How Do I Ask For A Recommendation Letter?

WHAT IS A RECOMMENDATION LETTER?

Recommendation letters can help you get better jobs, scholarships, even get into schools and training programs. You might need a letter to get into housing or a recovery program, or reenter your community after justice-related experiences. These letters may also be called character or reference letters, and describe how you have overcome adversity, your qualifications, communication style, ability to support others, your work ethic, skills and other good qualities you have.

Recommendation, character/reference letters give the reader an idea of who you have been, who you are today, and your potential. Recommendations express what a person who has known you, and can be objective about you, thinks you are capable of doing and why.

In this article we’re going to walk you through asking for a recommendation, including figuring out who to ask, how to ask them, when to ask, what information to include when you ask, and what to do with the letter once you get it.

WHO CAN I ASK TO WRITE A RECOMMENDATION LETTER FOR ME?

A recommendation letter is typically written by a teacher, a coach, a past employer or another adult who has had the chance to observe how you work, how you handle tough situations or who can say good things about you and your character or qualities as a person. A character reference

In Westernized corporate, educational or commercial environments, avoid asking a close family member such as a parent or grandparent, a sibling or what would be considered a first cousin, first aunt or first uncle to write your letter, because they are considered biased or not objective in those environments. That said, ask those closest to you for letters because you can use them with letters from people less closely related to you to help tell the story of who you are and what you can do.

Adults know how valuable recommendation letters are, especially when you’re young and have little job experience. So don’t hesitate to ask! Most adults are going to want to help you in any way they can.

You deserve the help.

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WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO ASK FOR A LETTER?

You can ask someone if they will write a recommendation letter in person, over the phone or via email. However, once they agree to write the letter there is information you’ll need to give them. We’ll cover that information in a moment. Let’s start with a really brief template you can use to ask someone to write about you.

Sample Request For A Recommendation Letter

Dear [NAME],

I’m applying for a [JOB or OPPORTUNITY] at [NAME the place] as a [POSITION]. I am wondering if you’d be willing to write a recommendation letter for me? As my [TEACHER/COACH/PAST EMPLOYER], you’ve seen me handle stressful situations such as [EXAMPLE], and you know that I am [insert your STRENGTHS].

I think my skills, strengths, and qualities translate nicely to [POSITION/SCHOLARSHIP/OPPORTUNITY you are applying for] and I believe your letter will help me a lot.

I need the letter by [DATE], and it is best delivered by [GIVE INSTRUCTIONS HOW THEY SHOULD SEND IT, for example emailed/mailed to this address/submitted to xyz link].

Please let me know by [DATE] if you are available to write a letter for me. Thanks so much for considering my request and for your time.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

[CONTACT INFO]

WHAT INFORMATION MIGHT I NEED TO GIVE TO MY RECOMMENDER?

You’ll want to provide your recommender with a list of your highlights, achievements and best characteristics. It can be difficult to talk about yourself this way, we know! But the more information you can provide, the easier it will be for the person to write your letter and the better that letter will be.

You can use the following prompts to customize your requests. Send this info via email or you may print it out and mail or hand it to them personally.

Not all of the following will apply to your particular situation, and that’s okay:

What is the letter of recommendation for?
- Describe the internship, scholarship, program, school, job or other purpose in detail. If the letter is just for you right now, and you'll use it later, you can just say that.
When is the due date for the letter? Ask for them to deliver it to you at least 2 days prior to the due date, or submit it online before the application due date to avoid any delays;
Provide complete mailing address, organization name and a full name of the person to whom the letter will be addressed. If the letter is just for you, include your address (e.g., your post office box, or your email is fine);
Include any instruction forms or descriptions of what's required in the letter.
- For example, most scholarships or college applications have specific information they would like to be included in letters of recommendation;
- Recovery and transitional housing programs might want to know your relationship to the justice system, recovery history/progress, medical information, and achievements;
What year/semester/dates did you work for or know this person? Were you in their class, on their team, etc.?
If you’ve been out of touch for a while, what have you been up to since then? The person is going to need an idea of what’s currently happening in your life;
What qualities do you feel you brought to the job/team/class/experience?
What did you gain from the experience of knowing or working with them?
What is one important skill, idea or habit that you learned from the job/team/class/experience that you’ll use in the future?
Reflect on any combination of the following (or ask your letter writer to use one of the following as a writing prompt):
- What three inner strengths do I have?
- What three things am I really good at (that are relevant to your relationship with the letter writer)?
- In what three ways do I contribute to the workplace (if your letter writer is work-related), or the community or our group?
- What special skills do you see within me?
- What new strengths or talents have you seen me develop over time?
What is an obstacle you overcame recently?
What contributions have you made to your community?

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO ASK FOR A RECOMMENDATION LETTER?

The best time to ask is at least three weeks before you know you need the letter, but sometimes we don’t have that much warning. You’ll want to ask at least three people to write a letter for you. This way, if one person can’t do it (because of other commitments or because they don’t feel qualified), you’ll still have two letters.

Worst case scenario is that you get one letter out of the three, best case you get three letters. Either way, the more people you ask, the more letters you’ll have. We encourage you to ask for letters of recommendation one or more times per year, and keep copies of them organized and easy to find. Asking for letters of recommendation should be a regular habit, not only when you need one for a specific purpose. You can always ask someone to update a letter with new information later, or for a new purpose.

Use this timeline:

Three weeks before you need the letter, ask at least three qualified people in your life if they would write a letter of recommendation for you;
Two weeks before the due date, check-in with the people who agreed to write a letter. Ask them if they need any more information from you. This will remind them to write the letter if they haven’t started yet;
One week prior, if you have not heard from those who agreed to write you a letter, ask someone else to write the letter for you;
Remember: If you end up with multiple letters, that’s great!

WHAT DO I DO WITH THE RECOMMENDATION LETTER ONCE I HAVE IT?

Once you receive a letter you’ll want to save it somewhere easily to find later. If you have a computer, set up a folder labeled “RECOMMENDATION LETTERS” or something similar and save each letter to that folder. If you don’t have a computer you can create the folder within your email to save them.

Finally, don’t forget to send people a handwritten or emailed ‘thank you’ for writing you a letter of recommendation. And keep your recommenders posted when you receive the good news that you got accepted, awarded or hired! They’ll want to know that their letter helped you achieve your goals and celebrate with you.