Letters of Recommendation

If you have asked me and I have agreed to write a recommendation for you, please give me a folder containing the following materials:

____ 1. a copy of your transcript (an unofficial printout is fine)

____ 2. a copy of your personal statement (if applicable)

____ 3. all necessary forms

____ 4. a properly addressed envelope (without stamps)

TWO WEEKS before the first letter is due, please email me (amelchior@ups.edu) the answers to the following questions to help me better assist you to achieve your goal:

____ 1. What is your name, year, and major?

____ 2. For what are you applying (graduate school, scholarship, etc.)?

____ 3. List the programs for which you are applying with their due dates.

____ 4. How long have I known you? What classes have you taken from me, and what grades did you receive in them? Did you do anything outstanding in any of these classes?

____ 5. How would you describe yourself?

____ 6. Describe some of your accomplishments (both academic and nonacademic).

____ 7. What makes me particularly qualified to write a letter for you?

____ 8. What makes you the right person for the position/honor/award for which you are applying?

____ 9. What are your long-term goals and how will this honor/position/award help you achieve them?

____ 10. Any additional comments that you care to add (hobbies, travels, motivation, personal drive).

Please feel free to send me an email reminder as deadlines approach.

Graduate School Applicants

I will not write a letter of reference supporting graduate study for any student who has earned a grade lower than a B in any class that they have taken with me. This does not mean that I am unwilling to support you as you pursue other avenues (e.g. study abroad, internships, etc.).

Why?

1) Graduate programs do not care if you "worked hard" in a class or "tried". They want students who can master complex concepts in a limited period of time while under tremendous pressure. If I write a recommendation for you that talks about your hard work, the implication is that you may have difficulty completing the tasks necessary to earn a graduate degree. You should find someone who can praise your achievement rather than someone who will recount your struggles.

2) In most graduate programs, you will be expected to teach entry level material at the same time that you are taking a full course load. If you struggled in a beginning sequence (e.g. Latin 101/102), you are unlikely to be prepared to teach this material when called upon to do so. The basic material is assumed in graduate school and you won't have time to pick it up while taking graduate level classes.

3) If you did not achieve at least a B due to sloth or disinterest, I then have to question your desire to purse higher study. Graduate school is often tedious, the faculty are not infrequently discouraging, and the work can be insurmountably difficult. If you do not have the discipline, drive, and self-motivation to achieve excellence for its own sake in your undergraduate studies, graduate school is probably not for you. If you were a terrible student, but have turned over a new leaf, you should have your recommendations written by professors who have seen that new leaf.