Use the criteria below when deciding who to ask for recommendations. If you answer "no" to many of the questions below, consider asking someone else for a recommendation.
- Did they teach you recently?
- Did they teach you in a core academic subject?
- Did you do well in their class or improve dramatically?
- Did they agree to write the letter without hesitation?
- Do they know you outside of the classroom?
- Do they have time to finish a letter before the deadline?
Be sure to give your recommenders plenty of time to complete their recommendations and to thank them for taking the time to write on your behalf. We recommend you give your recommenders at least three weeks, but one month or more is even better.
You should also provide your recommenders with as much information about you as possible for them to paint a complete and accurate picture of you and your achievements. You should provide a transcript, resume/activities list, and a list of recommendation deadlines. In addition, you can include a list of colleges you are applying to or ranking, the latest draft of your personal statement, and other relevant information. We encourage you to use our Recommender Information Sheet as a resource to compile some of these details. If you don't have all of these things ready in time, we still recommend you ask your recommenders with at least three weeks notice.
You will register your recommenders in the QuestBridge application in order for them to fill out the online recommendation form, and can continue to register or change recommenders after submission. Please note that you can and should submit your application, even if your teacher recommendations have not been submitted. All materials submitted on your behalf by the teacher recommendation and School Report deadline will be considered in your application review.
See the Recommendations section of our Resource Library for more information and additional tips for recommendations.