Mastering Letter of Recommendation Requests: Proven Tips and Techniques

Use this technique to receive Reccomendations without hassle.

In the following post, I will be detailing how to streamline your process of requesting and receiving a Letter of Recommendations for Graduate Applications.

As University admission season approaches so does the time to ask for recommendations letters. Now just like the readers, I was initially clueless as to how or from whom or where I should request an Letter of Recommendation from this is because although, this sounds quite simple, its far from trivial. This is usually due to a combination of scenarios such as someone refusing to give an LoR after working with them, someone asking you to write your own LoR which they can just sign/seal ,you don’t know lot of folks (and they-don’t know you as well lol) from whom you could ask one ,etc.

The Process

Now to solve this problem I decided to simplify the entire problem into a process of a Kanban Table.Here are the steps I took :

Step-1: Make 4 Columns in Google Sheets.

Step-2: List down names of all Professors, Advisors, Course Instructors, Co-Supervisors, Managers that you have worked with or have any relation to in a separate file temporarily.

Step-3: Now in a Google Sheets name the 4 columns as Name, Communication Status, Relationship, Work Done with them.

Step-4: Based on the list of people you have written down fill up the column details associated with each person.

Step-5: Send an formal written request for an LoR. Now this can become tricky especially when you have lost touch with some people.

Step-6: Wait

EX:

Name, Comm Status, Relationship, Work Done

Raj , Talking , Advisor, Project Advisor for Neuroscience.

John , Received, Manager , Internship Supervisor

Example of the filled Sheet.

The Communication Status will have 4 statuses:

1. Sent: Sent an request for LoR ✔️
2. Yet to Receive : Talking/Requesting about necessary details wrt same. ☑️
3. Received: Done! ✅
4. Nope: Unable to get the LoR due to various circumstances such as refusal or Prof/Manager unable to provide so due to a change of his/her company/employment rules. ❌

Relationship column will specify Work Relationship ,i.e. how are they related to you? Ex: an advisor, an manager, etc.

For the final column you have to specify what were the outcomes of the work done when working with the Person in question. It could be a Publication, an application you deployed, worked in a team to reduce cost, volunteered in an organization for xyz, you attended their subject/lectures,etc.

By filling each column you gain clarity as to why you are asking for a Reccomendation Letter from the Person and what work you did with them due to which they might be willing to give you an recommednation. Ex: Let’s assume you ask for a recommendation letter from someone who has taught you, had a few discussions with but never worked them. In such a case, the person might not provide a letter due to his standards and a lack of knowledge about you as a professional.

Writing a Formal Request

I will describe the simple process one can use to send formal request for LoRs.

Now since most Profs, Managers you have worked with obviously do not remember all details, this might require you to provide them details as to what you actually did. Trust me most folks don’t remember you even if they shake their head or valiantly agree lol. Make sure to remind them.

Mention what work you did with them, did you receive any awards or any acheivements while working with them ? How did working with them improve your skills, career-growth. What do you remember in your time working with them that made your realise a certain pitfall, or improved you , served as an inspiration for your work and qualities you gained from them. What did you like about working with them.

Attach your transcripts with a List of Universities you would be applying for so as to keep them updated on which universities you are applying for and might ask for or directly mail them for an LoR. Also attach your CV just incase they might ask for it to refresh their memory.

Follow up regularly via mail or phone if they do not respond to your request. Try scheduling a call or a meeting as per convienience.Keep doing this until you can have a satisfactory response.

If they ignore you too much despite your requests, most likely they do not intend to send one as he/she might not be abe to confidently vouch for the student’s capabilties while working in a short time period.

Finally, a failsafe technique to receive an LOR is to send a relatable meme to the Person hoping he/she understands humour. I have seen this work (with me) as well as few others on Twitter.

Here are a few meme templates you can borrow :

PS: You get the idea lol

Conclusion

In most cases you might receive an LoR , in some cases you won’t. Ask for more than 3 LoRs if possible, since if anyone refuses last minute you have the necessary number of LoRs which is at least 2 in most cases. Using this technique you can manage and track your LoR requests and statuses efficiently especially if you are busy.
Ciao!

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