Understanding the recommendation process

Understanding the

recommendaon process

Did you know?

Each college can choose which types

of other recommenders they accept.

Many colleges ask you to include leers of recommendaon with your applicaon. These leers are

submied by recommenders. A recommender’s input helps clarify and support the informaon you share

in your applicaon. They also help inform colleges about your academic potenal and how you would t in

with their community.

Who are recommenders?

Recommenders are people who have worked with and supported you in your life. They can be individuals

in your school - like counselors and teachers. They can also be people who worked with you in

extracurricular acvies, such as coaches or employers.

There are four recommender types in the Common App: counselors, teachers, other recommenders, and

advisors.

Counselor

Counselors share informaon about you within the context of your enre class and school community.

They submit several dierent forms, including your transcript. The counselor recommendaon leer

provides insights into your academic history. They can also share informaon about achievements,

extracurricular accomplishments, and personal interests.

Teacher

Teachers provide informaon about you in the context of their classroom. They have rsthand knowledge

of your intellectual curiosity, creave thought, and wring quality. They can also contextualize your class

behavior and work habits.

Other Recommender

Other recommenders are individuals you have worked

with outside of school. They can provide context around

your hobbies, passions, and other responsibilies. The

other recommender types available in the Common

App are: Arts Teacher, Clergy, Coach, College Access

Counselor, Employer, Family Member, Peer, or Other.

Advisor

An advisor can be anyone who is assisng you with your applicaon process. One thing that makes

the advisor role dierent, is that they do not submit any forms on your behalf. Advisors can track your

applicaon progress and see PDF preview of your applicaon, if you choose to share it.

Recommendaon requirements

Every college can choose how many leers of recommendaon to require. They can also determine which

recommender types they accept. To see a college’s requirements, go to their “College Informaon” screen

in the My Colleges tab.

Asking for a leer of recommendaon

Before inving a recommender in your applicaon, it’s important to ask if they are willing to provide a

recommendaon rst. It’s best to ask in person, but an email is ok too. When asking, be respectful of your

recommenders’ me. You should ask for a leer of recommendaon at least three weeks in advance of a

deadline. The more advance noce you give, the more me they have to craft a well-wrien leer.

When you are ready to send your invitaons, go to the My Colleges tab. You can invite recommenders

in any college’s Recommenders and FERPA secon. For more details about this process, check out the

applicaon guide on commonapp.org.

Supporng your recommenders

Counselors and teachers are asked to write leers of recommendaon by many students. To help make

the process easier for them, we created a set of quesonnaires for you to ll out. The informaon you

share will help them write a more personal and eecve recommendaon.

It’s also a good idea to stay in contact with your recommenders. Help keep them updated on

your applicaon deadlines and other important informaon. You can also track the status of your

recommendaons within your applicaon.

Don’t forget to thank your recommenders for wring those leers! A thank you note goes a long way.