Guidelines for Requesting Letters of Recommendation

for Graduate School or Job Applications

When professors receive requests for letters of recommendation from a large number of students, it can be difficult to manage the task. Because these letters are so important, we would like you to follow the steps below in order to make the process more efficient.

1. Give the faculty member as much time as possible to think about, draft, and finalize your letter. As soon as you have identified a professor you would like to write for you, get in touch with him or her immediately (even before assembling your materials as indicated below). Faculty typically appreciate one or two months of notice for graduate school or career letters of recommendation. See this website for more information on choosing letter writers.

2. Please compile all of your materials (see below) in a single folder or envelope with your name and the earliest due date written on the outside.

   1. Provide a copy of your unofficial transcript (printed from Capstone) and a draft of your personal statement and/or your resume/vita. On your transcript, please mark or highlight the courses taught by the letter writer. If you have already graduated and have been working for some time, please provide some description of the nature of your work since graduation. Note that the faculty member(s) who know you best would be happy to help you finalize your personal statement, vita or resume. Don't hesitate to ask us to comment on drafts.

   2. Provide a list of the programs, due dates, and desired action (i.e., return to you or to the school). When listing the programs, indicate the degree and specialization of the program (e.g., M.A. in counseling psychology, Ph.D. in clinical psychology).

   3. Provide addressed envelopes for each letter. If a letter is supposed to be returned to you directly, be sure to include the name of the school on the back of the envelope so that you can figure out which letters go with which schools. You do not, however, need to put a stamp on the envelopes.

   4. Most programs provide you with a form to be completed by your letter writer. Be sure to sign the waiver on the form (see http://www.uwm.edu/~ccp2/work/recletter.html for reasons why to waive your rights). 

   5. On each application and envelope, fill out the professor’s identifying information (except the signature of course). The appropriate information for this section can be found on the psychology department website in the faculty pages. The mailing address for all Muhlenberg faculty members is: Dept. of Psychology, Muhlenberg College, 2400 Chew Street, Allentown, PA 18104. In general, it is extremely helpful if you fill out as much information as you can on the form.

3. About a week prior to the earliest deadline, contact the letter writer and politely remind him or her about the upcoming deadline.

4. While not required, of course, it is good form to get back in touch with your letter writers and tell them the outcome of your applications. Writing thank you notes is good etiquette. Thank you gifts are entirely unnecessary (this is part of our job).  However, if you would like to give a gift, a university or organizational logo mug from the program/company you join is a great idea.