Letters of recommendation are valuable college application tools in the holistic review process. They will provide a third party view of an admissions candidate, lending them more credibility beyond the transcript, the test score and the resume. Letters of rec can be written by current or former teachers, coaches, employers or pastors. They should not be written by friends or family members. 

Some colleges require a certain number of recommendation letters, while others will accept them as an optional part of the candidate's portfolio. Other schools do not allow them at all. Students are expected to research what is required by their schools and act accordingly. 

Students can start to identify who they should reach out to to write a recommendation letter during spring of their junior year. They should not, however, submit them to colleges until after they have applied in the fall. Unless the college has an application file to connect the letter to, it will be discarded. 

Recommendation letter timeline

• Junior spring: identify and reach out to 2-3 recommendation letter writers. 
• Senior fall: apply to colleges. 
• Senior fall: In SchooLinks, make an official request to the letter writer. Recommendations will be uploaded into SchooLinks and sent directly to the student's school. Under no circumstances should a recommendation letter be given to the student. It reduces the credibility of the letter itself and is not considered appropriate.