This is the part of the application process, which you are supposed to have the least control over. A recommendation letter is meant to be a confidential character assessment of you from an objective observer. It is meant to assess your academic potential and your ability to succeed in college both academically and on a personal level. At this stage in your life these letters are usually requested from your teachers or some one who is in a position of authority and is able to give a candid opinion of you. (from this stage on we are going to assume your recommender is a teacher). It is important to pick those teachers who have favorable views of you and with whom you have had a considerable amount of interaction. A good recommendation letter can often be persuasive in borderline admission cases.

The best letters are those that can give anecdotal evidence of a student’s character or performance rather than a letter that is just sprinkled with a lot of adjectives like "hardworking" or "intelligent". Anecdotal evidence also establishes the relationship between the student and the person recommending you making the letter more authentic. Sometimes students feel if they can get a head master or a person in a high corporate position to write their recommendation it will be better received even if they personally do not know the student. This is untrue. These recommendation letters are generally impersonal and can easily be spotted. It is always better to ask someone who knows you personally to write your recommendation letters.

Points you should keep in mind when asking a teacher to write a recommendation letter:

1.  How well does the teacher personally know you? How long have they taught you?

2.  Have you performed well in the subject they teach? They can then highlight your grades. Also try and pick a teacher who teaches the subject you want to major in (for eg. If you want to be an engineer, try and get a recommendation from a science teacher).

3.  Level of interaction in their class - are you an active participant? Have you made presentations or done extra work for the class?

4.  It often helps to ask your teacher very candidly if they are willing to write a favorable recommendation for you - it is better to do this politely than to assume the teacher will write you a favorable recommendation!

5.  Some colleges insist that a teacher fill out their own college form - make a note of this - and don’t forget to ask you teacher to fill this form out individually.

6.  Very rarely will a teacher be able to recall specific details about an individual student. So when you request a teacher to fill out your recommendation - make sure that you provide them with a list of your academic and extra curricular achievements. Also fill your teacher in on your future plans, where you want to study and why.