Requesting Teacher LOR's on the Common App

[TheApprentice]

Could someone take me step by step how the teacher LOR is done on the Common App. I thought I did it correctly, but the teacher emailed my son saying he did not get an "invitation" from the Common App.

 

Help, please.

[TheApprentice]

No one. No one can help someone trying to navigate her way through.

[teachermom2834]

I'm sorry I can't help. My ds did all of that himself. He clicked "invite recommender" and entered the email of the teacher. None of the teachers said they didn't get it.

 

One now has a status of "completed" while 2 others say "started". We are confused by that. I know for sure that one with the "started" status believes she completed it. Ds just submitted his apps wed night. We are unclear as to whether the schools can see his recommendations or not.

 

The common app did make things faster but it is a little confusing. I hope someone can help you.

[JanetC]

Common App support is pretty responsive since its early in the app season.

[Caroline]

I'm sorry I can't help. My ds did all of that himself. He clicked "invite recommender" and entered the email of the teacher. None of the teachers said they didn't get it.

 

One now has a status of "completed" while 2 others say "started". We are confused by that. I know for sure that one with the "started" status believes she completed it. Ds just submitted his apps wed night. We are unclear as to whether the schools can see his recommendations or not.

 

The common app did make things faster but it is a little confusing. I hope someone can help you.

I might be able to help with that. Have the recommender access the recommendation from a different internet browser and try hitting submit again. Some internet browsers are not as friendly with the common app as others. I also know our firewall at school can do something strange with the submit button, so I always do that part from home. The common app can also sometimes do weird things if it thinks you are in a mobile device.

 

About the teacher not getting the invite, that happened to one of my students. I got invites from a couple of students, but not this last one. He then went back in and sent it to my other email address, and that came through. No idea why the first one didn't go through.

[teachermom2834]

Thank you! One that just says "started" is his counselor through an accredited umbrella school who has lots of experience so I figured she would know the ins and outs. The other is from a community college teacher and I am not sure how often she has used the common app. Ds will follow up with them. Just hate bugging people who are already doing us a favor.

 

Will not gripe too much. The common app really made it easy as all our schools are on it.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

You could have him add another college just to invite you as a recommender. That would let you see the process. Or you can create a student account as a curious counselor that gives you a profile to mess around on.

[TheApprentice]

I'm so confused. Are the teachers and counselors suppose to get an invitation from from the Common App, with a password to access the student's account and complete the recommendation, or is my son suppose to ask them to go to Common App and access the student Common App ID, and then fill out an online form.

 

On the schools he has chosen, under "Teacher", it say "assigned" and "not started". I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I haven't received any notice, since I'm "counselor", neither of the teachers has received anything.

 

I don't even know what question to ask.

 

Thanks Caroline for your suggestion, but I don't even understand what you are saying. I feel like it's coming from this end since no one is getting anything.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

The best recommendation I can make is to set up a mock student application profile using an alternate email you (the counselor) can access.  When it asks how you are applying, mark First Year or Transfer (whichever matches your kid). Then in the next column mark that you are a counselor curious about Common App.  When you do this, it might be good to use an email that is NOT the one you'll want to get emails on Counselor stuff at; I'm not sure if you can have two logins with the same email address.

 

This will give you an account to experiment with.  You can assign the same schools your kid is applying to and see what the requirements are.  

 

In order to invite a recommender , I think you had to first invite a counselor.  I got an email from CA telling me that I had been invited as a counselor and prompting me to login or create a recommender account.  

 

In order to add a teacher/other recommender, you need to go into one of the colleges, to the recommender/FERPA section and assign the individual to that college (either in the Teacher recommender section or in the Other recommender section). The first time you add a teacher, you will input their name, title and email address.  You will still need to click on the Assign button for that first school.  That generates an email to the prospective recommender.  

 

At this point, the recommendation shows up on the Student dashboard for the college that recommender is assigned to as not started.  I think it will shift to an updated status after the recommender has responded to the emailed link and begun to fill out info on the Common App.

