GUIDELINES TO LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

What Is A Letter Of Recommendation 10 Tips For Recommenders How To Get Good Letters Of Recommendations If You Are Writing The Recommendation Yourself What Are Recommendations For? Selecting The Right People To Recommend You. How To Go About Doing It? Sample Reco 1 to 14

WHAT IS A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION The letter of recommendation is a statement issued by the recommender which is usually your college professors, Head of the Department, Project-Guide or your superior if you are working. Most universities send Recommendation forms, which are supposed to be filled by the recommender if possible. The form contains a few qualities and a scale on which each quality is measured. The recommender will usually ask you to evaluate yourself and prepare a rough draft. The recommender will then make the changes and now you can get the final copies of the letter. The recommender's designation and qualifications are very important and it should be mentioned at the end of the letter. If you have recommendation letters from someone who has taught in the US it will be a plus point for you. Please note that all the recommendation letters have to be sealed by the professor / employer (basically the recommender) and typed out on the letterhead of the college or the professor / employer. Make sure to inform the recommender that the university may call him up and inquire about you. Please note that universities do actually call up the recommender many a time. The following are some of the tips for the recommender. The student can use them when he is preparing the rough draft. In fact, you can pass these tips on to your recommenders in case they don't know what to say and don't ask you to say it. 10 TIPS FOR RECOMMENDERS

1. Review a copy of the applicant's personal statement or application essays

so that your letter of recommendation can dovetail with--not conflict with or duplicate--the rest of the application. 2. Ask the applicant to supply you with additional information like a rsum. 3. Describe your qualifications for comparing the applicant to other applicants.

I have been teaching for twenty years and have advised approximately 450 students on independent research projects over the last five years. I have personally supervised ten interns every summer for the last five years plus worked with over two hundred college graduates in my capacity as trainer for Big Bank Corp. 4. Discuss how well you know the applicant. I was able to get to know Mr. Doe because he made it a point to attend two of my sections every week when only one was required. Ms. Smith reported directly to me for two years prior to her well-deserved promotion to the position of Senior in our Big Six Accounting Firm. 5. Choose two to three qualities that you observed in the applicant. Jane has a rare blend of top writing and interpersonal skills. The combination of tenacity, analytical abilities, and good communications skills found in Mr. Doe is truly unique. 6. In discussing those qualities, support your statements with specific instances in which he or she demonstrated those attributes. Be as concrete and detailed as possible He is the only student I ever had who came to all my office hours as part of a relentless, and ultimately successful, drive to master financial theory. He was one of just ten percent in the class to receive an A. Because of Jane's writing skills, I didn't hesitate to ask her to write a report which was used by our PAC as the basis for a major policy statement. Congressman X eventually used the statement, based on Jane's sophisticated 20-page analysis of Middle East politics, in lobbying for increased funding. 7. Try to quantify the student's strengths or rank him or her vis a vis other applicants that you have observed. He was in the top 10% of his class. She has the best analytical skills of any person her age that I have ever supervised.

8. Avoid generalities and platitudes.

9. Include some mild criticism, typically the flip-side of a strength.

The only fault I have encountered in him is his retiring nature. His modesty sometimes hides a young man of remarkable strength and broad interests. Occasionally, her fortitude and persistence can turn into stubbornness, but usually her good nature and levelheadedness prevail. 10.Discuss the applicant's potential in his or her chosen field. I enthusiastically recommend Mr. Doe to your business school. This well-rounded student will be a fine businessperson.. With her exceptional leadership, writing, and quantitative skills, Ms. Smith will be an outstanding strategic consultant and and a credit to the business school she attends. HOW TO GET GOOD LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATIONS Most of the materials you submit for the evaluation of your application to a graduate program are objective and quantitative: grade-point average, Graduate Record Exam scores, class standing, and so forth. Letters of recommendation are the important exception; they should mention all your positive qualities not revealed by objective data such as GRE scores. A substantive letter from an informed referee can often be very persuasive to graduate admissions committees, especially in "borderline" admissions decisions. Letters of recommendation may touch on the following points of potential interest to graduate admissions committees:

How good are your research skills (of great interest to most graduate programs)? Do you offer thoughtful contributions to class discussions? Do you have good interpersonal skills that enable you to get along with faculty and other students? Do you exhibit strong leadership skills? Have you contributed to the various extracurricular activities of the Department such as Psi Chi and the Psychology Club?

