Richmond Area Public Schools and PCACAC

Why are we here?

To help ensure that students complete “winning” applications…….

• Transcript

• Test Scores

• Essays

• Letters of Recommendation (LORs)

• Activities

• Honors

Goals/Objectives • Review how colleges read files and factors for

consideration in the college application process

• Learn how to write LORs more efficiently

• Ensure that you include the right “stuff” in your counselor LOR

• Discover how to help students “steer” the LOR writing process

• Leave ready to do turn around training with teachers regarding teacher LORs

Three different letters:

•Counselor •Secondary School Report (SSR)

•Teacher

•Other (+1 Rule)

Some absolutes before we get started………………………….

•Honesty and integrity are essential to this process

•Ensure you are always credible

•Our goal is to help students make the right match

•We are NOT trying to get everyone accepted

Counselor summarizes the WHOLE student.

• Summarizes the whole student

• Can focus on personal setbacks, structural impediments that affected a student’s ability to take certain courses, the student’s aspirations, hopes and dreams.

• Describes the student within the whole community.

• All-encompassing

Teacher puts the Lens on the Learner.

• Puts the lens on the learner

• Explains how the student makes an impact in their classroom on them and their peers; explains how students react to challenges within the classroom

• Focuses specifically on academics

• Subject-specific

Counselor letters………….preparing to write

• Create a counselor LOR packet for students/parents to complete

• Start with a blank piece of paper

• Less is more

• Provide examples of well written packets

• Encourage students to write their essays over the summer

• Validate them in your letter

• Provide information/anecdotes/details not revealed in the essay

Sample Student Questions • What three words best describe you, and why do you think they

are good descriptors? (Provide detailed examples, anecdotes, etc.)

• What are your personal strengths? Give examples that document them!

• What are your academic strengths?

• Besides a future career, how will college benefit your academic curiosity? What else are you looking for in your college experience?

• Life’s obstacles allow us to grow. Describe an obstacle that has affected you.

• What three things would you want a college admissions committee to know about you? Give examples or relate a specific anecdote to explain.

Sample Parent Questions

• List three adjectives that you feel best describe your student. Please provide detailed examples.

• Describe one or two major events that you see as turning points in your son/daughter’s development. Explain the significance of these to his/her development.

• Describe any cultural experiences and their impact on your student.

• His/her greatest strength is:

• His/her greatest weakness is:

• Please relate anecdotes that describe your student's strengths, accomplishments, preferences, character, work habits, goals, personality, etc.

The writing process simplified in Eight Questions

1. What stands out about this student and/or what are his/her most definitive personal qualities?

2. How has this student taken advantage of the challenging curriculum and/or opportunities available to him/her at Chantilly High School?

3. What stimulates this student’s enthusiasm? How does he/she spend his/her free time? What does the student choose to learn on his/her own time?

4. How has this student contributed to the school or local community? Has he/she shown of leadership ability?

The writing process simplified in Eight Questions

5. Describe how this student demonstrates strong character and maturity.

6. Has this student shown special talent or originality in any field such as art, music, athletics, science, literature, mathematics, etc?

7. Are there any unique circumstances that should be considered when evaluating this student?

8. Considering this student’s interests, intellectual and life goals, what is your assessment of the chances that the student will be motivated to take advantage of the opportunities available in college?

Keys to producing the LOR

•You do NOT have to answer every question for every student

•You are encouraged to answer all of them for the most selective schools

•Take the questions off of the page before you mail it

Secondary School Report

• Very important document to the admissions side of the desk

• Be honest

• Must mirror the evaluation of the candidate in the LOR

• May need to be tailored to a specific school

• i.e. the form for William & Mary may be different then the form for a less selective school

Questions on Counselor LORs or the SSR

Teacher LORs…………..How do they get the information they need for a quality letter?

• Set up individual meetings with students

• Gather information from classroom observations, quality of work submitted, and classroom performance

• Create a questionnaire that students must complete • Do NOT allow them to ask for an activities list or resume

• Teachers MUST keep the lens on the learner

Questions for teachers to ask students

• Why have you asked me to write?

• What do you think you have demonstrated in my class that I should praise?

• How have you demonstrated independence, initiative, responsibility, and maturity in my class?

• Was anything in my class particularly challenging for you? Eye-opening?

• What was your favorite project/unit/topic in my class?

• What is your experience in your intended field?

• Is there anything specific that you want me to address about you?

Helpful prompts for teachers……

• If the student is absent, how is the class or school different?

• What three adjectives come to mind when you think of him/her?

• How would peers describe him/her?

• What has ever surprised you about this student?

• How are your observations corroborated by your colleagues?

• What most challenged this student? How did he/she respond?

• How will this student handle college level work?

• What questions does he/she ask (intellectual curiosity)?

• How articulate is the student (writing & speaking)?

• Does he/she possess a genuine love for learning?

• Write primarily about academic qualifications

• Creativity, initiative, commitment, analytical ability, work habits, growth, independence of mind, and group involvement

• Share how the applicant stacks up in your class or in your teaching career

• “One of two A’s earned in this course”

• “Michael is one of those rare students that asks questions to go one step further and derives ideas from the material, without being prompted.”

