Writing an effective and supportive recommendation letter

Writing recommendation letters on behalf of students and other early‐career researchers is an important mentoring task within academia. An effective recommendation letter describes key candidate qualities such as academic achievements, extracurricular activities, outstanding personality traits, part...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The FEBS journal 2022-01, Vol.289 (2), p.298-307
Main Authors: Sarabipour, Sarvenaz, Hainer, Sarah J., Furlong, Emily, Jadavji, Nafisa M., Winde, Charlotte M., Bielczyk, Natalia, Shah, Aparna P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Careers
Extracurricular activities
faculty development
graduate education
Humans
mentoring
Mentoring - standards
Mentors - psychology
recommendation letter
research culture
Research Personnel - education
Research Personnel - standards
Writing
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Summary:Writing recommendation letters on behalf of students and other early‐career researchers is an important mentoring task within academia. An effective recommendation letter describes key candidate qualities such as academic achievements, extracurricular activities, outstanding personality traits, participation in and dedication to a particular discipline, and the mentor’s confidence in the candidate's abilities. In this Words of Advice, we provide guidance to researchers on composing constructive and supportive recommendation letters, including tips for structuring and providing specific and effective examples, while maintaining a balance in language and avoiding potential biases. How can researchers write a supportive recommendation letter for a mentee or a colleague? What considerations must be made to write appropriate letters for different opportunities? This Words of Advice article provides guidance to researchers on composing effective recommendation letters, including tips for structuring and supporting the letter with relevant specific information, while maintaining a balance in language and avoiding potential biases.
ISSN:1742-464X
1742-4658
DOI:10.1111/febs.15757