By mentioning subjects like these, letters of recommendation can provide the "big picture" of your overall promise and potential, something not necessarily revealed by test scores, but every bit as important for predicting success in a graduate program. Admissions committees know this, and they read letters carefully. Letters of recommendation play an especially important role if there is some anomalous or seemingly contradictory aspect of your application. For example, consider a student whose financial or family problems had an adverse impact on academic performance during a particular year. A letter- writer can offer an explanation that prevents this from being held against the student.

Most schools ask you to provide three letters of recommendation. Naturally, you should get letters from faculty who know you best. A bland or neutral letter, from somebody who knows you only as a name on a class roll, can hurt more than it helps. Good prospects for good letters are your advisor and those faculty teaching the smaller, intensive courses required of all majors such as Statistics and Research Methods (your grades in which graduate schools review especially carefully). Other helpful letters could be provided by faculty with whom you have done Directed Research, those from whom you have taken several courses, or faculty with whom you have an affinity and who know you well. Ideally, your referees (letter-writers) are your advocates for admission. However, their advocacy can be only as effective as their knowledge about you. The single best thing you can do, to get a good letter of recommendation--particularly if a teacher does not have a long acquaintance with you--is to provide your letter writer with useful information. Here is the type of information letter writers often find helpful:

your overall GPA a list of psychology courses you have taken, and grades earned your minor if you have one the titles and abstracts of any research papers you have written honor societies to which you belong awards that you have won activities in which you have participated (and any offices held) work experience service activities such as volunteer work a description of your professional goals

With this information, you can help your referees make their best possible case for you, to help you attain employment or admission to graduate school. IF YOU ARE WRITING THE RECOMMENDATION YOURSELF Make them sound different Writing all your recommendations in the same style is just asking for trouble. Remember that these recommendations will stay on your record for a long time to come. So even if you aren't caught during the application phase, it's quite possible that they'll come to haunt you, say, when you're begging for an assistantship. Don't use too many superlatives. None, if possible. And never in pairs. Saying that you're the 'most brilliant' student to have walked the halls of the college is poor English and likely to result in that recommendation getting excluded if your transcripts don't back it up. Make it believable There's no doubt that you're the brightest student your professor has ever seen (like the dozen others who have asked him to recommend them). But if your professor puts you in the top 5% in every category that he's been asked to rank you, and your transcripts show that you averaged in the bottom 25% of your

class, it's bound to raise some eyebrows. So take it easy on those adjectives and percentages. Make sure you match up the assessments in the recommendation with the hard figures that your transcripts reveal. Try and talk about aspects of your personality that haven't been covered elsewhere The recommendation really is a magnificent opportunity to do this. So instead of getting your professor to describe your entire project (which you've already talked about in your resume/essay), say that he saw you grow during the year that you were assisting him on the project. How your already superior fundamentals in the subject were reinforced by your having developed considerable finesse and accuracy in the laboratory. Refer to the essay writing part of this site Think of it like an essay. In fact, it is an essay. So for god's sake, give it structure and flow; and work on that content. Try to get across outstanding achievements Read your resume and essay again. See if this recommendation provides you with a chance to bolster some of the claims you've made elsewhere. Co-ordinate with your goals Think of what you'd like to be doing in the near future. For example, science and engineering students generally seek assistantships in research or teaching once they're at their university. It's quite likely that the person reviewing your application for an assistantship will look at your application recommendations. If someone recommending you has said something about your having presented a seminar on 'Big dams are examples of poor engineering', or having conducted outstanding research as part of your project, it would substantially add to your chances of clinching the assistantship. Use discretion and good judgement Since you're depending on others for this part of the application, your staying sensible is of utmost importance. Everything from scheduling meetings with the person recommending, to giving them a deadline, to suggesting what they should highlight in their assessment requires a lot of tact on your behalf. So stick you WHAT ARE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR? Recommendations are meant to provide a third-person perspective on you as an individual. While your grades/scores are supposed to represent your intellectual capabilities and your essay allows you the opportunity of presenting your point of view, recommendations by those who know you give the university an independent assessment of your skills and qualities. Unfortunately, a number of applications ask for elaborate recommendations that are frequently a burden on faculty and superiors. It's not uncommon to hear of faculty asking the student to write his/her own recommendation and then editing them for effect. This is even more likely to be the case in a work environment, where few would like to waste their time answering often absurd questions.

