She wants me to write my rec for her...?

[T1R3KO]

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So I TA for the intro bio lab at my school. The lab coordinator is technically my employer, but I don't see her much -- rather, the individual instructors I TA for know me much better. I have TA'd for only two instructors in my 4 semesters of doing this: one is an evil bitch with no soul (3 semesters), and one is a total sweetheart who seemed to like me a lot (1 semester). I am obviously going to the latter for a recommendation. However, this was her response:

"I would be happy to recommend you. Please write a recommendation
letter, as you think I should write it. So it's a pretend letter written
about you as me-- then I will use some of your info to write the actual
letter, with a little of my own insights. This helps me to remember and
to learn maybe a little relevant stuff that I didn't even know."

I have no idea what goes into a rec letter! Help? 😕

 

[diosa428]

Start by stating that you're writing a letter of rec, include how she knows you, talk about your responsibilities and characteristics of yourself that you want to include. Then talk about other stuff that you'd like highlighted in your letter. Some ideas:

To Whom it May Concern:
I am writing to you regarding T1R3KO, a senior at xx university, whom I am strongly recommending to you for admission into medical school. T was a TA for my course, xxxx, for one semester. His responsibilities included xxx, xxx and xxx. I found T to be conscientious, reliable, and hardworking. I also found him to be easygoing and pleasant to work with. He worked well with the students and went out of his way to ensure they had a solid understanding of the material. Blah blah blah.

T is also a member of xxx club and works at xxxx. While participating in these activities, he has been able to maintain a GPA of xxx. Blah blah blah. Based on xxx, xxx and xxx, I think he would perform very well in medical school and will make a fantastic physician. Please contact me if you have any questions about this excellent candidate.

 

[The Poet Sings]

see if any of the schools you're planning on applying to use a form (or recommend that you use their form), and then make sure the letter answers those questions. plus, in the event that they require a form, you'll know this now and can have her (and your other writers) fill it out asap.

 

[MrCheetah]

So I TA for the intro bio lab at my school. The lab coordinator is technically my employer, but I don't see her much -- rather, the individual instructors I TA for know me much better. I have TA'd for only two instructors in my 4 semesters of doing this: one is an evil bitch with no soul (3 semesters), and one is a total sweetheart who seemed to like me a lot (1 semester). I am obviously going to the latter for a recommendation. However, this was her response:

"I would be happy to recommend you. Please write a recommendation
letter, as you think I should write it. So it's a pretend letter written
about you as me-- then I will use some of your info to write the actual
letter, with a little of my own insights. This helps me to remember and
to learn maybe a little relevant stuff that I didn't even know."

I have no idea what goes into a rec letter! Help? 😕

Something similar happened to me. Just pretend that you are her and write a letter for you, in the most positive light that you can. Keep in mind what your instructor realistically could and could not say about you and keep the letter focused on the former.