Thank you for supporting your applicant in their pursuit of a national fellowship.  The discipline-specific expertise you provide is essential to our understanding of your applicant's knowledge, experience, and potential.   Having early access to your insight and analysis will inform how we support your nominee as they develop their application materials and prepare for the potential of finalist interviews.  Your perspective also helps us construct stronger institutional endorsement letters, narratives which are often the first presented to national selectors. 

Supporting a student pursuing a major fellowship demands a different, more focused letter than we are typically required to produce when students are applying for campus scholarships, research experiences, or even graduate school.  Our Guide to Crafting Competitive Letters of Recommendation for National Fellowships outlines the key elements in any competitive letter at the national level.

Looking for more direction?

The following resources offer informed insights that line-up with the experiences of advisors and foundation representatives alike.

How to write strong letters of recommendation for students - Manya Whitaker - Inside Higher Ed

Avoiding gender bias in reference writing - University of Arizona Commission on the Status of Women

The Office of Scholar Development follows the established practices of the National Association of Fellowships Advisors' Code of Ethics and expect that during any application process, candidates should:

• Ensure that all application materials, including but not limited to personal statements, resumes, proposals, essays, shall be the sole and original work of the applicant. Cite any sources quoted or paraphrased;
• Provide adequate and accurate information to recommenders in a timely fashion;
• Neither compose their own letters for faculty to sign (even at the request of faculty) nor ask faculty members to show them their own letters of recommendation;
• Make clear what information revealed to an advisor or recommender should remain confidential;

Applicants often ask me about how they should approach and support their recommenders.  The resources shared below are designed to help students think through what they may want to prepare and then share with their writers.

Useful Information Checklist for Recommender and Reference Support.pdf

How to Ask for a Recommendation - The Chronicle of Higher Education.pdf