In response to requests from visitors to our site, we've decided to provide some advice on how to make the most of your recommendations. Here's what we, ..uh, recommend... Please note that by no means do we endorse the practice of applicants writing their own recommendations. It put many students in a position they'd rather not be in. But the sad fact is that many applicants have little say in this matter. And even if you are fortunate enough to have people around you who are prepared to write up their own recommendations for you, there are certain aspects you could try to keep in mind. SELECTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO RECOMMEND YOU. Do they know you well enough You don't want to go for someone who doesn't remember your name. Which is why it's always prudent to stick with immediate superiors or professors (in an academic setting). More importantly, will the university believe that they know you well enough. If the CEO of the firm where you interned is recommending you, make sure it's clear that your interaction with the recommender is apparent in the write-up. The University could very well question the credibility of a recommendation if it appears to have been manipulated. How much credibility are they likely to hold with the university. In academia, professors are likely to carry more weight compared to labassistants. In any case, make sure that the professional competence of the person recommending you is apparent. Are they likely to give you a positive recommendation And you want to be doubly sure of this. You may want to stay away from the unreliable ones. If necessary, approach the person and ask them upfront. Since they're likely to have written recommendations for applicants before, it's not too much to expect them to understand your anxiety. However, use your discretion in case you aren't too sure of how he/she will react. Get some variety into your recommendations For multiple recommendations, look out for whether the recommendations are likely to rehash the same aspects of your personality. As far as possible, get recommendations from people who've interacted with you in different situations. For example, an engineering student would be well advised to get recommendations from a professor, a lab instructor and someone like a project guide. The professor could attest to the student's keen sense of class participation. The instructor could focus on his/her skills in the laboratory and the project-guide on his/her flair for research and getting to the root of problems. Co-ordinate your recommendations with the rest of your application If the somewhere in rest of your application you've focussed on something like a particular project, it would be particularly useful to try and build on that by providing a recommendation from the person who guided you through that project. Likewise, if you've talked about your biggest achievement at work, how about getting your boss at the time to recommend you.

HOW TO GO ABOUT DOING IT? Make a list of persons you are going to ask to recommend you. If possible, jot down a few extra names whom you could depend on in case of an emergency. Make sure they are willing to do so. Talk it over with them. See if they are reasonably sure they'd like to do for you. Be clear that recommendations are a pain for everyone involved, but most so for those who have to actually write them up. No one enjoys writing recommendations. And so you can't depend on someone who isn't too sure he/she'd like to recommend you. Make sure they know what you want to do If they knew you were interested in marketing research and not finance, maybe they wouldn't have said that you'd be a great asset to the finance class. Of course, the persons recommending you are often busy people, so you may want to give them a note alongside the rest of the material we've listed in our next point. ShowTime Each of the persons recommending you deserves a copy of your resume. Along with that, give them the original recommendation form and a copy too. In this copy, give them points that you'd like covered in their write-up. If the form asks them to list an incident where you displayed leadership skills, it'd make it easier for them if you have provided them with a few incidents that you think would be suitable. Let them do the descriptive part. Your job is to make sure they remember a few relevant incidents. You could even attach a note saying that you'd rather they talk about your pet project, etc. Related Issues Make your timeframe absolutely clear. And while we're on the topic, be considerate and give them a few weeks to prepare your recommendation. Be sure that you've given yourself a buffer of a week or two to make up for unexpected exigencies. Also clear up whether they'd like to mail the recommendation themselves or whether they want you to do the needful. Consult the application brochure to make sure you're aware of what your university prefers. SAMPLE 1 Please use these samples as a guideline and do not reproduce this same draft to your recommender It gives me great pleasure to introduce Mr.Applicant as a promising and sincere student of our institute. I have been closely acquainted with from past four years of his undergraduate studies at your college name I had taught him the subject of Applied Mathematics which is the backbone of computer science for three years . I found him very sincere , responsible and dedicated to his course work. He has interacted very closely with me and I am satisfied with him the level of proficiency achieved by him in Applied Mathematics . One of his qualities was that he used to get deeply involved in his work . He has leadership qualities and was a active member of our student council. He used to take active part in