 

If you want to use that same recommendation for other colleges, the student needs to assign that person to each desired college. The difference is that now the individual will show up in a drop down menu when you click on the red "Add Another" link.  The student needs to select the recommender and then click the "Assign" button.

 

Look at your kid's CA under each college and then under Recommender/FERPA.  If a teacher or other person has been sent an email, it will show up with that person's name and Not Started.  

 

I have really found it helpful to sit and go through the Common App myself as if I were applying.  

[Sebastian (a lady)]

When a Teacher Recommender responds to the CA prompt, it looks like they get to pick from Teacher and Academic Evaluator.  They can change this by clicking on the silhouette of people in the upper corner next to the Settings gear.

 

Teacher will ask for what school they are from.  If they taught the student in a traditional school, it is probably on the list.  If it was in a coop or similar non-accredited setting, at the very  bottom of the list (after schools in Budapest and Iceland for me) are options for "I am/was Homeschooled" and "I Don't See My High School on this List".  If you click on Homeschool, the next box will ask for the address of the homeschool.  If you select Not on the List, the next box will ask for the address of the school.  

 

Academic Evaluator will ask the individual to link to a College.

 

The next item will ask "Do you complete applicants' academic ratings on the Common Application Teacher Evaluation?" with yes or no as options. If they say Yes, they will be able to complete the Ratings section for the student.  I would suggest you tell them to mark Yes.  (If they mark No, the Ratings section will show up with a Green Checkmark when they open the student file.  They can still go in and mark the ratings questions, but being marked off may cause them to skip it.  Since I'm assuming your kid is asking them for a recommendation because it will be favorable, it's probably best to tell them to mark Yes.  They can always mark No Basis if there is a category they feel doesn't apply to the student teacher experience.)

 

It looks like all of this Recommender Profile info has to be complete before they get to the student section.

 

The Recommender will then go to a dashboard with names of any student that has assigned them as a recommender and which they have accepted.  They click on the student they want to respond to.  Once they start to answer items related to your kid, it will show up in the Student's CA login as started with a date.  

 

 

The practice student log in has really helped me, because I can see what the student and teacher would each see.  I can also do invites and assignments and it won't cause something weird to get stuck in my ds's application.  

[Sebastian (a lady)]

This guide is free, detailed and quite helpful on how to fill out the Common App.  It is written to the student for their side of the application.  It might help you and your ds find some sections you need to complete in order to get CA to send out the emails.  (For example, did your ds complete the FERPA rights section? BTW the standard answer is to waive rights to see the recommendation.)

 

http://wiselikeus.com/collegewise/2015/09/collegewise-common-app-guide-is-here.html

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Another place to look at in the Student CA login.

 

Go to one of the colleges he's selected and click on Recommenders/FERPA.  In the upper right corner of that screen I have a blue link for "Manage Recommenders" that opens a new dashboard.

 

It looks like you can add and delete recommenders here.  If you don't see a recommender, then they weren't invited or it was accidentally deleted (or maybe they declined the invite).  The invite will only actually be sent once the person is assigned to a specific college.  In the second to the last column there should be a round arrow (like a reload button on a browser). If there is nothing in that column, that person was not assigned to a college.  If you click on the reload arrow, it will generate a new invitation.  

 

I hope some of this is helpful.  

 

I did find that sometimes it helped for me to sit right behind my kid while he filled parts of the application out.  Even though the younger generation may be "digital natives" some of the questions are really worded in education professional jargon.

 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

https://recsupport.commonapp.org/link/portal/33011/33014/ArticleFolder/108/Teacher-Recommendations

 

Common App support for recommenders

[Caroline]

Yes. As a teacher, I get an email from the Common App asking me to fill out the recommendation. I can't see any other part of the student's application. The login instructions are in the email, and I set up a password for me. When I login, I see a list of all of the students that have requested a recommendation from me. (I have also received an email from the common app for each student.) it is very user friendly from the recommender side. I have never dealt with the student side as my son's college didn't start common app until after he applied.

