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Writing Your Own Letters
of Recommendation
by
ResumeEdge.com
- The Net's Premier
Resume Writing and
Editing Service
When requesting a letter
of recommendation, don't
be surprised if your
instructor or supervisor
hands the forms back to
you and says, "Sure, why
don't you go ahead and
write the first draft
yourself, and I'll
revise it and sign at
the bottom."
Chances are, that person
will already be handling
(or dodging) a large
number of such requests,
and in addition busy
schedules sometimes call
for letter-writing
delegation. This is
particularly true within
professional settings,
where employees are
expected to carry out
self-evaluations.
You might at first find
the assignment rather
awkward, but this is a
great opportunity to
make sure the letter
matches your goals and
effectively highlights
your most relevant
achievements. When
preparing to write a
draft for your own
letter of
recommendation, keep a
few things in mind:
Balance praise with
candidness.
Many people feel
uncomfortable praising
themselves. If you are
the shy type, cast aside
your timidity and try to
be objective about your
accomplishments. Letters
of recommendation are,
by definition,
laudatory: so grab a
sheet of paper and make
a list of your good
qualities. On the other
hand, don't completely
discard modesty and err
on the side of pure,
distilled self-praise:
your supervisor might
not agree that you are
indeed "superhumanly
brilliant", and anyway
admissions readers are
much keener on candid,
well-balanced letters
than ones rife with
superlatives.
Pick wisely and discard
the fluff.
Writing your own letter
of recommendation is not
unlike putting together
your resume: you must
choose your
accomplishments
carefully. A letter that
highlights two or three
specific qualities,
accomplishments, and
achievements is far
stronger than one that
covers all your positive
traits. If you are
having trouble paring
down the content, ask a
friend or colleague to
look over the text and
pick out the most
impressive points.
Maintain credibility.
Concentrate on making
the letter believable.
This doesn't mean just
sticking with the facts;
it means finding a voice
that accurately portrays
you from the
recommendation writer's
perspective. Remember
that the letter must be
stylistically different
from your other
submitted written work.
Vary your vocabulary,
adapt expressions, and
generally avoid phrasing
things exactly as you
did, say, in your
personal statement or
cover letter.
Avoid redundancy.
Don't repeat
accomplishments that
have been described in
detail elsewhere in your
application. The letter
should support your main
accomplishments rather
than merely rehash your
resume. Write about
these accomplishments in
a new light, expanding
on areas where you did
not have the opportunity
to elaborate on
elsewhere in the
application or cover
letter.
See the writing a letter
section.
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