Teacher Recommendation Letters for University Applications: A Student Guide
When applying to university, particularly in the United States, you may be asked to provide a teacher recommendation letter as part of your application.
For international students, this can sometimes be an unfamiliar part of the university application process. Your teachers may also be less familiar with writing recommendation letters for US universities or submitting recommendations through systems such as the Common App.
The important thing to remember is that a teacher recommendation is not simply another academic document. It gives universities an opportunity to learn more about you as a student and a person from someone who has taught you directly.
In this guide, we explain what teacher recommendations are used for, who you should ask, how to approach your teacher, and what a strong recommendation letter should include.
What Is a Teacher Recommendation Letter?
A teacher recommendation letter is written by a teacher who knows you academically and can provide a university with additional insight into your abilities, character and potential.
Your grades and transcripts tell a university what you achieved.
A recommendation letter can help explain what kind of student you are.
For example, a teacher may be able to talk about your:
- Academic ability and approach to learning
- Work ethic
- Classroom participation
- Leadership
- Communication skills
- Resilience
- Curiosity and willingness to learn
- Growth during high school
- Relationships with teachers and other students
- Potential to succeed at university
For universities that use a holistic admissions process, particularly in the United States, this can provide useful context alongside your grades, activities, personal essay and other application materials.
Who Should You Ask for a Teacher Recommendation?
Don’t automatically choose the teacher who gave you your highest grade.
Ideally, you want to ask a teacher who knows you well enough to write something meaningful about you.
A strong recommendation from a teacher who can provide specific examples of your character, development and academic abilities may be more useful than a very generic recommendation from a teacher whose class you happened to achieve the highest mark in.
Where possible, consider teachers who:
- Have taught you recently
- Have taught you for a reasonable length of time
- Know you well
- Can comment positively on your academic ability
- Have seen your development or growth
- Teach a subject connected to your intended university degree
- Have seen qualities beyond your academic results
Always check the requirements of the universities you are applying to. Some universities may specify who should provide recommendations or how many are required.
How Should You Ask a Teacher for a Recommendation?
Ask early and politely.
Teachers are busy, and writing a thoughtful recommendation takes time. You don’t want to approach a teacher a few days before an application deadline and expect them to produce a detailed letter immediately.
Where possible, speak to your teacher personally first.
You could explain that you are applying to universities in the United States or internationally and ask whether they would feel comfortable providing you with a positive recommendation for your applications.
Make sure you also explain:
- Where you are applying
- What you are hoping to study
- How the recommendation will be submitted
- Your application deadline
- When you would ideally like the recommendation completed
Don’t assume that your teacher is familiar with the US university application process. If you are an international student, they may never have written a Common App recommendation before.
Providing clear information can make the process much easier for them.
Help Your Teacher Help You
Your teacher knows you in the classroom, but they may not know everything you have achieved outside it.
Once they have agreed to write your recommendation, ask whether it would be helpful for you to provide some additional information.
You could prepare a simple one-page document including information such as:
- The universities or types of universities you are applying to
- The degree or subject you hope to study
- Your academic achievements
- Sporting achievements
- Leadership positions
- Clubs and extracurricular activities
- Community or volunteer work
- Awards or recognition
- Challenges you have overcome
- Your future academic or career goals
- Particular projects or achievements from their class that you are proud of
You can also provide the suggested recommendation structure below.
However, don’t try to write the recommendation for your teacher or tell them exactly what to say.
The purpose is to give your teacher useful background information and reminders so that they can write their own genuine recommendation.
For example, rather than saying:
“Please say that I am a great leader.”
You might remind your teacher:
“I don’t know if it would be useful for the recommendation, but I have been captain of the school soccer team for two years and helped organise our school’s sports day this year.”
That gives your teacher useful information while allowing the recommendation to remain authentic.
What Should a Teacher Recommendation Letter Include?
There isn’t one perfect template. In fact, the strongest recommendations are usually personalised rather than following a rigid formula.
However, if your teacher is unsure where to begin, the following structure can help.
1. Introduction and Relationship to the Student
The teacher should introduce themselves and explain their relationship with the student.
