Many scholarship applications request letters of recommendation. The request is usually 1 to 2 letters of recommendation, but may vary. Below are some tips and guidelines on how to ask for letters of recommendation.
- Read the scholarship application for any specific guidelines for the letters of recommendation.
- Ask a professor, employer, or community leader who knows you well and who will be able to write about your academic achievements, leadership experiences, and contributions.
- Provide a copy of the scholarship application, a recent resume, and a list of activities and honors to your reference provider.
- If it is a professor, you should provide the professor with a copy of past papers or projects as reminders of who you are and what kind of work you have done.
- Letters of recommendation should be typed, printed on official letterhead, and signed.
- Give your reference provider at least 3 weeks to write the letter.
- Give your reference provider specific deadlines (return to you by/postmark by/receive by/uploaded to scholarship site by).
- If the reference provider must send the recommendation letter directly to the scholarship organization, provide a self addressed stamped envelope.
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