cpsylist: Best Practices for Requesting Letters of Recommendation ($$)

[Ellen McWhirter]

Dear Student Colleagues,

Scholarship Season is upon us! Apply for scholarships!

COE scholarship letters are due February 3rd, 2020   (See https://coe.uoregon.edu/scholarships/college-of-ed-scholarships/).
University scholarships are due February 14 (see https://financialaid.uoregon.edu/graduate_law )

Please follow the best practices below when you request letters of recommendation for scholarships (or for anything else):

When you ask a faculty member for a letter of recommendation

  1.  Ask a minimum of 3 weeks in advance, except in very unusual circumstances.
  2.  Be efficient with our time. Include in the initial email:


A.      Your updated VC without any typos in it (get it?) and a statement of your career goals as they relate to scholarship criteria (so it would be super advantageous to have some)

B.      Names, addresses, organizations, and deadlines for each scholarship and any required supplemental forms. Fill out all parts of supplemental forms that you can and sign & scan & send with your initial email. List any directions such as "must be sealed and signed across the seal" or "Please email directly to moneybags at org.edu<mailto:moneybags at org.edu>". Put your name on all file names of attachments (imagine how many attachments faculty receive named "CV" or "final draft").
C. A list of bullet points the faculty member could highlight in writing about you that make you a great candidate for the particular scholarship(s) you are applying for- include how long you have known the faculty member and what classes you took from them (we forget what year you entered the program after a few years!). This is very helpful. We like humility, but we do not want you to practice humility when it is our goal to brag about you (note that excellent hair and superior affinity for beer are not actually things that improve the likelihood of getting a scholarship).


3.        Do send polite gentle reminder emails to the letter writers (reminders occurring before the deadline are more effective than those occurring after the deadline).

       4.   Do not send multiple emails with different pieces of information in each email. If you forget something, re-send with all of the attachments so we have everything in a single email.

       5. If you decide NOT to apply for a scholarship, IMMEDIATELY let your letter-writers know.

       6. If you receive a scholarship, please let us know!

There are many, many scholarships. There are many donors, development staff, other staff and faculty who dedicate much time and energy to generate, fund, and manage scholarships, as well as to read hundreds of applications and select awardees. Low numbers of applications suggest that students are not in need of financial support.

Thank you in advance for following these best practices.

Ellen
*******************************************
Ellen Hawley McWhirter, Ph.D.
Ann Swindells Professor of Counseling Psychology
Director, Spanish Language Psych. Services & Research Specialization
Counseling Psychology Program
5251 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-5251
(541) 346-2443 (office)
(541) 346-6778 (fax)
https://education.uoregon.edu/people/faculty/ellenmcw

I support all students regardless of immigration status or country of origin. As a member of the UO Dreamers Working Group, I support Dreamer students and promote their sense of belonging and safety as they pursue their higher education goals. For more information and resources please visit our Dreamers page (https://blogs.uoregon.edu/dreamers/) and the Immigration FAQs page (http://international.uoregon.edu/immigration_faq ). Remember, when interacting with faculty, staff, and offices around campus you are never required to reveal your status.

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