letter of recommendation

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Anonymous

#476099 Tue, 12 Feb 08 04:03 PM

To teachers,

I Need to write a letter of recommendation for a student but I'm not very good at English. Would you please help me phrase in better Enslish my personal attempt hereunder?

"To whom it may concern, (is it also possible to write "Dear Madam/Sir"?)

I am writing this letter to recommend Miss L. for the "X" Amercian program.
I have known Miss L. for two years as a student of applied linguistics in the P. Institute, Italy, and she has always shown a real interest in the course. Being a hardworking student she has improved steadiIy and I can attest that her academic performances / results are now quite satisfactory. (Do I need to give more academic details ?)

She is also an active member of a theatre group / troup of students who regularly perform(s) in front of university audiences some classical plays and others of their own creation in English. She seems to dedicate much of her spare time to the cultural activities (that are) provided by our institute.

As for her personal qualities, she has always been a very friendly and respectful student who has shown, throughout the years, a great capacity of adaptation to university life.

For all these reasons I highly recommend this candidate to you. Furthermore, I believe that your programme will provide her with a valuable experience. It will help her improve even more her level of English, and deepen her knowledge of American culture and civilization.

For further information, feel free to contact me at the address above.

Yours faithfully,
F.H."

Anonymous

Yours faithfully, Dates, Universities, Whom, Letter of recommendation

Mister Micawber

#476449 Wed, 13 Feb 08 01:15 PM

.
(Note: I have changed some spelling to conform to American English practice)

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing this letter to recommend [First name, Last name] for your "X" American Program.

I have known Miss L. for two years as a student of applied linguistics at the P. Institute, [City], Italy, and she has always shown a strong interest in our program. She is a hardworking student and has improved steadily. I can attest that her academic performance has been quite satisfactory. (Do I need to give more academic details ?-- The more detail you give, without their being too long, the more effective the recommendation. Perhaps her scores, if good, and describe a project she participated in or a paper she wrote.)

She is also an active member of a student theater group which regularly performs classic and original English plays for university audiences. She dedicates much of her free time to the cultural activities provided by our institute.

As for her personal qualities, she has always been a very friendly and respectful student who demonstrates a great capacity for integration into university life.

For all these reasons, I highly recommend this candidate to you. Furthermore, I believe that your program will provide her with valuable experience, helping her improve her English level, and deepen her understanding of American culture and values.

Should you need further information, please feel free to contact me at the address above.

Yours faithfully,

[signature]

[Name]
[Title, Institution]

.

Mister Micawber

Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004

Yokohama

Veteran Member (21,256)

'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'

Yours faithfully, American English, Dates, Universities, Spelling

Anonymous

#476504 Wed, 13 Feb 08 03:26 PM

Thank you Mr Micawber for your help.
Apart from your suggestions about the academic performances I should include, is there anything else in the other paragraphs I should add?
What are the themes / subjects that you, American and British teachers, mention in your letters of recommendation?

Best regards,
Francesca

Anonymous

Regards, Paragraphs

Mister Micawber

#476695 Thu, 14 Feb 08 03:35 AM

.
I think that you have hit the appropriate ones, Francesca: (1) the student' academic ability and (2) the student's personal qualities. In this letter, under (2), perhaps a clearer mention of the student's ambition and personal drive to succeed in...(field?). But generally, it is a matter of how much you wish to expand upon these points with specific details or examples; the letter, as I said, should not be overly long, however. One page is plenty.

Mister Micawber

Anonymous

#476737 Thu, 14 Feb 08 06:15 AM

Thank you very much, Mr Micawber, for your advice.
All the best,
Francesca

Anonymous