Speaker 1: Welcome to Almost Doctor Almas. If you're new to the channel, thank you for checking it out, and if you're already a subscriber, thank you for being back. In this channel, I talk about my life as a PhD student in clinical psychology and bring you information about the mental health field. In today's video, I'm going to be talking all about recommendation letters, how to ask for a recommendation letter, what purpose they serve, and anything else that you need to know. If you're considering applying to graduate school in psychology or any other field, recommendation letters are going to be a big part of that. So the most important aspect of a recommendation letter is really who it's coming from. So I'm sure you've heard the phrase, it's not what you know, but who you know. I think it's a little bit of both, but in any given field, people know one another. And for example, if you're applying for a PhD in clinical psychology, your professor may know somebody on the admissions committee, and that may have an impact on how good it looks on your application. Another reason why who you ask for a recommendation is really important is because it will reflect what they can write about you. So the goal with asking for a recommendation is to make sure it comes from someone who knows you very well and who thinks highly of you or has seen you do some of your best work. So if you're a student, you're not going to want to ask for a professor who you only had one huge lecture class with 100 students in, if you didn't have a personal relationship with that professor. Now, if you worked in someone's research lab, and you worked on multiple projects with them, and maybe you're on a co-authored paper with them, that's someone who you're going to want to represent you on your application for a job or for graduate school. So just as a rule of thumb, maybe if you're a student, pick a professor who you've had at least two classes with, or someone who you've worked closely under. If you're not a student anymore, but you have a, but you have had a job that's relevant to what you're applying to, consider asking your supervisor or your boss for a recommendation. So another thing to know when you're preparing to ask for recommendations is generally how you want to be presented in your applications for whatever it is. So have an idea of what you want your recommendation letters to say about you. And think about all the things that you're submitting to your application. So if it's a PhD program in clinical psychology, you're probably submitting one or two essays, your CV or resume. So those letters of recommendation should add to that. One of the best advice that I got from a mentor in undergrad was that every single recommendation letter should serve a specific purpose. So when you apply for a position or for a school or program, you want to make sure that you are seen as well-rounded. And this is something that you should have in mind when you think about your recommendation letters. Everything that you submit on your application is telling the admissions committee who you are. You want your recommendations to shed a light on the skills that you gained from the experiences that you put on your CV or resume. So if you worked in a research lab and your position is on your CV, that information may be limited, but a recommendation letter from a supervisor could really bring that experience to life and set you apart from other applicants. On my application, I made sure that I had one letter talking about my research ability, one letter talking about my academic ability and how I am as a student, and another about my professional abilities outside of school. I asked a professor that I took a few classes with who was able to talk about my work as a student. I asked my thesis advisor who only worked on research with me, and I asked my supervisor from a research opportunity outside of my undergrad institution. So all three of those people were able to speak to all the different skills that I acquired in undergrad. The most important piece here is how do you ask for a recommendation? There are a few different ways. A lot of people resort to email, and depending on the relationship that you have with the person you're asking, that may work well. I personally think that the best way to ask is in person. So one way to kind of do this is you can send an email asking for a meeting. So when you're setting up a meeting, just keep it brief. You don't really have to say, I want a meeting with you, so I can ask if you'll write me a letter. You can just say, I'm reaching out to set up a meeting with you about my graduate applications. Please let me know when you have a chance. And then when you see them in person, you can tell them what your kind of plan is and then formally ask them if they will write you a recommendation. If you're doing everything by email, then I would recommend being as formal as you can. So you can find online a lot of sample emails for asking for a recommendation. I'm going to link to those in the description. So I know it may seem really nerve wracking, but it really isn't. And as long as you're asking with enough time and you're asking somebody who knows you well, most people will probably say yes. The instances when professors or supervisors say no to writing a recommendation are for two reasons. One, you didn't give them enough time. So you're asking them a week before your applications are due if they'll write you a recommendation. And not only is that not fair to them, but it's doing you a disservice because they can't accurately reflect who you are and everything you've done while they're frustrated by the fact that you waited. And second, if they don't know you well enough. So I've heard a lot of professors say that students ask them for recommendations and they haven't really made any, and they don't really have a relationship with them. So if you've only taken one class and you only raised your hand once, you probably don't want to ask that professor for a recommendation because they're not going to be able to showcase your abilities if they don't know them. I think the hardest part about asking for recommendation is actually asking. Like I said, if you're confident that the person you chose is going to accurately and effectively represent you, then there shouldn't be a problem. So what happens after you ask for a recommendation? Hopefully they said yes. And so now you're going to have to provide them with a little bit more information. So most people are going to ask for a list of schools or who you want it to go to. Make sure that you have this available when you ask, because if you're asking in person, they may ask for it right then and there. In another video, I'll say a little bit more about how to organize your list of schools that you're applying to, but definitely be prepared. Another thing that recommenders will ask from you is that you give them a little bit of what you want them to include in your letters. So different people do this in a different way. Some people will give you a list of the things that they're thinking of including in your letter and see how you feel about it or if there's anything you want them to add. That's awesome. Other recommenders I've had, they asked me for a list of things that I want to make sure that they talk about in my letter. And if you're thinking in the broader framework that I mentioned before of what purpose each letter is going to serve, tell them that. So you can tell your recommender. My other two recommenders are really honing in on my research ability. I would really appreciate if you talked more about my academic ability or my writing capabilities. In most cases, you have to waive your FERPA rights, which basically means that you cannot see the recommendation that your professor or supervisor submits. With that in mind, you want to make sure that you have all the conversations about what you want in that letter before they go ahead and write it. I personally believe that my recommendation letters were one of the biggest components to my getting into graduate school. And that's because I knew that the people who I had chosen really knew me well and really taught me a lot. And I knew that they were going to talk about all the experiences that made me a good person. So finally, my number one tip for recommendation letters is do not procrastinate. The longer you wait, the less time they will have to write about you. And you want them to write the most wonderful letter that you've ever read. So that's it for recommendation letters. If I missed anything and you want to share, please do let me know. If you have any other questions about recommendation letters, I would love to answer them. So you can feel free to leave a comment. I would really appreciate if you liked this video and shared it with someone who you think it would be helpful to. And thank you so much for watching. Again, I'm Almost Dr. Armas. My goal is to inform you, to inspire you, to hopefully spark an interest in you and also entertain you. Thanks again for watching and I hope you'll check back in next time.