Teacher Interview – Mrs. Raphaels on Recommendation Letters

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Art credits to Lily Yang!

Wanxing Lu '17

As students enter their third year of high school and the impending thought of college approaches, many begin to consider asking their teachers for college recommendation letters. Since this process is fairly unfamiliar for most students, questions regarding the whole procedure of asking for and acquiring these letters are not uncommon. Fortunately, Mrs. Raphaels, who teaches AP Macroeconomics and Government and AP Microeconomics at Ridge, was kind enough to meet with me to give advice to those who are a bit unsure of where to start. Our conversation was as follows:

Wanxing Lu (Reporter for The Devil’s Advocate): What should students consider before asking their teachers for recommendations?

Mrs. Raphaels: Students should consider whether or not the teacher can explain how the student stood out in the class…What does the student believe he or she has communicated to the teacher during their time together? In other words, what will the teacher be able to say about the student as a unique individual?

WL: How many letters should they accumulate?

R: Students should find out how many letters (if any) are required by the schools to which they are applying.   The number of letters accepted by colleges can be anywhere from zero, to four, to an unlimited amount. Some schools have minimum requirements others have maximum requirements.  Most of the students I work with ask two teachers to write letters of recommendation.

WL: Does it matter what subject the teacher teaches or can a student ask any teacher that they like?

R: Students should keep in mind which specific programs they are applying to and how their high school experiences match with the programs’ requirements. For example, if a student is applying as an undecided major, he or she may choose the teacher they believe can write the most positive and specific letter.  However, if a student is applying for, say, an engineering program, even though his or her English teacher may be in a position to write the most glowing account of the student, the English teacher might not have evidence to write the most compelling support for a student’s qualifications for engineering. Instead, the student should consider asking a math or science teacher for a letter.

WL: About what time should students start asking for recommendation letters?

R: They should start asking for letters around the beginning of the second semester [of their Junior year].

WL: So from then until the end of Junior year?

R: Yes. Actually, I’m still finishing up some letters. Definitely wait until after January 15th, when the teachers are finished with their current letters.

W: Can you explain what teachers consider when they are synthesizing a student’s letter?

R: They think about the student’s academic performance relative to classmates, work ethic, character, and their knowledge of his or her personality. Are they the most intelligent? Are they the most willing to help others? Or do they only care about grades? If the student believes that he or she has communicated very positive attributes, such as academic talent, generosity, and helpfulness, then that’s good. On the other hand, if the teacher catches you cheating on a test, well – it’s maybe not the best idea to ask them.

W: Yeah, probably not the best decision…Anyway, thank you so much for your advice and time!

R: No problem! Also, students can start thinking now about how they can take action in their current classes to show their teachers what they can do to stand out—and it makes filling out the applications easier in the future.

To summarize Mrs. Raphaels’ words of wisdom, students should base their letter decisions off of the requirements of their individual schools, and should also be proactive in demonstrating to their teachers that they  stand out in their class, whether it be academically, personality-wise, or in some other regard. Show care for the subject matter and a willingness to help others! It’s important to make conscious decisions about academic integrity and to better the classroom environment. Best of luck to everyone!