Guideline to a Strong Letter of Recommendation from Dr. K. – FAQs

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  • Why do I need a letter of recommendation?
    Students need letters of recommendation for many different reasons. This includes admission to
    a competitive advanced professional programs, scholarship, internship, or employment.
  • What type of referral have you successfully written for your former students?
    1. Admission to medical schools, nursing programs (NP & accelerated bachelor programs), PA
      school, Veterinary school, and boarding school.
    2. An undergraduate research fellowship and a competitive merit‐based scholarship
    3. Job application, internships, and volunteer opportunities.
  • Do I need to be your student in order for you to write a letter of reference for me?
    In most cases, you have to be my student and have completed the class. However, I have
    written a letter of recommendation for someone who has worked with me on a project for a
    period of time.
  • When should I request a reference from you?
    The answer is always ASAP (as soon as possible). The more time you give me, the better I can
    write it for you; I have time to reflect! You may discuss it with me in advance. I will NOT be able
    to fulfill your request if you notify me less than 4 weeks or 1 month (15 ‘normal’ working days)
    of the application deadline.
  • What information should I provide you with?
    a. The purpose of recommendation/ reference (school, job, scholarship, volunteer, etc?)
    b. Information on the program/ employer
    c. Updated Resume/ CV
    d. Personal statement
    e. Other documents which can help me to write a strong letter for you. We will discuss this case‐by‐case, depending on what you are applying for. I may request an unofficial transcript if it’s going to help your cause.
  • Do I need to get an A to obtain a strong letter of recommendation from you?
    It will be easier for me to write a strong letter of recommendation if you complete my class with
    an A. However, it is not mandatory as I also write things beyond your classroom performance.
  • Will an A in the course be sufficient to obtain a strong letter from you?
    No. I look for things beyond your overall class performance (see number 6). A GPA‐focused “A” student who does not have a genuine interest in learning and passion in the field will not receive a strong letter from me.
  • What kind of students will receive a strong letter of recommendation/ reference from you?
    Students who work hard, constantly give 110% for every class assignment, and display good course performance! Stellar achievement, defined as performance above 1 standard deviation or an overall A grade, in the course will definitely help your case. However, I also look for:

     

    1. Work ethic
      Are you always late coming to the classroom/ lab? Do you work well with your classmate? And many others.
    2. Grit, hard work, and resilience
      This includes the amount of ‘perceived’ effort you put into the assignments (lab notebook, concept map, etc) throughout the class and the consistency
    3. Overall behavior and attitude during the course.
      Do you have a genuine interest in learning the course material or do you solely care about maintaining a certain grade point average (GPA)?
    4. Communication skill
      Both written and speaking
  • Why do you care about these things (above)?
    Many competitive scholarships, admission committees, and (especially) employers put more emphasis on things other than GPA; they can always look at your academic performance by requesting your academic transcript. The purpose of a letter of recommendation/ reference is to obtain several aspects of the applicants that are not apparent from GPA alone.
  • Will you write a bad letter of recommendation?
    No. I have never written, and will never write, a bad letter of recommendation. If I believe that I am unable to write a good letter of recommendation (with varying degrees of strength), I will let you know so you can find another recommender. I will not waste my time and your chance by writing a bad letter of recommendation.