Reference letters: writing the prototype oneself

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the practice of writing one's own reference letters for graduate school applications. Participants explore the commonality of this practice, the expectations regarding content and form, and the implications of such an approach.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant shares their experience of being asked to write a prototype for a reference letter, finding it challenging and expressing uncertainty about the process.
  • Another participant confirms that writing a prototype is common practice, suggesting it allows for tailoring the letter to better reflect the applicant's strengths.
  • Concerns are raised about the awkwardness of describing one's relationship with the recommender from their perspective.
  • Participants suggest that busy academics may prefer this method as it saves them time while still allowing them to personalize the letter.
  • There is a request for resources or examples of good reference letters to understand the standards expected.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that writing a prototype for reference letters is a common practice, although some express discomfort with the idea. The discussion reflects a mix of personal experiences and varying levels of familiarity with the process.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention the difficulty of writing from the recommender's perspective and the potential lack of resources on the standards for reference letters.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals preparing for graduate school applications, particularly those seeking guidance on obtaining recommendation letters.

Karmelleon
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Hello Physicsforums,

I've been reading here for a while and like this forum a lot. For the following issue I couldn't find a suitable thread so I decided to register and ask my first question: I'm about to apply for grad school, for which I need academic references. I talked to the two academics in my department that I believe know me best. They were willing to provide recommendation letters, but suggested I should write the prototype. Now is this a common practice?

-If so, I'm not familiar with form and content standards of good reference letters, so maybe someone knows about this or has some resources to link me to?

-If it's actually not common practice, would you recommend considering other persons to ask for letters?

Your thoughts on this would help me a lot!

Best regards
 
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It really depends. I actually had to do the same thing for one of reference letters for grad school also. It was horribly difficult and I don't think I have a copy anywhere. Sorry.

The basic form is to discuss your relationship with the student, discuss their performance and make some statement(s) about how well you think they will do in grad school (or whatever they are applying to.)

I am sure if you google a bit for recommendation letters you might find something out there.
 
Karmelleon said:
I talked to the two academics in my department that I believe know me best. They were willing to provide recommendation letters, but suggested I should write the prototype. Now is this a common practice?

Best regards

In my experience it is common practice. Basically, it's a way for you to tailor the letter. Plus, the people you are asking are very busy and, while they don't have the time to write one from scratch, are willing to spend the time tweaking what you wrote.
 
I see. It is really weird to describe how a person came to know me from their point of view. But it seems I just should get used to it. Thanks for your opinions so far!
 

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