of Recommendation
Pass these tips on to your recommenders for LORs that impress the admissions officers and ensure that they want to accept you. 10 Tips for Recommenders: 1. Review a copy of the applicant’s personal statement or application essays so that your letter of recommendation can dovetail with–not conflict with or duplicate–the rest of the application. 2. Ask…
Lining Up Letters of Recommendation and Searching for Fellowships
These are also steps that you can start working on well ahead of next winter’s application deadlines. If you’re still in college, asking professors now to be your recommenders will be straightforward; the benefit of doing this early is that the professors who work in your field will be able to give you advice about…
Collecting Letters of Evaluation for the TMDSAS
There are two options when submitting letters of evaluation to TMDSAS. They request either a committee letter or two individual letters of recommendation. For the committee letter, they will accept three different formats: a committee letter that introduces and includes an unlimited number of letters, a committee letter that includes quotes and excerpts from the…
What if the President of the United States Wrote Your Letter of Recommendation?
On this President’s Day, let’s ponder the following: Would a letter of recommendation from President Barack Obama, President of the United States himself, ensure your acceptance? I’m sure a letter from President Obama would get passed around the admissions office. That presidential seal and signature (even if from a machine) would be an eye catcher,…
How to Secure Excellent Letters of Recommendation
When you are requesting letters of recommendation, there are a few strategies that you can use to make sure that you receive excellent letters of recommendation. 1. Start by determining whom you will ask for letters. Being strategic in selecting who knows you best and can write most positively about your work is the…
What Does an Excellent Letter of Recommendation for Medical School Include?
An excellent letter of recommendation has several key components. On average, they tend to be about three pages in length. Any more than three pages can be considered excessive since each applicant has at least three letters of recommendation attached to their application and medical schools receive on average 5,000 applications each year. That’s a…
How Not to Ask for a Letter of Recommendation
Your recommenders are doing you a favor, so the least you can do is make their job easier by following proper LOR etiquette. Breaking these important letter of rec rules may result in your recommenders deciding not to dish out the most favorable review. Stay on their good side, help them stay organized, and most…
UT McCombs Now Allows LinkedIn Recommendations
Are you applying to UT McCombs? Then you’ll want to read about this important new twist on the recommendation requirement. Starting with the current application cycle, applicants to UT McCombs will have two options when it comes to submitting letters of recommendation: You can: 1. Send a traditional recommendation request via the school’s admissions management…
Residency Applicants: Get The Recommendations You Need!
Have you started collecting recommendation letters yet? The LoR Portal explains the process of submitting your letters to ERAS, but how can you ensure that you receive the strongest possible recommendation letter? 1. Ask as early as possible. Your recommenders are busy people, and you don’t want to wait until the last minute to add your request…
Top MBA Programs Using Shared Letter of Recommendation Questions
The number of top-ranked MBA programs now asking the exact same questions for the letters of recommendation is growing, which is good news both for recommenders and for candidates. LORs are very important to an applicant’s case, providing an objective assessment from a supervisor, former manager, or other professional that helps affirm (or not) what…
10 Reflections on Teacher Recommendations
Teacher recommendations are an important part of your college application at many colleges, with most colleges requiring one or two letters in support of your application. These recommendations provide additional insight into your personality, intellectual curiosity, and potential impact on your college community. From my time on the admissions side of the desk, I know…
The Best Medical School Recommendations
The best letters of recommendation come from persons who have seen you perform in some capacity – student, student leader, employee, researcher, volunteer. The weakest letters are of the “character reference” variety (from the clergy member who knows you only as a person who attends weekly services, for example) or come from influential persons (your…
