Applying to Graduate School: How to Ask for a Letter of Recommendation
Strong letters of recommendation are a vital part of a compelling graduate school application. A strong letter of recommendation from someone (professor, supervisor, etc.) can be the difference between being accepted vs. wait-listed, getting grant or scholarship funding vs. needing to take out student loans, and overcoming many applicant weaknesses, like a low GPA. Despite their importance, many students struggle with how to ask for a letter of recommendation, whether it be from professors, supervisors, or other relevant individuals.
In the first part of this series on letters of recommendation, I gave an overview of the purpose of letters of recommendation, and what a student should consider when selecting letter writers. Today, I’m going to dive deeper into how to request a letter of recommendation.
Preparation: Set Yourself Up for a Yes
As is often the case, a good foundation can really improve your chances of getting people to say ‘yes’ to writing you letters of recommendation for grad. school. Thinking ahead can increase the number of options for letter writers and improve the quality of those letters. If you’re an undergraduate student and you are planning to attend graduate school, there are actions to take to maximize this advantage. If you’re a returning student, you may have fewer opportunities, but there are still things you can do to prepare.
Current Students
One of the biggest challenges undergraduate students face when building a foundation for strong letters of recommendation from professors is being one face in a sea of students. Large undergraduate classes can make you feel invisible. However, there are things you can do to be more memorable to your professors. Here are some suggestions:
- Do well in the class! This might sound trite, but doing well in the professor’s class will already put you above a large portion of the students.
- Choose unusual essay/project topics if you have the opportunity. For example, I once wrote an essay on prion diseases while everyone else was focusing on the usual infectious diseases (in case you don’t know, I’m an epidemiologist by training). A year later, the faculty member still remembered me and that essay even though I had no contact with them outside of class time.
- Introduce yourself. Go up and introduce yourself to the professor, either after class or during their office hours. Tell them why you’re taking the course. If you need one, here’s a script: Hi Professor NAME. I wanted to introduce myself. I’m YOUR NAME. I’m really looking forward to this course in SUBJECT because I’m considering pursuing a career in CAREER GOAL. Maybe I can stop by during an office hour sometime and talk to you about it?
- Attend office hours, even if you’re doing well. You don’t need to go every time, although if you are struggling, you absolutely should. Go a few times to help the professor put a face to the name. Be ready with a few questions to ask about the course itself (e.g., any study tips they have for doing well on exams), the field you’re considering, or the professor’s projects (if they are involved in any).
- Schedule an informational interview. Ask the professor if you could meet with them and talk about graduate school and working in your chosen field. This is a great opportunity to be memorable to the professor, and learn more about your chosen field. Ask questions like – who does well in the field, what drew their interest to it, and what they think the biggest pitfalls are in pursuing that career.
- Volunteer to help and follow through. If you’re considering a field involving research, asking for the opportunity to help out with the professor’s research can give you valuable experience and lead to excellent letters of recommendation. Be wary, however, as offering then being unreliable is worse than not offering at all, so don’t overcommit and fail to follow through.
- Keep in touch. Staying in touch doesn’t have to be a big deal. About a month after a class ends, email the professor to thank them. Mention what you liked most about the class. If there’s a chance you might take another class with them, mention it. If it was a research position, so the same thing. About a month after you’re done with the research, thank the person for the experience, mention something surprising you learned, and wish them continued success. You can also follow them on LinkedIn, and congratulate them on work achievements (e.g., getting a paper published or having a work anniversary).
- Get back in touch. A lot of students feel self-conscious about reaching out to professors and mentors they haven’t spoken to in a while. Don’t let this anxiety stop you. We all know how busy life can get and how time slips away. It’s okay to reach out, even if it has been a while. If you’re not certain how to start a message to reconnect after you’ve lost touch, try this: “I came across X the other day and thought of you. I can’t believe it’s been so long since THE ACTIVITY YOU KNEW THEM FROM. Time really does fly. I hope you’re doing well.” Then follow that up with a question like… do you still teach X? It was such a great class, or are you still doing research on Y?“
Returning Students:
Returning students, especially those returning after a long hiatus, don’t have as many opportunities to develop a letter-writing rapport with people (e.g., by taking on research projects with faculty), but that doesn’t mean there is nothing you can do. Here are some ways to position yourself for good letters of recommendation if you’ve been out of school for a while.
- Reconnect with old faculty. Not unlike my advice for getting back in touch for current students, reconnecting with your old mentors can pave the way for asking for a letter of recommendation. You can use the script above to break the ice.
- Take on relevant work tasks. It’s not uncommon for a work supervisor to write a letter of recommendation for grad school for someone employed outside of academia. If the job aligns with your career goals, that is great. If it doesn’t, many personal and professional skills still apply across domains (e.g., the ability to work in groups, attention to detail, and analytic thinking, to name a few). Consider the skill sets needed for the graduate program you’re applying to and take on work tasks that align with those skills. This can give a supervisor or colleague the ability to speak to these skills.
- Volunteer. Similar to taking on relevant work tasks, volunteering for an organization doing work in your field or an adjacent field can create the opportunity for a letter of recommendation from a supervisor or program director. For example, someone applying to child psychology programs might consider volunteering for a big brother/big sister type program.
- Take More Classes. Most universities allow people to register for individual classes as non-degree-seeking students. You won’t be eligible for student loans (in the U.S. at least), but the costs are generally lower for non-degree seeking students. Taking a relevant undergraduate or graduate-level course (even better) could give you an opportunity to develop a relationship with the professor (see suggestions for current students for more info).