debates in our college . He was a good orator and has an excellent command over the English language. His intelligence ,sincerity and pleasing personality make him an asset to your graduate program at your university. I strongly recommend admission for him in your graduate school and for any financial assistance you can offer .I am confident that he will not only continue to be a promising and competitive student but would also be capable of efficiently discharging his duties as graduate assistant as exemplified in the past. I wish him all the success for his future endeavors. Prof. XYZ Phd.(MIT)

I have known Mr.XYZ for the past one year in my capacity as a Head of the Department of Computer Science. I have taught him Computer organization and Database Management Systems. He is a sincere and promising student of our institution. XYZ was one of the few students who took the initiative to make presentations during the duration of his course. His presentation on comparative study of database modeling was very informative and helpful to other students. He was invariably well prepared for his lectures. He is attentive and fields questions with ease. I judge XYZ to be one of the best students in the class. He has an excellent command over the English language and expresses himself clearly. I strongly recommend him for Graduate Studies at your university and for financial assistance in the form of Research or Teaching assistantship. I am confident that he will live up to your expectations Dr.ABC SAMPLE 2 Recommending (YOUR NAME), a student of mine for the past two years is a great pleasure for me. I have taught him (NAME OF SUBJECTS) during his third and fourth year. He is one of the sincere, versatile, and brilliant students. His meticulous, thought provoking nature and ability to do hardwork make him an excellent candidate for research work. His proficiency and dedicated work during lectures and practicals impressed me. He is punctual and perfectionist about his studies and assignments which place him above all. His dependable and trustworthy nature, modesty and tactfulness came forward when he was crewmember in our intercollege festival (NAME OF FESTIVAL). As I tried to know more of him, I found that he was selected in (NAME OF SOME EXAM IN SCHOOL DAYS) during his school days.

He has good aptitude and curious mind to be successful in graduate studies. From my heart, I feel he is a worthy candidate for admission to your university. I recommend him with great confidence. Sincerely,

NAME OF PROF.
SAMPLE 3 I know (YOUR NAME) for the past two years. He is a sincere and brilliant student. I have taught him subjects of '(SUBJECT)' and '(SUBJECT2)' in which his performance has been superlative. He scored (GOOD %) in '(SUBJECT)' during his semester examination. He is a promising young student with good academic skills and innate talents. While answering his queries and doubts during lectures, I found that he has penchant for research work. The diligence and intellectual ability, which he displays during practicals, are a clear indication of his research potential. His untiring industry and his scientific methodology make him unique form the rest. He is doing his final year project ('NAME'), under my guidance. I have seen his dedicated work and inquisitive nature, which he portrayed during this project work. Apart from his academic career, he is actively involved in extracurricular activities. He was a member in the inter-college festival (NAME OF FESTIVAL). He has also participated in many college functions and seminars. I am sure, he is a deserving candidate for research work and I sincerely feel, if given a chance (YOUR FIRST NAME) will definitely attain success in his further studies. It gives me great pleasure to recommend him to you. Sincerely, NAME OF PROF. SAMPLE 4 (YOUR NAME) has been my student for the last two years. I have taught him subjects like (NAME OF SUBJECT1), (NAME OF SUBJECT2') and (NAME OF SUBJECT3). He is brilliant student who shows spark in his undergraduate studies. Because of his ability to learn subject from grassroots, I rate him as sincere student. I am confident that his concentration, systematic work and great skills in performing practicals will help him to achieve great success. He is a promising young student with a penchant for learning. He is zestful and a versatile student. He takes part in many college functions. His courteous and reliable nature shines in intercollege festival (NAME OF FESTIVAL) I appreciate his work during his undergraduate years and with full confidence I recommend him to you. Sincerely,

NAME OF PROF.

