How to ask for a strong recommendation letter

References carry weight in most scholarship and admissions decisions, and applicants have more influence over them than it might seem. The quality of a letter depends largely on who you ask, how you ask, and what you give them to work from.

You cannot write the letter, and you should not try. What you can do is choose the right person, give them enough time, and put the facts they need in front of them so the letter they write is specific rather than polite and vague.

Choosing referees

Seniority is less important than familiarity with your work. The person to ask is someone who can write specifically and credibly about you. A lecturer who supervised your project and can describe it in detail will usually write a more useful letter than a well-known professor who taught you in a hall of two hundred and barely remembers your name.

Look for people who:

• have seen your work at close quarters and can give examples
• can speak to whatever the application values, whether that is research, leadership or academic ability
• are likely to write warmly about you

Most applications ask for two or three referees, so think about how they cover you between them. A project supervisor who can describe your research and an employer or community leader who has seen you take responsibility say more together than two lecturers who taught you similar courses. Check what the funder or programme asks for first; some specify that referees must be academic, or that one must know your work.

If someone seems hesitant when you ask, take that as an answer and approach someone else. A reluctant referee rarely writes a strong letter.

When to ask

Allow several weeks. Letters written in a hurry tend to be short and general, and the people you most want to ask are often the busiest. Many lecturers are also writing letters for other students at the same point in the year, so an early request is easier to fit in.

A rough schedule, working back from the deadline:

1. Six to eight weeks beforeMake your shortlist of referees and check what the application requires of them.
2. About six weeks beforeAsk each referee, in person or by email, whether they feel able to write a strong letter.
3. Once they agreeSend the information pack described below, in one message.
4. When the portal opensRegister their details so the request reaches them, and tell them to expect it.
5. About a week beforeIf the portal shows nothing submitted, send one short, polite reminder.
6. After the resultThank them and tell them how it went.

The timings are a guide. If a deadline is closer than this, ask anyway, but say so plainly and make the referee’s job as easy as you can.

Asking

When you ask, explain what you are applying for, why, and when the deadline is, and ask directly whether they feel able to write a strong letter of support. Phrased that way, the question lets them decline politely if they cannot.

Asking in person or on a short call is often best for someone who knows you well, followed by an email with the details. If you can only email, keep the first message short. An illustrative example, with invented names:

1. 1Subject line: what it is, what for and the deadline, so it can be found again later.
2. 2The request: stated in the first lines, not after a paragraph of background.
3. 3Why them: a reminder of the work they saw. This also tells them what you hope the letter will cover.
4. 4A strong letter: asking it this way gives them an easy way to say no.
5. 5What happens next: the deadline and a promise of the details, without attaching everything to a first request.

Our reference request email template has a version of this you can copy and fill in.

Giving them material

A willing referee still writes a better letter with the details in front of them. Once they agree, send one tidy message containing:

• What you are applying for, a link to the programme or award, and the deadline.
• The main criteria the application is judged on, copied from the funder's own page.
• A short reminder of the work you did with them: the course or project, dates, and anything specific you achieved.
• Two or three points you hope they might be able to speak to, offered as suggestions.
• Your CV, and your draft statement if you have one.
• Exactly how the letter is submitted, and any word limit or form they must use.

This is not writing the letter for them. It gives them the facts they need to write a specific one. A sentence such as “Abena’s project reduced recorded waiting times at the clinic and she presented the results to the hospital management” is far more persuasive than “Abena is a hard-working student”, and a referee can only write the first if they remember the details.

Logistics and afterwards

Find out how the letter is to be submitted (online portal, email or a form) and pass the instructions on clearly. Many portals send the referee an automatic email once you enter their address, and these sometimes land in spam folders, so tell your referee to look out for it. Enter their name and email exactly as they use them.

If you have not heard anything a few days before the deadline, send a short reminder. Keep it light: a line saying the deadline is on Friday and thanking them again is enough.

Once the result is in, thank them and tell them how it went, whether you were successful or not. You may well need them again, and a referee who knows the outcome of the last letter is more willing to write the next one. For the rest of the application, the scholarship application checklist covers the other documents you will need.