Before you start writing a letter of recommendation for a friend, clarify the purpose of the letter itself. Is it for a job, graduate school, a volunteer position, or something else? Understanding the ...

Here is a common scene: A supervisor agrees to write your letter of recommendation with one condition—you draft it. Shocker. We, too, were surprised the first time this happened to us. We assumed ...

It is an honor to be asked to be someone’s character reference. But even if you are enthused about helping a friend or colleague out, you might feel a little intimidated by the prospect of putting the ...

Personal recommendations are an important request and require special attention to make them suitable. If you’ve been asked to write a personal letter of recommendation for a friend, you may have ...

For some jobs, especially in academia and high-profile positions, employers sometimes request that top candidates submit letters of recommendation as part of the decision-making process. In some ...

Shortly after becoming a full professor, I asked a colleague who had held that rank for years to name the greatest challenge she had faced in this ultimate chapter of faculty life. Her instant reply: ...

A character reference letter can make or break an applicant’s chances. Here’s how to write a great one. A character reference letter can make or break an applicant’s chances Before the days of ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Because of the competitiveness of the college admissions process, every piece of an application matters, including a student's ...

One of the important "service" responsibilities of academics is to write letters of recommendation. For some people, this activity — precisely because of the responsibility it entails — is daunting.

It is around this time of year, when letter-writing season is in full swing, that many professors receive numerous requests for recommendations from students and colleagues applying for graduate ...