幾乎所有的大學都會要求申請人提交推薦信（recommendation letter），評審委員根據推薦者的文字描述，可以瞭解申請人的背景狀況。它可以說明各種成績數字以外的其他情況，補充過於計量化、公式化稽核的一種評估方式。在決定出國申請是否成功的諸多要素中，有力的推薦信是錄取的重要條件之一，其份量僅次於於本科成績單和標準化考試（gre、gmat、toefl）成績。
同學們所申請的大學一般要求三封推薦信。推薦人的身份可以是曾經教你的教授，或者現（曾）職工作單位主管，自己視學校要求和自己的需要組合。例如，如果你畢業十年，你的推薦信可應有二封由工作主管來寫為宜，而畢業一兩年頂多一封即足夠。
推薦人的職務並不一定愈高愈有利，相反地，認識你的時間較長，雖然職位不高，但是由於對你有著清楚地瞭解，所以其撰寫的內容往往能夠適當地表達你的個性（personality）。這才是上乘的推薦。
接下來，我們將通過例項來討論推薦信包含的主要內容，基本結構，以及通常可以套用的模式。
例如：
to whom it may concern:
i take great pleasure in recommending miss××， a promising girl as a worthy candidate for admission and financial aids to your prodigious university. as her undergraduate advisor, i had known her for nearly four years. in this letter i would like to share with you my perspectives on this exceptional young lady.
miss×× strikes a balance in academic and extracurricular activities, which is rarely seen in university students. from an education perspective, i think miss×× is the type of student who can go far and broad as an integrated human being to fulfill academic mission and social responsibility.
when i taught her ××（課程）, unlike many other students loafing time in heavy complaints about the boring stuff, she was self-disciplined with the fundamentals and made step-by-step progress. she was also self-navigated. in addition to class assignments, she proactively broadened herself asking for extra reading list from me. naturally, she got good scores of 91 and 92 points respectively. in the meantime, she has obtained a macroview on the development of the schools of ×× and the trend of thought, which will establish solid basis for her future research in ××field.
besides her academic activities, i also attracted by her social activities and capabilities. miss×× has a strong ability in organizing, leading and controlling extracurricular activities. in the past three years she has organized many activities successfully. in particular, she took part in ××（association）. through a series of activities, many people were impressed by her leadership, humor and eloquence. she was elected as a student representative to take the speech in＃＃ delivered by ×× president and sponsored “＃＃”, a large-scaled sale for charity in cooperation with ××(公司名稱) to which she invited many ambassadors or cultural chancellors and raised an assistance fund. eventually, she received a highest honorary school diploma signed personally by the president of ××(大學名稱) for her performance in such activities.
all the observation on shanshan in closeness leads to the conclusion that she is both a candidate qualified for your graduate program towards a higher degree and a citizen that will impact the communities in neighborhood with knowledge and enthusiasm. if you need more information concerning her, please contact me freely.
sincerely,
xxxxxx
根據這封推薦信，我們可以對推薦信的內容，結構和模式有非常直觀的認識。
第一， 從內容來看，推薦信包括以下幾個部分：
1. 推薦人和申請者之間的關係；
推薦人和申請者的關係一般有以下幾種：
1）師生關係（導師和學生，任課老師和學生，班主任和學生，系院領導和學生）；
2）上級和下屬關係；
3）同事關係；
4）實習單位領導和實習生的關係。
2. 兩人認識時間、經過；
3. 申請者的哪些素質給推薦人留下了深刻的印象（推薦人讚賞你哪些品質這是推薦的核心）；
4. 對申請者寄予什麼樣的希望（寄予的希望一般都會是希望申請者在申請的領域裡繼續深造，最終有所成就）。
第二，從整體結構來看,通常說來一封推薦信可以分別用以下三種結構來體現：
1. 總分總結構
2. 總分結構
3. 分總結構
而從單獨的段落來講，也可以是這三種結構。
但是由於申請材料眾多,為了讓評審的教授能夠在很短的時間內對你的特點有所印象，建議大家不管是整體的結構還是段落的結構都使用前面兩種：
1 總分總結構
2 總分結構。
這封推薦信在總體結構上採用了總分總的機構，在具體特點的推薦上採用了總分的結構。
第三，推薦信其格式有些模式可循，以下將針對各段提供模式作參考：
（一）抬頭可用的格式有：
dear sir/madam/to whom it may concern:
（二）第一段：引文句子。可以引用如：
“it is a pleasure to recommend to you (name), a former student of mine at (name of university).”
“i am very happy to have this opportunity to recommend (name), who is presently applying for admission to your graduate (or undergraduate) program in (name of program).”
“i understand that (name) is applying for admissions to your graduate (undergraduate) school, and has requested that i write this letter of recommendation for her/him.”
“in my capacity as professor at xxxx university, i have known xxx for three years, as both his/her advisor and professor.”
（三）第二段：這段可以提供最實質的內容。譬如，如果推薦人是教授，解釋學生在他門下所修的課程。
“(name) took two of my courses during the 1998-99 academic year, as follows; “xxxxx” and “xxxxx”.”
“(name) was enrolled in three of classes from september 1998 to june 1999 “xxx” and “xxx”.”
接下來，教授寫一些有關申請人在課堂上的表現，如完成的研究計劃、實驗室研究、研究報告、考試的成績、課堂態度、討論課的參與等，舉出例項。
“in my class (es), (name) did excellent work. she always listened attentively, participated actively in class, and handed in very good written assignment.
“in particular, his/her research paper on (topic) was of exceptionally high quality, and showed that s/he fully understands and has a strong background in his/her field.”
如果推薦人是工作主管，首先一定要仔細陳述申請人的工作職責，並對申請者的工作表現做一評估。如果可能的話儘量列舉例項。
“when (name) held the position of (job title) in this company she was one s/he was one of my best employees. his/her job responsibilities included (describe them), and s/he carried out his/her duties with exceptional skill and professionalism.”
“s/he not only did his/her own work, but also helped other employees, and made many valuable contributions to the efficient running to our firm.”
第二段最後一段：可以提及申請人在班上（或公司裡）的比較表現（譬如排名）：
“i was rate (name)’s academic ability as in the top 10% of his/her class.”
“compared against other students that i have taught, i would say that (name) ranks in the upper 10%.
接下來，推薦人可對申請人能否成功完成學業提出看法。舉例：
“based on his/her previous performance, i am certain that (name) would be a very successful student at your university.”
“i believe that (name) possesses all the qualities necessary to make an excellent graduate student in his/her chosen field, and am sure that s/he will make a fine addition to your campus.”
（四）第三段：如果還有其他話想說，請另寫一段。
例如：英文能力、溝通技巧、領導才能、特殊學術或工作背景。譬如說，如果申請人慾申請的科系是企管系，推薦人可著力描寫他們有關申請者商業的專門技術、領導才能，以及申請者所參加的商業活動。例如，有關商業方面的組織社團。又如，申請人申請護理研究所，推薦人可著力描寫他們關懷的態度，處理實驗室的技能，或是對病人的奉獻。
（五）最後，以幾句結尾做總結；
“therefore, i am happy to highly and without reservation recommend (name) for admission to your graduate program. your kind/serious consideration of his/her application would be most appreciated.”
“i am thus pleased to give my full support and recommendation to (name)’s application for admission to your school. if any further information is required, please feel free to contact me.”
（六）簽名：
sincerely/sincerely yours/very truly yours,
with best regards,
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