Letters of recommendation are an important aspect of the college application process, particularly for graduate school admissions. They provide insight into a student’s academic abilities, work ethic, and personal characteristics that cannot be conveyed through transcripts or test scores alone.
A strong letter of recommendation typically includes specific examples and anecdotes that demonstrate the student’s strengths and potential.
Teachers who have worked closely with a student over a period of time are often best positioned to provide this kind of detailed and nuanced assessment.
In addition to highlighting the student’s academic achievements, recommendation letters can also speak to their leadership potential, community involvement, and other personal qualities that might make them a good fit for a particular program or institution.
Finally, it’s worth noting that the impact of a recommendation letter often depends on who is writing it. Letters from respected educators and professionals in the field carry more weight than those from friends or family members, so students should be strategic about who they ask to write their recommendations.
As a newly appointed professor of management at UC Berkeley, I have had the pleasure of teaching Total Quality Management to Mr. Jon Doe. I had the chance to observe his teamwork, interpersonal & communication skills in semester projects and class assignments.
When it was time for semester projects, I wanted to ensure that each group in my class could interact with industry professionals to collect the required data. Jon and his teammates decided to gather the information that had helped the National Heavy industries at Austin improve their manufacturing line. Since it is a defense organization, there were a lot of impediments and checks before Jon could get their hands on data. Therefore, I refrained from making a personal recommendation or using my contacts in the defense organization to observe if Jon could work out a plan to gather the data independently by navigating his way using his interpersonal and public relations skills.
The success of this effort was too much a responsibility for a single person to handle, so it became an excellent opportunity for me to see how good of a team player each person is in the group. It also allowed me to look at and evaluate Jon’s team plan and the responsibility he was trusted with. Besides, even if he cannot do it, it would be an essential opportunity for Jon to learn something from this practical experience. In comparison, it took him longer to collect the necessary data than his peers, but Jon could submit a final report and analysis within the allotted time limit.
Besides the typical questions that are asked at the end of project presentations, I like to test my students by asking challenging questions that represent nuances that are mostly beyond the level of comprehension for students at this level. My purpose is to observe my students’ responses in a stressful situation if they are presented with either an unknown situation or some criticism of their report. After the presentation, I analyzed their performance based on their entrusted duties. Jon was diligently prepared for the project to answer quite a few questions.
Although the answers could have been better, I appreciated that his understanding and thorough preparation in the presentation had helped him land his guess near the correct answers. I also criticized the report to see if he would blame the circumstances. But I was rather impressed that he acknowledged the criticism and admitted the subtleties that were not adequately represented. I was delighted with the work he could present, and I had to rank his project report as one of the best in the class.
Jon contacted me a few days earlier to let me know he wants to pursue a master’s in business analytics. After more than six years of experience in education and interacting with numerous students and various organizations, the commitment, responsibility, and articulation Mr. Doe has demonstrated is enough to get him through business studies. I wish him all the success in his future endeavors. I can be reached via email if you need more information about him.
Prof. Dr. Labil Zairm
Ph.D. Innovation & Development Studies Stanford
Head of Division, Entrepreneurship & Division, UC Berkeley Haas Business School
Director, Office of Research, Innovation, and Commercialization at Apple
It gives me pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for Mr. Jon Doe. I have known Jon for the past two years in multiple capacities: as an instructor for the Digital Integrated Circuit Design course, as a co-advisor for his final year project, and as a faculty member of the Electrical Engineering department. My interaction with this motivated young man has made me admire his competence, confidence, and hard work.
Jon is a determined student with a creative mindset and a pragmatic attitude. When I had the chance to serve as part of the evaluation team of the final year project, I could observe how much persistence and decisiveness the project required on the part of Jon, the team lead. It was not only a challenging assignment, but the fact that Jon had no previous training and the fact that the only industry veteran professor with experience working with FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays) had left for his post-doctorate made the final year assignment a lot more stress-inducing.
While every project requires a bit of a change in approach as the team learns by doing, Jon’s project was unique since the course of action he had decided on had no supervision from any industry professional. Therefore, there was a lot of pressure to verify the course of action at almost every working module of the project to avoid missing deadlines. As a result, Jon’s project had to undergo many changes by the time every other team was almost done working with theirs. It was not only making the job a lot tougher, but it also clocked the stress levels to a maximum, and I have observed most students crack under this pressure. It took Jon a long time to find and settle on a correct approach, but I was very impressed that he was determined to see this project through within the final deadline. By the time the final presentation of the project arrived, Jon and his teammates were able to deliver the results quite successfully. Another testament to his effort came in the form of an award from the US ICT award, which is only given to a select few in the US.
After witnessing the experience of his final year project, Jon possesses the qualities that are required of a leader. His determination, persistence without a loss of enthusiasm, and focus on achieving results are unparalleled. Furthermore, he has the skill to manage his team and keeps an open mind on approaching different solutions. Given his practical approach and leadership skills, I highly recommend him for his post-graduate studies. If you have any questions regarding Mr. Jon Doe, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Professor Emily Lamstrong
Associate Professor, Media Lab; Joint appointment in EECS
MIT