Thank you for considering me as a person whose letter of recommendation or reference you would like to have to advance your career in either academia or industry. In order for me to write you a strong letter of recommendation, I have formulated a series of guidelines and document requirements that aide in the letter writing process. Please note, as I am visiting assistant professor, the weight of my letter of recommendation may be viewed significantly less than that of an established tenure-track professor.
With this being said, please take note:
- You must have taken a course or completed a research project with me.
- Depending on your performance within the course, this could be waived if discussed in advance.
- You must have received a grade of at least an A.
- You must grant me permission to talk with a recruiter or college, otherwise I will decline to act as a reference.
- You must waive your right to view the letter and/or reference data.
- I will only write 5 letters of recommendation.
- Please keep in mind that there are many students who I need to write letters for and, thus, I have to impose a cap.
- I’ve found that students who require more than five letters to not have a clear picture of what they want to pursue.
- I must have a minimum 2 weeks turnaround time for letters of recommendation.
- Requesting a letter earlier is better as I can look over and critique the application package.
Do not randomly add me as a reference to your application without receiving confirmation that I will write the letter.
Guidelines Around References
Prior to agreeing to write a letter of recommendation, I need to be able to say that I know you well. These guidelines characterize how well I know you. When trying to see how well I know you, keep in mind that the more positive your answers are the stronger and more specific your letter of recommendation will be.
- Frequency of engagement emphasizes the number of encounters I can draw on when writing the letter of recommendation. Strong letters of recommendation come through multiple engagements, e.g:
- Did you visit my office hours frequently?
- Ask well-phrased questions during class?
- How often did we talk about your group’s final project?
- Was it in a positive light?
- Duration of engagement describes how long we’ve known each other. For instance, have I only known you one semester or did you take more than one course with me?
- Please note that I will only write a letter of recommendation based on past accomplishments.
- That is to say, if you are taking a course in the same semester that you need your letter of recommendation, I will not be able to write it.
- Type of engagement describes how we were connected. Was I either your: instructor, research mentor, or activity leader?
If we have had no memorable encounters and you still need a letter of recommendation or reference, the best that I will be able to provide is a statement that describes your academic performance in the course. In which case, I would strongly suggest that you consider speaking with another person for a letter of recommendation or reference.
Letter of Recommendation/Reference Request Format
When sending a request for a letter of recommendation or reference, please be concise with your request. In particular, please:
- Avoid long paragraphs in favor of lists.
- Send an e-mail from your Illinois account.
- Non-Illinois e-mail accounts are fine, but they will be delayed in reaching me.
- The start of the subject line must follow the format of: [Recommendation Request] - Your Name Here
Within the e-mail, please make sure that the following documents are attached:
- Headshot Photo
- Helpful to jog my memory about the number of times we interacted during office hours or the course.
- CV or Resume
- List of activities, accomplishments, and skills that you have.
- Standardized Test Scores from Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) and, if applicable, Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
- If applying for a doctorate program (e.g. Ph.D.), please make sure to take the test one semester before applications are due.
- TOEFL-like tests are encouraged for international students.
- Unofficial transcripts
- Provides an overview of the kinds of coursework and the quality of knowledge obtained.
- Please make sure to include all transcripts for each University that you attended.
- Any application material prepared such as a personal/research statement, project portfolios, or certification tests.
- These materials allow me to reference moments that you would like to standout to the admissions committee or industry recruiters.
- A statement within the e-mail that says:
“I agree that James Balamuta can release my grade information and describe my course experience as a part of the letter writing or reference process.”
- If Academia, please provide an overview of the Universities that you have applied to and their corresponding due dates for letters of recommendation.
- Please supply a list that contains the following information for each letter:
- University (e.g. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign);
- Program (e.g. Statistics);
- Degree Type (e.g. Master of Science); and,
- Due Date (e.g. December 15th, 2019)
- Please supply a list that contains the following information for each letter:
- If Industry, please submit the list of companies that you have applied to.
- Please make sure that the list contains the following information:
- Company Name (e.g. ACME Inc.);
- Position Name (e.g. Data Scientist);
- Position Duties (e.g. Modeling data, algorithm development, business analytics); and,
- Date of Application (e.g. December 20th, 2019.)
- Please make sure that the list contains the following information:
Note: We will likely iterate on your application package. Do not add me to a reference until I explicitly say the materials are in order.
Next Steps
Please:
- Let me know if a deadline is approaching and my letter was not submitted yet. I try to ensure a two week turnaround time, but many requests come in a condensed period of the semester. In additon, I may unintentionally overlook an e-mail requesting a letter of recommendation.
- Once the process is done, please share the results with me! I appreciate knowing where former students continue their education or start their first Data Science job.