How to Write a Good Recommendation Letter
As a job seeker or an aspiring student, how to write a good recommendation letter is a subject that you should relate to right from the start. Recommendation letters also known as referral or reference letters, are kinds of letters used to provide information about you to a potential boss, commend you to an undergraduate or graduate course, recommend you for an award or promotion and much more.
This is a kind of letter that presents an effective means whereby your capabilities and positive characteristics can be shared with other people and from which policy-makers can analysis your capability. Writing reference letters is a process that involves holding skills that will be of great significance when applying for a job or scholarship opening. A good reference letter can make or break a job or college search, and it thus takes time to learn how to write a good recommendation letter.
An Overview on How to Write a Good Recommendation Letter
A good recommendation letter is a core component of a good college or job search. A job seeker has to remember that his abilities and qualifications are not enough to land him to a well-paying job or acquire support from qualified and experienced people who are willing to support his candidature. This letter acts as a vehicle for a former employer to offer you a dependable account of your abilities, achievements and job performance.
Credibility of your letter is one of the core things to keep in mind as you learn how to write a good recommendation letter. Letters that are necessary for college admission are usually written by an academic advisor, an administrator or faculty member. Writing good recommendation letters is not an easy task if you are not well acquainted with a number of components of good letters and these include;
- You have to stay positive, honest and personal. Provide personal accounts regarding your work experiences with the person seeking job or a college admission vacancy.
- Ensure you qualify yourself in every recommendation letter that you write. Write about when you met with the job seeker and how long you have known him or her.
- State the kind of relationship you have with the person in question.
- Make clear why the chance to back this person excites you and state how your feel on being assigned this task.
- Identify a number of qualities of the person you are writing the reference letter for that will attract the college administration or the potential employer.
- Expound in your letter why you feel the job seeker or college applicant will be a good fit for the company in question. Identify a past work experience that would be a perfect example for his or her contribution.
- Let the employer or college administration know how to contact you directly in case of any information or clarification on the job seeker or applicant.
- Make sure that you are relevant enough and do not go wrong on the side of brevity.
Things to Consider As You Write a Recommendation Letter
Students or job seekers will never cease to seek help on how to write a good recommendation letter. Many do not know where to start when in need of a reference letter and seeking aid from experts is the only way to solve this issue. As a good writer, if you receive as student or job seeker request to write a recommendation letter, do not rush into accepting or declining this request. Here are a few things to consider when making your decision;
- Your knowledge of that student- Consider whether you know that student well enough to write a positive letter.
- Your qualifications-. You have to be able to speak the strengths of the applicant, but also tailor them to their college or company of choice. Focus on the student’s or job seeker’s abilities which are relevant to the discipline.
- Consider your own schedule- Contemplate whether you have enough time to write a good letter of recommendation.
If you agree to write a good recommendation letter for a student or job seeker, you have to gather information to help in writing your letter. Here are methods to embrace gathering information to help in writing your recommendation letter;
- Meet the student in search for college vacancy to discuss their career or academic goals. Ascertain about any other relevant activities that can aid tailor your recommendation letter.
- Contemplate why the student has chosen as you as the recommender.
- Ask the student or job seeker to create a short paragraph about themselves and their goals especially if you are not to meet them.
- Make use of the curriculum vitae of the student or job seeker and gain a few more details on them.
Writing a letter of recommendation can be quite intimidating if you do not have enough details on the student or job seeker. If you are used to writing diverse types of papers, it is not a challenge to draft, format or edit a recommendation letter. Read on and learn how to write a good recommendation letter…
- Use the standard formal letter writing agreements. A good letter of recommendation follows the same general rules and guidelines for professional writing. The address of the letter on the top right followed by date. Place the name of the recipient’s name (if known) and address. Open the letter with formal business greetings for instance Dear Sir or Madam or Dear Ms. Smith.
- Give a summary of your recommendation, describe how you know the person and how you met.
- Be certain about the qualifications of the person in question. Provide more details on the person using examples or instances on what he or she has done instead of generalities.
- As a competent writer do not exaggerate anything regarding the job seeker or student. Do not set expectations that are impossible for the candidates to satisfy.
- Be clear and direct enough to depict the credibility of the letter.
- Keep it active by starting every paragraph with a punchy and active assertion of the candidate’s traits.
- Close your letter in a positive way. Invite the recipient to get in touch with you. Embrace a business closing and sign your name.
Examples to Help You Learn How to Write a Good Recommendation Letter
Sample recommendation letters provide exceptional guidelines to inexperienced writers or help competent writers enhance their writing skills. Learning from examples can make it easy to write a letter that will guarantee a student or a job seeker a lifetime opportunity. Below are great examples that will help you how to write a good recommendation letter at ease;
- Dear Morgan
I am pleased to recommend Joseph for the position of director of development in your corporation. I was Joseph’s direct supervisor from 2007 through 2013. We worked closely on a number of projects and I go to know him very well in the course of this time……..
In this example, the writer starts with formal greetings and then goes on to give a brief explanation on how he got to know Joseph and states the period they have known each other.
- Dear Sir/Madam
I have known Esther Botha for the past three years, having been her English teacher and supervisor on the XYZ High school. I believe that she would be an excellent applicant to ABC College.
She has excellent written and spoken skills that any tutor would fancy. Botha as also helped incoming learners facing challenges in English courses. She has also been excellent in extra curriculum activities.
Botha would bring much to your college. If you have any questions concerning Esther Botha’s qualifications, kindly feel free to reach me…..
This is a section of a recommendation letter that provides more details on a college applicant. The writer explains how she feels the person in question (Esther Botha) can be a great part of the college fraternity. She also makes it clear that the concern person can contact her for more clarifications.
- To whom it may concern;
I would like to recommend Maurice Teg to your organization as a candidate for an Administrative position.
Maurice has done excellent work in this position before. He has a degree in Information Technology and management. He as well depicts exceptional written and verbal skills. He has been willing to offer his help and he has been in good rapport with clients, other staffs and other professionals in the organization. He would be a great asset to your corporation and I recommend him in any endeavor she opts to pursue…..
Yours faithfully
(Signature)
Michael Fox
Managing director
Evocue Corp.
From the above recommendation letter for a job vacancy, the writer starts with a formal greeting. He goes on to expound on the abilities and qualifications of the job seeker (Maurice). He closes the letter with great remarks and includes his name and signature.
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Online References:
http://jobsearch.about.com/od/referenceletters/a/employeeref.htm
http://career-advice.monster.com/resumes-cover-letters/cover-letter-samples/sample-letter-of-recommendation/article.aspx
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/982/02/