Ten simple rules for writing compelling recommendation letters

Kong, Jennifer H.; Steele, Latishya; Botham, Crystal M.

doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008656

Cited by 14 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…It evaluates students in terms of teamwork ability, motivation, personality, research skills, and adaptability, to name a few. Kong, Steele, and Botham (2021) cogently argued that letters of recommendation "are necessary for advancement at all levels of academics, as they are widely required for grants and applications ranging from graduate school to tenured academic positions. "…”

Section: The Letters Of Recommendationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Use of Metadiscursive Markers in Letters of Recommendation: An Investigation of Gender Variations

Alotaibi¹

2021

AWEJ

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This study aimed to investigate gender variations in letters of recommendation. It used the metadiscourse theory with respect to the following resources: hedges, boosters, attitude markers, engagement markers, and self-mentions. The findings showed that hedges devices were the least frequent in both groups, but at the same time were used more by males compared to female recommenders. Boosters, on the other hand, were highly frequent in both corpora and, like hedges, were employed more frequently in the male group. Interestingly, while both gender groups shared using specific hedging and boosting tokens, each gender group appeared to favor using certain devices. The attitude markers were the most frequent in the two samples and appeared more in the female group. Similarly, while both groups used specific attitude markers, each gender group seemed to use specific attitude markers. The engagement markers revealed the highest divergence between the two groups, as they appeared more frequently in female letters. Finally, both gender groups employed self-mentions equally, but female letters seemed to favor using the plural forms. The study closes with some pedagogical implications by highlighting how the theory of metadiscourse can be of importance for academics.

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Section: The Letters Of Recommendationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Use of Metadiscursive Markers in Letters of Recommendation: An Investigation of Gender Variations

Alotaibi¹

2021

AWEJ

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“…This style guide could include a list of recommended descriptors, keywords and phrases indicating gradation of the strength of the LOR. The addition of such a list could be highly valuable, as highlighted by Kong J. et al who stated that the use of strong descriptors associated with traits of the residency candidate greatly enriches a LOR[ 29 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Attitudes towards and impact of letters of recommendation for anesthesiology residency applicants

Pierre

Weber

Abramowicz

2021

Medical Education Online

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Background: This survey aims to identify the relative value and the critical components of anesthesiology letters of recommendation(LORs) from the perspective of Program Directors (PDs) and Associate/Assistant Program Directors (APDs). Knowledge and insights originating from this survey might add to the understanding of the anesthesiology residency selection process and mitigate unintended linguistic biases. Methodology : Anonymous online surveys were sent to anesthesiology PDs/APDs from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited anesthesiology residency Programs in the USA (US), as listed on the ACGME website and the American Medical Association Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database (AMA FREIDA) Residency Program Database. The survey authors were blinded to the identity of the respondents. Results : 62 out of 183 (33.8%) invited anesthesiology PDs/APDs completed the survey anonymously. In our survey, LORs are reported as more important in granting an interview than in making the rank list. 64% of respondents prefer narrative LORs. 77.4% of respondents look for specific keywords in LORs. Keywords such as ‘top % of students’ and ‘we are recruiting this candidate’ indicate a strong letter of recommendation while keywords such as ‘I recommend to your program’ or non-superlative descriptions indicate a weak letter of recommendation. Other key components of LORs include the specialty of the letter-writer, according to 84% of respondents, with anesthesiology as the most valuable specialty. Although narrative LORs are preferred, 55.1% of respondents are not satisfied with the content of narrative LORs. Conclusion : LORs containing specific keywords play an important role in the application to anesthesiology residency, particularly when submitted by an anesthesiologist. While narrative LORs are still the preferred format, most of our respondents feel they need improvements. The authors suggest specific LOR improvements including creating formalized LOR training, adding a style guide, and applying comparative scales, with standardized vocabulary in the narrative LOR.

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“…For early-stage letter seekers such as undergraduate/graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, the norms and standards of the letter seeking process are rarely clear or defined. Fortunately, as a letter seeker, you have some agency in ensuring the quality and timeliness of your letters of recommendation [ 3 – 5 ]. This paper addresses common challenges that arise in the letter seeking process and offers 10 simple rules to guide letter seekers as they navigate the process of securing a strong letter of recommendation [ 3 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fortunately, as a letter seeker, you have some agency in ensuring the quality and timeliness of your letters of recommendation [ 3 – 5 ]. This paper addresses common challenges that arise in the letter seeking process and offers 10 simple rules to guide letter seekers as they navigate the process of securing a strong letter of recommendation [ 3 ]. The 10 simple rules outlined below will be most useful for those who are seeking reference letters that are at least 2 months from the submission deadline.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Carefully review application websites also to establish a timeline for when the letters of recommendation are due. Once you have an idea of the requirements and timing, start mapping out when you will contact your letter writers to ensure that they will have enough time (1 to 3 months depending on the nature of the application [ 3 , 5 ]) to write and submit the letter.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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