Mistakes to Avoid While Writing LORs

What is LOR?

Letter of Recommendation (LOR) is one of the most important documents required by the university or college during admission. LOR is a statement or document recommended by the previously attended academic institution in which the writer assesses the qualities, capabilities and characteristics of the student. It should discuss both scholarly capabilities and personal characteristics of the candidate. LOR is not only a validity of student’s claim but also to judge how the candidate is perceived by his peers.

But at times, students overlook the LOR and despite writing a strong SOP, they end up in submitting a poor LOR which in turn ruins the chances of their admission. Here, we are listing down some of the common mistakes to avoid while writing LOR.

Choosing the Wrong Recommender

Analysing and choosing your recommender is very important. It’s not a good idea to choose someone as a recommender who unable to offer an objective opinion for your LOR. You can get your LOR from a very senior authority, but it would of no use if he doesn’t know your potential. Your recommender should be someone who knows your strengths and can present them in the most convincing manner before the admission committee. A professor or teacher who has taught you would be a better choice of recommender as compared to the principal of your school.

Not Giving Enough Time to the Recommender

Rushing up to your recommender and then expecting him to provide an effective and impressive LOR is one of the most common mistakes done. Don’t assume that your recommender would be able to write your LOR within a day or two. Approaching your recommender at the last minute will not give them enough time to study your candidature which in turn would be reflected in your LOR thereby reducing your chances of securing a seat. He should be given ample of time writing LOR. Request your recommender for LOR well in advance of your deadline and keep on reminding them after regular intervals.

Not enlisting Candidate’s help

It could be case that you know the candidate very well, but you might need some information from him to write the best LOR, so ask for the information from him. Ask for a copy of resume or supporting materials to write the most effective LOR. This will help you to analyse the candidate in a better way and write an impressive LOR thereby increasing the chances of candidate’s admission.

Emphasizing Only on the Positive Aspects

No one is perfect and hence providing too many positive aspects of a candidate leads to leads to doubt in the mind of admission officer. Mentioning only the positive traits and removing negative ones will not leave any positive impact on the admission committee. The admission officers are quite well trained to analyse and understand that it has been fabricated and thus it leads to the chances of losing up your seat. There is no harm in presenting the areas where there is a scope of improvement, so include at least one negative or weak trait of the candidate and what could be the scope of improvement in that area.

Failure in Providing Relevant Examples

Your LOR should be cited with relevant examples in support of your statement. If a recommender fails to provide relevant examples in support of the candidate, then it means that either he is following a standard format of mentioning good things to make the candidate profile impressive or has fallen short of time. This will again weaken your chances towards securing your seat. So, to make LOR more effective, provide relevant examples of theoretical concepts that the candidate has applied practically and its results.

Using a Cold Tone

Although LOR is a formal document a warmth in the tone should be maintained by the recommender.

Fancy and Flashy Language

Do not use heavy or flowery words in LOR instead keep it simple and formal. Since LOR is a formal document, so avoid using slangs or short forms. Also, write it in the simple font without using italics or bold and write in black colour only making it look clean and clutter-free. And don’t cite common examples readily available online to make it look different and effective.

Exceeding the word limit

LOR should be short and should not exceed the given word limit. Most of the times, the word limit is defined by the university or college but if in case it is not given then limit the length of LOR to 500 – 1000 words. Remember that the admission committee is well trained and goes through the number of application and they won’t find it interesting to go through a lengthy LOR. They always look out for a crisp and short.

Avoiding Proofread

Once you have finalized the LOR, proofread it for any grammatical, spelling or structural error. Also, the LOR should be typewritten instead of a handwritten and if possible write on your school or college letterhead. And mention your contact details and current designation along with your signature so that you can easily be contacted for the future reference.

Regardless of the outcome, make sure to thanks your recommender to them know that their efforts were truly appreciated.

If you have any suggestion to contribute here, please mention in the comment box below. 

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