• Explain uniqueness of a school or program succinctly

• Qualify your adjectives

• Make the recommendation more evaluative than descriptive

• Take the time to write a quality LOR

• Use Generic/Boiler Plate Letters

• Repeat a Resume (List of) Activities

• Spend half your letter talking about your course or your credentials.

• Mention Attractiveness, Religion, Race, etc. without a Reason

• Merely provide a list of adjectives

• Write letters that are too long or too short

• Reveal sensitive, personal information without permission

Examples of Specific Evidence • MARY has received many very prestigious awards at St. Anne’s.

Earning the General Excellence In All Subject Areas award at the end of her junior year speaks to her academic achievement. This award is given to students only when they have been nominated for the highest recognition by each department at the end of the junior year. Mary’s writing and research skills, her strengths in mathematics and science, and her devotion to serious pursuits beyond the classroom are outstanding. She and her co-editor produced and edited the best edition of the student newspaper that I have seen at St. Anne’s in years. The quality of the writing, the range and depth of topics covered and their serious approach were recognized by all. Our Director of Admissions quickly sent as many copies as we could get out to prospective students because the paper was so impressive.

Specific Evidence Continued…

• STEVE is not a one-dimensional, grade-oriented student. His search for excellence is evident in all that he undertakes. He has lit up my classroom with his challenging questions, quick wit, and always creative point of view. In writing assignments, Steve displays great creativity and wit, knowing when to keep his tone formal and when to add the spice of humor. Whether on labs or research projects, Steve gives his all: his lab write-ups were always one of the most original, well thought out, and scientifically written papers I receive. Steve has additionally made the effort to attend extra-curricular field trips and science seminars at surrounding universities even though he had a heavy load of outside student government and musical commitments. This year, Steve elected to perform a semester-long team research project dealing with eutrophication in phytoplankton……………………….

Examples of Exceptional Candidates

• JAMES is the perfect student. I have lots of good students, lots of gifted minds, lots of dedicated workers in my classes. But James is basically the Platonic form of student. I don’t get to say that very often, but he’s one of the students where I get to check one of the best of my career in some of his application boxes.

• ANNA is one of the most unique and outstanding persons I have known in nineteen years of teaching. A stellar student with no academic weaknesses, she is the clearest leader in a very strong group of seniors. Taking primarily International Baccalaureate and Honors classes, Anna has from the beginning been able to find a positive balance between school and life and is refreshingly natural, relaxed and funny in a pressure cooker of a school.

Examples of Solid Candidates

• Simply put, RYAN is a diligent, hard-working young man. We have not come close to reaching the limits of his potential and it is exciting to imagine his success in the future. In addition to his intellectual achievements, he is a true gentleman of quiet tenacity and integrity. He deserves to be admitted to any university in the country.

• KATIE cares deeply about learning. She is well read; she could be described as an intellectual in the making. Her seriousness of purpose, the thorough way that she approaches her studies, and her class participation are of the highest caliber. She raises the bar, so to speak, in the classroom! I admire Katie because she knows herself well, has a modest opinion of herself, and because she is simply a joy to work with. She gets so excited about new ideas.

Examples of Special Circumstances

• Illness in the Family

• JOSEPH has had the added pressure of caring for a parent with a terminal illness. He has balanced his responsibilities better than most adults could. How Joseph continues to excel in the classroom is a wonder to me.

• Learning Disability

• TAMMY has already documented her learning disability for you, but I would like to tell you how she handles her special challenge in the classroom. Tammy works longer and harder than 99% of her classmates and does so without the slightest sense of feeling sorry for herself. While she needs extra time on timed exams she has never abused this need. Her classmates have the utmost respect for her intelligence and determination.

YES - This REALLY happened! I am very happy to offer this letter of recommendation on behalf of Jane for consideration as a student at Your Prestigious University. I had Jane in my Advanced Placement Biology in his junior year. Her earned an A. This is a very rigorous and content driven course. Jane’s outstanding academic achievement in my class was matched by her performance in his many activities and track.

I recognized Jane’s ability early last year and told her of a scholarship available to young women who are pursuing science in college. She has expressed an interest in science and I am sure that she will put her focus on achieving that or any other goal that she sets.

Jane is a very balanced, talented student who is a pleasure to have in class and will be a wonderful addition to your campus.

Most Sincerely,

Help students get organized….if the teacher is not

You need to say a few

things about why you have

asked the teacher to write

for you. What did you enjoy

most about their class?

What topic, unit, concept,

etc. was the most difficult

for you? How did you

master it? Add any other

thoughts that will help

prompt their memory and

allow them to effectively

write about you as an

intellectual person,

committed student,

cooperative classmate, etc.

Questions on teacher LORs

Other LORs (+ one rule) These MUST reflect a perspective

• Internship Supervisor

•Religious Leader

•Employer or Boss

•Performing Arts Instructor

•Private Teacher/Coach

•Alum who actually knows the student WELL

•Principal or Head of School

Final thoughts on these letters…..

• Don’t repeat information shared elsewhere

• Share observations and evidence of 21st skills not “tested” in the traditional classroom environment

• Make evaluative and comparative statements

• Be specific

• Address character and leadership from your perspective

• Provide vivid anecdotes

In the end, we want to render human the student in this process by individualizing every LOR

QUESTIONS?