SAMPLE 5
It gives me immense pleasure to drop a few lines as reference for XXXXXX, a chemical engineering student in my capability as the Head of the Institution. The knowledge obtained in his discipline from one of the best colleges in India is praise worthy. The college has provided creative knowledge to build a successful career. I should take privilege in explaining the chemical engineering program the student has undergone. The program mixing the theoretical knowledge with practical information is one of the elite of our institution. The well-resourced faculty and the well equipped laboratories certainly have cleared the uncertainties. The marks confirm his capacity and so does college. In my evaluation he has been one among the class talents. I can confidently place him among the top 10 students. Apart from his academics, he has involved in various student activities in the institution. His contribution in the Guest lectures by various industrial personalities and the national level technical symposium conducted by chemical engineering association received appreciation. He represented the college football team for four consecutive years. I conclude my assessment with the self-belief that his inbuilt talent and the requisite skill provided by the institution will make him a successful person. I am confident that he will prove to be a resourceful student and certainly fulfill your expectations in all aspects. So I strongly recommend him for your esteemed university with assistantship.

SAMPLE 6
I am very glad to pen the letter of recommendation for X. I have known him for four years and I can make an appraisal as the Head of the Chemical Engineering Department, professor and project guide. As a professor I handled two vital subjects along with practical classes, Fluid Mechanics and Chemical Reaction Engineering. The interest he showed in my subjects is highly laudable. The performance in these subjects of scoring good marks at the university level confirms his capacity. Considering his knowledge, commitment, curiosity in my subjects, I can place him among the top 5% in his class. His project titled "Manufacture of Hydrogen Cyanide" consisting of precise literature, material balance and energy balance, equipment designing, and plant layout is praise worthy. The attention and the work he showed in finishing it received appreciation. He has glib English. I was able to observe at his project presentation and while delivering address in the association functions.

Apart from academics, he participated in various activities of our association. He served as the prominent association member and in the progress elected as treasurer of the association and the national level technical symposium. He has also received many awards for representing college football team and involving in student activities. I conclude my assessment with the confidence that X is a resourceful candidate. I am certain that his dedication with sufficient knowledge will be an able substance for research. Therefore I recommend him for the graduate degree at your esteemed university with funding.

SAMPLE 7
It gives me great pleasure to drop a few lines as note of reference for X, a student of chemical engineering program. I have known him closely for the past four years as a senior lecturer. In my evaluation he is a sincere and potential student of our department. I handled two problematic subjects coupled with practical classes, Heat Transfer and Mechanical Operations. The basic mathematical knowledge and innovative thinking in solving tedious problem and rapidity in understanding the concepts impressed me a lot. His curiosity in knowing the application areas of the theoretical concepts is also exemplary. He approached me with his original ideas intensified the affinity and paved the way to share more thoughts. In practical classes his dedication in arriving at the exact reading, and the perseverance and patience in doing long time experiments often drew the attention of mine. The determination in updating the data and meticulous work in the laboratory proves his potential to be a research student. The lectures he presented in the seminar classes revealed his higher degree communication skills. X is a person with unique qualities. I had many chances to observe his qualities. The involvement he showed in various student activities particularly while leading the whole student team in conducting the national level technical symposium led the way for appreciation and awards. He has also been a part in cultural activities and a prominent player in the college football team. I conclude my assessment saying that the multi talented personality will be a tangible asset. So I recommend him to your esteemed university with financial aid.

SAMPLE 8
It gives me immense pleasure to recommend X to your department, whom I have known for the past three years as the Head of Computer Science, which puts me in a position to make a true estimate of his innate capabilities.

