2024 Non-School Personnel Rec Guidelines

2024 GUIDELINES FOR NON-SCHOOL PERSONNEL WRITING ADMISSIONS RECOMMENDATIONS to independent secondary schools Independent schools want to know several things from those who write optional/personal school recommendations. Before you address any of their questions, though, make sure to make clear how long you have known the student, in what capacity, and how well. If you were given a form to complete, do the checklist and type out in paragraph form a “letter” that addresses the following: 1. Obviously, they are interested in the student’s specific level of achievement in your (presumably) extracurricular field. They want to know what the student’s level of achievement is relative to the average participant in the activity, including skill level and potential for future success. 2. Specific qualities about which schools are interested: ● Perseverance, keeping at it when the going gets tough/work ethic ● Ability/willingness to accept direction/criticism; resilience ● Attitude/ level of enthusiasm ● Character and integrity; degrees of honesty and reliability ● Personality, sense of humor, manners, people skills 3. Are there positive ways in which you can differentiate the student from others of his/her age? Try to use specific adjectives and avoid the simple reliance on the tried and true such as “good” and “nice.” Schools are most certainly looking for solid students who can be relied upon, but they also want to know what is special about a child—so, for example, say “proactively kind” instead of “nice,” etc. Attach your typed document to the form you’ve been provided. Ideally, the reference will be approximately 2-3 paragraphs long and contain enough specifics or anecdotes to effectively illustrate and/or substantiate your claims regarding the student. The credibility of any recommendation rises with the quality of its writing…and do not underestimate how important your reference may be in the admissions process.