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@emm2423
8 answers, 39 votes
 • a year ago •
Admissions Advice

Getting a good letter of rec from counselor
Answered

Hello! As the title implies, I'm trying to get a solid letter of recommendation from my counselor because basically every college requires one. Problem is, my school has 4000 students and my counselor just does not know my name.

I need to know what I can do to make an impression on her and get to know her so she can write me an actually decent and personalized letter of recommendation that stands out from the rest. I am able to go in during class time and talk to her, but I'm not sure what I should talk about/ask about that can begin to build a relationship/rapport.

Any advice is super appreciated! I know there's some form you can fill out so your counselor has some idea what to write about, but it's going to be impersonal and generic and definitely not what I need for the colleges I want to go to.

counselor
recletter
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Accepted Answer
@dannimichele
5 answers, 15 votes
 • a year ago

You can definitely be up front. Talk to your counselor about how you know you will need a letter of rec from them and how you want to ensure that you are providing as much information as possible to help her write an accurate and representative letter. If you have a resume bring that with you, a list of extra curricular, electives you're taking/planning to take, any information you'd like for her to mention in the letter that she may not know already, and anything else that can showcase who you are not only as a student but as a person outside of school.

Offer to sit with her to discuss your interest in the schools you're applying to and why you are apply to the schools and programs that you are. Also offer any additional information or documentation she may need or want that can help her in the letter writing process, mention that you know she will be writing quite a few letters and you want to make this as easy for her as possible.

All this shows initiative, but also help provide all the information she will need to write your letter and get a sense of who you are.

4
[🎤 AUTHOR]@emm2423a year ago

Thank you very much! I will definitely try to be upfront and find a time to meet and discuss all this.

@dannimichelea year ago

Of course! I know getting good LORs can be tricky and intimidating. Recommenders want to write a great letter and it's going to be difficult when there's that many students she has to write for (and also difficult when the recommender has nothing to go off of), but making it easy and standing out by showing initiative in ensuring you're going to get a good letter is going to be instrumental, and also comes across very professional (and is SO SO appreciated).

@AlexanderOddo
expert
a year ago

I second this answer! Meeting with your counselor early in the year and providing her with materials is the best way to help her create a stellar LOR. You can consolidate all of your info for her into two documents: a resume and a recommendation outline that explains everything that does not belong on a resume. Your recommendation outline can have a simple bullet point format. Hope this helps!

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