During the course of his study, X proved himself to be a hard worker and a good team player. His work was always thorough and comprehensive, and his analytical skills are very good. Apart from the regular course work, his impetus and capacity for independent study propelled him to do projects in Steganography, Macro-processor, Instant Messaging and Gaming. He has self-motivation to understand new technologies quickly and get a clear and in-depth understanding of it. Inclined to research, he wrote a paper on Stored-Random Early Detection for Congestion Avoidance which was presented in the National Level Technical Symposium and he is working to improve reliability in the existing peer to peer system in his project Hybrid Replicating Peer to Peer System. Apart from programming, he is popular among his counterparts for explaining things in a lucid manner. His classmates benefited the most when he handled critical concepts in Computer Networks such as Congestion control and Routing algorithms. His command over English complements his excellent communication skills. He was one of the organizers of the System Design, Surprise events in our technical symposium Virtuoso `01 `02, and is an active participant in the Placement activities. I would rank him in the top 5% of all students, I have evaluated with in the past years. I would strongly recommend him for the graduate program with full financial assistance.

SAMPLE 9
It gives me great pleasure to introduce X whom I know as an undergraduate student in Computer Science and Engineering. I have taught him the Discrete Structures, which I handled in his pre-final year, provided me an opportunity to closely follow and observe him. He has maintained an excellent academic record and has been a consistent performer in the various tests and exams conducted. I was impressed by his ingenious skills and aptitude to solve any problem. He has a good grasp of the fundamentals of computer science and he integrated the concepts of Discrete Structures in his projects to optimize the solution. He is an attentive and inquisitive person in learning new technologies and hence I strongly believe that he has an enormous potential for a rigorous advanced study and research. I was impressed by his paper on Stored-Random Early Detection for Congestion Avoidance which confirmed his inclination towards research. He has a good command over both written and oral English and has the potential to become a good teacher. His greatest asset is his practical approach and handling difficult situations with ease. This was evident when he organized the National Level Technical Symposium Virtuoso 01 02. With his outstanding intelligence, uniqueness and dedication, I place him among the top 5% students I have taught. I strongly believe that he has high potential

for success in higher studies and strongly recommend his candidature for admissions to M.S program in your University with full assistantship.

SAMPLE 10
I am very much pleased to issue this letter of recommendation for X who has been one of my most illustrious students for the past two years. I have taught him Software Engineering, TCP / IP and Artificial Intelligence. This has given me the chance to determine his scholastic credentials for future studies. He contributed by taking seminars on various topics and exhibited his ideology on computer science. He has the inclination to analyze technical details to its minutiae. His interests include solving conundrums and optimizing solutions. I would rank him among the top 5% of the students in his class. He is a very conscientious and a good team player. He has done innovative projects exploring new technologies. He proved his research credentials when he wrote a paper on Stored-Random Early Detection for Congestion Avoidance which was presented in the National Level Technical Symposium and he is currently working to improve reliability in the existing peer to peer system in his project Hybrid Replicating Peer to Peer System. He is cheerful and unassuming. I had always found him proactive and initiative. I appreciate his active participation in organizing our National Level Technical Symposium, Virtuoso 01 02. His communication is clear, concise, and evocative. His intellectual ability, originality, creative research potential, excellent teaching skills and co-operation while working in a team are his main forte. I strongly recommend X for admission with full Financial Assistance in your esteemed institution. I am confident that he will prove to be an excellent researcher as well as a tutor.

SAMPLE 11
I have known X as a sincere and highly motivated student in the Electronics and Communication Department for the past three years in my capacity as Professor, Head of the Department (Electronics and Communication Engineering). With this background I am sure I can assess her capabilities for a future academic career. I have handled the subjects Solid State Circuits-II and Communication Engineering. The quality of interaction she had with me during the class impressed me. Her alertness in the class room and her involvement in research were indicative of her abiding interest in the subject. She has performed very well in her assignments and class works with a good analytical approach towards understanding the root of any problem. Her ardor for a deeper understanding of the subject has enabled her to acquire a good technical knowledge.