How to Actually Ask for a Letter of Recommendation
How to ask for a letter of recommendation varies depending on your circumstances. The two most common scenarios are: 1) you’ve been in touch with your prospective letter writer and they know you’re applying to grad school or 2) you have been out of touch for a while and the person may or may not know you’re applying to graduate school. I’m going to give you a script for each, but you will need to tailor it to your particular situation. You also need to consider whether your prospective letter writer is inside or outside of academia.
Asking an Academic Insider
Scenario 1: In contact with prospective letter writer.
The easiest way to ask for a letter of recommendation is to write an email along the lines of:
“Dear Professor X,
As you probably know, I’m applying to NUMBER OF graduate programs this fall and I wanted to ask if you would be able to write a strong letter of recommendation for me. The deadline for the earliest program is DATE. If this is something you’d be comfortable doing, I would send you supporting materials (e.g., my draft personal statement, my CV, and a brief description of the program) several weeks in advance. I appreciate your consideration.
Sincerely, Student Q.”
That’s it. That’s all you have to say in the initial request. People are busy, since you’ve been in contact with them, they’re likely expecting it, so keep it quick and to the point. If you meet with the person and want to do an in-person request, you can use a variation.
“Hi Professor X,
I wanted to ask you something. As you probably know, I’m applying to NUMBER OF graduate programs this fall and I wanted to ask if you would be able to write a strong letter of recommendation for me. The deadline for the earliest program is DATE. I’ll, of course, send you supporting materials well in advance.”
Scenario 2: Not in recent contact with prospective letter writer.
If it’s been a while since you’ve spoken to your potential letter writer, your message will need to do a little more heavy lifting. You’ll need to orient the person and possibly remind them of who you are. Here’s one possible script, if you’re worried the person might not remember you:
“Dear Professor X,
I hope that this message finds you well. I don’t know if you remember me, I’m NAME, a student of yours from HOW THEY KNOW YOU. I was the student who THE THING THEY WILL HOPEFULLY REMEMBER YOU BY.
I realize this message is coming out of the blue. I have been RECENT ACTIVITY and I haven’t been great at keeping in touch with people. However, recently I’ve been considering applying to graduate school to pursue a career in FIELD OF STUDY. It’s a field I’ve been interested in for some time and I’m ready to commit to more schooling.
With that in mind, I am writing to ask if you remember me well enough to write a letter of recommendation for my applications. I really enjoyed studying under you and thought that, given our work together on PROJECT, you might be able to speak to my academic strengths.
I plan to apply to NUMBER programs The deadline for the earliest program is DATE. If this is something you’d be comfortable doing, I would send you supporting materials (e.g., my draft personal statement, my CV, and a brief description of the program) several weeks in advance. Regardless, I appreciate your consideration.
Sincerely, Student Q.”
How to Ask for Letters of Recommendation from Outside Academia
In some instances, a prospective graduate student may need to ask someone outside of academia to write a letter of recommendation in support of their grad school application. It may be a supervisor or colleague with whom the student has worked closely who can speak to the student’s skills. Asking for a letter like this follows the same general process, but needs to be tailored to someone who may not be familiar with the inner workings of higher education. If you’re in this position, keep in mind your audience, and consider the following:
- They may not be familiar with academic jargon, so try to avoid it in your requests.
- They may not know the expectations for letters of recommendation, like how long they are (about a page), how schools request them (usually through email and an online portal), how rigid the deadline is (very), and what schools are looking for. Good letter writers might refuse to write a letter because they think they don’t know enough about the process to do a good job. Head these concerns off by including these details in your initial request. Assure them that you’ll provide all the information they’ll need to write a good letter if they agree to write one.
- They may not write letters of recommendation often, so you may need to provide these letter writers with additional materials, such as examples of grad school recommendation letters or a list of things that should be included in the letter. For letter writers outside of academia, supporting materials (statement of purpose, CV, and program description) become essential to get the most effective recommendations possible.
To get you started, here’s one sample script you can use outside of academia:
“Dear Ms. X,
As you probably know, I’ve decided to pursue a degree in DEGREE with the ultimate goal of becoming an OCCUPATION. As part of the application process, I need to provide several letters of recommendation.
Given our work on HOW YOU KNOW EACH OTHER, I wanted to ask if you would be willing to write a strong letter of recommendation for my application.
I plan on applying to NUMBER OF graduate programs this fall and would need the recommendation letter(s) no later than DEADLINE. If you’re not familiar with the process, it’s fairly simple. When I fill out the online application, I’ll be prompted to enter your name and email and the system will send you a link where you can upload the letter. They are generally about a page long.
I know you’re very busy, so I’ll send you all the details you need several weeks in advance to make this as easy as possible. If this is something you’d be comfortable doing, please let me know. I really appreciate it.
Sincerely, Student Q.”
There are a lot of ways to phrase a request for letters of recommendation, so you’re going to have to tailor them to your situation. If you want personalized help in getting the best letters of recommendation possible, schedule a free admissions coaching consultation with Coach Alecia (Master’s degree students) or Dr. Cristie (Doctoral students) today!
Stay tuned for the next installment of our Grad School Admissions: Letters of Recommendation series where I’m going to cover how to ensure you get the BEST possible references from professors, supervisors, and mentors once they’ve said yes. Until then: