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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Who should be your referee? ............................................................................................................................. 3

What should be the content of a letter of recommendation? .............................................................................. 4

Format of letter of recommendation .................................................................................................................. 5

Dos and donts in writing letter of recommendation .......................................................................................... 6

More useful resources ........................................................................................................................................ 6

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Letter of recommendation (LoR) has become a must for the students while applying in a foreign university. It plays
an important role in getting the admission in a good university. Most of the time, the students as well as the
referees get confused about what to write and what not to write in the recommendation letter.
Here, in this e-book, we discuss all about writing a letter of recommendation.

Who should be your referee?

It is very important to choose the right referee while getting the recommendation letter. Choose the referee wisely.
A few tips to choose your referee:
You must have worked closely with the referee. If he/she is a professor, try selecting the one who was your
research guide
The referee must know you well. It is a must because then only he/she will be able to provide you with a
good LoR
Never get a reference letter from a stranger, how much ever he is famous or in power
Dont ever take friends as referees. At times, in order to make things easy, the students take their friends as
referees. LoR is a serious matter and give much importance to it
You must not choose a referee who doesnt have any good impression about you. Its quite obvious that he
will not give you a good reference letter
Always ask for the LoR in person instead of sending a mail for that. In case you have to send a mail, make
sure that you have spoken to the person before to request the LoR before mailing
Choose a referee who can write well. Poor writers may spoil your LoR
If you are taking the recommendation letter from your employer, make sure that he is mentioning all your
career achievements in the letter
Once you choose your referee, the next step is to provide him/her with the content to write the LoR. You must
provide your referee with the following details:
Give information to your referee about the detailed purpose of the LoR (the college and course you are
applying). This will help him/her to focus on certain aspects that would be helpful in increasing your
chances of getting admission
Give your resume so that the referee will have a clear picture about your past achievements
If you want to focus on certain details, point that out to him/her
If the referee has to send it directly to the University, make sure that you are providing with the necessary
things such as envelop, full address of the University etc.

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 Sometimes, the referee asks you to prepare a first draft of the reference letter so that he/she can just
modify that. Its good enough for you as well as you can include all the necessary points in the letter
Always ask your referee to give the LoR on a letterhead
Dont feel shy to showcase your achievements in the recommendation letter. After all, its your hard work
and you have all the rights to show it
Tell your referee what you need in the recommendation letter. But, never force the referee to write things
that you have never done
Always get at least five copies of the reference letter. You may have to use it at different places. Its not
advisable to contact our referee for a fresh copy whenever you require it

What should be the content of a letter of recommendation?

This is the most important aspect of the letter of recommendation. You must be very clear about the content of
your recommendation letter. The focus on the content varies from course to course mainly because the universities
look for particular skill sets in the students for each course.
Heres is an outlook on the content type and skill sets that institutes look for in of letter of recommendation:

Engineering Courses

Management Courses

Communication skills- oral and written

Leadership skills and managerial skills

Internships and projects

Experience in marketing or any fields related to

Troubleshooting & problem solving skills

management filed

Participation in national & state-level seminars

Personal temperament and perseverance

Knowledge on work related processes in

Scores in GMAT exam

Engineering

Team work skills

Arts & Humanities Courses

Medical Courses

Very good communication skills

In depth knowledge in theory

In depth understanding about the subject area

Scores in the undergraduate exams

Leadership skills and motivation especially

Scores in the MCAT exam or other entrance

being considered for scholarships

Creative aptitude

examinations
Intellectual capacity and time management
skills

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Format of letter of recommendation

A recommendation letter could be roughly divided into four paragraphs. The content that goes into each paragraph
is given below:
Paragraph 1
Identify the student and talk about your relationship with her/him. You must also mention the number of years for
which you know the student.
Example:

I would like to recommend Mr. Kenny for the MSc in Environment Science at University of Nottingham.
Mr. Kenny is known to me for more than three and has been one of the brightest students in my class.
Paragraph 2
List the achievements and knowledge of the student in the subject area. This is the place where the referee has to
showcase the work of the student
Paragraph 3
Here, the referee mentions the skills and talents of the student such as motivation, punctuality, team work,
leadership etc. The qualities mentioned here are add-on points in the reference letter that give much weightage to
the application of the student.
Paragraph 4
This is the concluding paragraph of the recommendation letter where the referee concludes the letter by providing
the qualities of the student in a nutshell. It would be good if the referee encourages further queries about the
student.
Example:

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding my recommendation for Mr. Kenny.

Click here to download letter of recommendation samples for free!

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Dos and donts in writing letter of recommendation

Dos

Donts

Choose referees who know your work

Dont write anything negative about the student

Provide your referee with enough information to

Dont write anything that is being not done by the

write the letter

student. Be honest and faithful

Tell your referee if you have certain points that

need to be focussed

The letter must not have any typos, spelling

mistakes or grammatical errors

Make sure that you are giving enough time for your
referee to prepare the letter. Last minute rush will
spoil your LoR

Dont include the personal information of the

student such as caste, religion, race and ethnicity
Dont ever try to forge a letter of

Give the information in a good flow. Make the

reader understand facts easily
Use formal language in the letter
Keep the confidentiality of the letter of the
university or institute demands it
Send a thank you note to the referee once you get
the LoR

recommendation
Dont brag about the student. It will look artificial
Dont use empty and vague words to either
explain the student or his/her work
Dont get letter of recommendation from the
family members or friends
Dont write own recommendation letter

More useful resources

Tips to write a good reference letter
Who should be your referee?

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