She has maintained a healthy academic record and has been ranked among the top 5% of the students of her class. She has done innovative projects exploring new technologies. She proved her research credentials when she pursued research on ECG waveforms. She created an ECG SIMULATOR with which won her laurels in National Level Technical symposiums and got credit to the institution. She has also done fair number of project and papers presentation exploring new technologies. She is capable of independent planning, organizing and execution of assigned tasks. She is very enterprising, co-operative and responsible .By her genial disposition, patience and strong integrity, she has always excelled in group tasks, which was evident when she was one of the coordinators of Digitalk 2002 a National Level Technical. Besides her academic interest she has also been the treasurer of the Rotract Club and has handled the responsibilities and pressure with ease. She has got very good communication skill and has clarity of thought combined with good command over English Language. She has delivered several seminars and lectures. In these she portrayed her capabilities as a teacher. I feel that her academic proficiency and potential for research makes her one of the truly outstanding candidates I have come across. I recommend her strongly with no reservation for admission to the Graduate Program at your University preferably with financial aid.

SAMPLE 12
I have known the applicant X for the past three years as an undergrad student in our institution. I have interacted with him both on and off the classroom and hence I can confidently assess his capability. He is a well-disciplined and enthusiastic student with a high degree of scholarship. He holds an excellent academic record and I would place him in the top 2% of students I have come across. He has an insatiable zeal to learn more about the subject as he delves into it, which increases his realm of knowledge beyond the limits of syllabus. He has the ability to visualize and link together the fundamentals of each subject. He has good English proficiency which makes him an ideal student for research. I have been observing him in terms of personality and academics and would unhesitatingly state that he is most suited for a research career. I strongly recommend his candidature for admission with full financial assistance for graduate studies at your institution.

SAMPLE 13
It gives me great pleasure to pen this letter of recommendation for X who has been an outstanding undergraduate student in Electronics and Communication Engineering Department. As an Assistant Professor and Project guide for X, I

have known him for the past three and a half years. I find him to be highly motivated, disciplined and of exceptional character. I have taught him the courses Measurements and Instrumentation, Antennas and Wave Propagation, Television Engineering, Microwave Communication, and one practical paper in Microwave Communication. In each of these classes, I have found him to be actively involved with the class discussions. Academically, I would rate him among the top % of the students in a class of 65. His current project Smart Camera Surveillance System is in line for the best project award. Apart from this project, he has also undertaken and completed a project Speech Verification using Virtual Instrumentation. This apart, he has conducted a research on Infrared communication during his semester holidays. He is currently carrying out his research in wireless communication. He has participated in Digitalk 2k2, a technical symposium conducted by our department. He has also taken active part in many seminars. A few days ago, he presented a seminar regarding his current project in which he gave an introduction into the tools and techniques used in the project. I was truly impressed with his oratorical skills. His command over English is also excellent. Judging from the amount of research and his thirst for better understanding, I find him to be an apt student to pursue higher studies in your esteemed university with full financial aid.

SAMPLE 14
X, being an intelligent, hardworking professional, it gives me immense pleasure in recommending him. As the Head of Department, I have been closely associated with him over the past three and a half years. I have handled two courses for him namely, Solid State Circuits II and Communication Engineering. Being an avid reader, he has the habit of keeping in touch with the latest developments. His analytical and mathematical skills are unsurpassed by most in his class. He has done a project in designing a protection circuit for a rechargeable watch. The project titled Overcharge Prevention for REQ is currently being implemented by one of the leading watch manufacturers in India. His diligence is reflected in his percentile of marks and he ranks among the top % of students in his class. He has also participated in many seminars and has organized many functions. Last year he took active part in our department function as the Master of Ceremony. An active member in class, his insatiable thirst for knowledge has resulted in many an interesting discussion. His command over English is impeccable and he has excellent communication skills. A highly disciplined student in every aspect and a true prodigy is the best way I can describe him. I have faith that he will perform very well if given the chance to prove himself. I would therefore recommend him to your university with financial aid.