This could include:
- Their position at the school
- What subject they teach
- How long they have known the student
- Which classes or year groups they taught the student in
This gives the admissions team context for the observations that follow.
2. Academic Performance
The teacher can then discuss the student’s academic abilities and approach to learning.
Rather than simply repeating grades that already appear on the transcript, it can be helpful to provide more context.
For example, they might discuss:
- Performance in a particularly challenging subject
- Strong critical-thinking or problem-solving abilities
- An excellent assignment or project
- Classroom discussions
- Independent learning
- Intellectual curiosity
- Consistency and work ethic
Specific examples are particularly valuable.
Saying that a student is “hard-working” is positive.
Explaining how that work ethic was demonstrated during a difficult project, examination period or challenging subject can make the recommendation much more meaningful.
3. Personal Qualities and Character
Universities are not only interested in grades.
A teacher recommendation can provide insight into qualities such as:
- Leadership
- Maturity
- Responsibility
- Resilience
- Teamwork
- Empathy
- Confidence
- Independence
- Communication
- Reliability
Again, examples are useful wherever possible.
If a teacher describes a student as a strong leader, for example, they could briefly explain when they saw that leadership in action.
4. Extracurricular Activities and Contributions
If the teacher knows about the student’s involvement outside the classroom, this can also be included.
For a student-athlete, this might include their commitment to training and competition while maintaining their academic responsibilities.
Other examples could include:
- Student leadership
- Clubs and societies
- Music or drama
- Volunteering
- Community projects
- Part-time work
- Academic competitions
The teacher doesn’t need to repeat the student’s entire activities list. Instead, they can focus on activities that reinforce what they have personally observed about the student’s character.
5. Growth, Resilience and Potential
Universities are interested in a student’s potential as well as their past achievements.
If appropriate, the teacher could discuss how the student has developed during the time they have known them.
Perhaps they became more confident, improved academically, took on greater responsibility or responded positively to a setback.
This can demonstrate qualities that will help the student adjust to university life and succeed in a new academic environment.
6. A Strong Conclusion
Finally, the teacher should provide a clear recommendation for the student.
They can summarise why they believe the student would be a strong addition to a university community and why they believe the student has the ability and character to succeed at university.
Where appropriate, a teacher may also provide context by comparing the student with others they have taught.
For example, if the student is genuinely among the strongest students the teacher has taught during their career, that can provide useful context to an admissions team.
Give Your Teacher Clear Deadlines
One of the most important things you can do is make the timeline clear from the beginning.
Don’t simply tell your teacher:
“My university applications are due soon.”
Give them the actual deadline and, ideally, ask for the recommendation to be completed before it.
Remember that teachers have their own classes, marking, meetings and school responsibilities, and they may be writing recommendations for several students.
Giving them plenty of notice is both helpful and respectful.
You should also explain how the recommendation needs to be submitted.
For applications through the Common App, for example, students generally invite recommenders through the application system and the recommender submits their information separately.
Make sure your teacher knows to look out for any invitation or email connected to your application.
Should You Read Your Teacher Recommendation?
Students sometimes want to see their recommendation before it is submitted, but recommendation letters are often intended to be confidential.
Don’t pressure your teacher to show you their letter.
Instead, focus on choosing someone you trust to provide a fair and positive assessment of you and give them the information they need to write a strong, personalised recommendation.
A Quick Teacher Recommendation Checklist
Before asking for your recommendation, make sure you:
- Choose a teacher who knows you well
- Ask them politely and give them plenty of notice
- Explain what you are applying for
- Tell them what you hope to study
- Provide the exact deadline
- Explain how the recommendation will be submitted
- Ask whether they would like additional information from you
- Provide a short summary of relevant achievements and activities
- Share a suggested structure if they are unfamiliar with university recommendation letters
- Send a polite reminder as the deadline approaches if necessary
- Thank them once the recommendation has been completed
Applying to University Internationally?
Teacher recommendations are just one part of the university application process.
At BRUSA Sports, we support student-athletes and their families through the process of exploring international university opportunities, including understanding applications, admissions requirements and the sports recruitment process.