 

I'm so confused. Are the teachers and counselors suppose to get an invitation from from the Common App, with a password to access the student's account and complete the recommendation, or is my son suppose to ask them to go to Common App and access the student Common App ID, and then fill out an online form.

 

On the schools he has chosen, under "Teacher", it say "assigned" and "not started". I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I haven't received any notice, since I'm "counselor", neither of the teachers has received anything.

 

I don't even know what question to ask.

 

Thanks Caroline for your suggestion, but I don't even understand what you are saying. I feel like it's coming from this end since no one is getting anything.

[TheApprentice]

Yay!!! Thanks, so much. I got it!!!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Yay!!! Thanks, so much. I got it!!!

 

Awesome.  Out of curiosity, did you figure out what the problem had been?

[TheApprentice]

I hadn't put myself as counselor first. Once I did that, things fell into place. I got an email and I saw the circular arrow aligned with the teachers, so I think that means they'll get an email as well.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Figured out another detail with CA Letters of Recommendation

 

Some schools will accept recommendations from Teachers and also recommendations from Other Recommenders.  We couldn't figure out why ds could invite a recommender, give all the name and contact info, but not assign them.  He kept trying different things, but the assign button never came up.

 

We finally figured out that each college indicates what type of recommender they are willing to accept Other Recommendations from.  Because when ds put in the contact info, he indicated that the recommender type was "Other" and that school only accepts things like Coach, Clergy, Employer, etc but not Other, there was no way to make an assignment to that person.

 

So, either ds would need to change the characterization of the recommender, or not use that person for that school.

 

Hope this helps someone else.

 

Remember, that the Common App system isn't going to send out the link for the recommender to submit a recommendation until they are actually assigned to a college.

[teachermom2834]

Figured out another detail with CA Letters of Recommendation

 

Some schools will accept recommendations from Teachers and also recommendations from Other Recommenders.  We couldn't figure out why ds could invite a recommender, give all the name and contact info, but not assign them.  He kept trying different things, but the assign button never came up.

 

We finally figured out that each college indicates what type of recommender they are willing to accept Other Recommendations from.  Because when ds put in the contact info, he indicated that the recommender type was "Other" and that school only accepts things like Coach, Clergy, Employer, etc but not Other, there was no way to make an assignment to that person.

 

So, either ds would need to change the characterization of the recommender, or not use that person for that school.

 

Hope this helps someone else.

 

Remember, that the Common App system isn't going to send out the link for the recommender to submit a recommendation until they are actually assigned to a college.

We ran into this with one school.  He had designated one recommender as "other" and one of his schools wouldn't accept that (but did just say they wanted someone who knew him well).  There was no way for him to change how he had designated the recommender but it said on the sidebar that the recommender could log in and change herself.  She tried that and couldn't so we had to reassign her and send another invite as a teacher.  So in his "manage recommenders" section he has one of his listed twice.  Once as "other" and once as "teacher".  I hated having to ask his recommender to fool with all that but we got it done. 

[quark]

Refreshing the thread to include some hopefully helpful tips. This is the step-by-step and letter DS and I have come up with in order for him to approach his recommenders. I am copying and pasting (with some editing) in case it helps others. Please let me know if you think I should have done it differently/ add something else! Both of his recommenders are academics so please fine tune to your specific needs.

 

We used this thread (thanks so much OP, Sebastian, and everyone else!) and the prep scholar blog post for ideas.

 

Suggestion on what to say when approaching the recommender, preferably in person:
 

I’ve really enjoyed your class so far and was very keen to take a class with you again after my experience with ____(your other class name) a year ago. I will be applying to attend college as a freshman next year and would be very honored if you would write a strong recommendation for my application to ... (in DS's case we are mentioning a few of the college names to give recommenders an idea of selectivity).

 

 (If Mr/Ms X says yes) . I can send you a list of some of my accomplishments if that will help. If it isn’t too much trouble, may I email you the details later today? Please let me know your full name, title, and the email address to use. Thank you!

 

 

The email he will send them:

 

 

SUBJECT: College application recommendation for ________(student name)___________

 

Dear                   ,

Thank you for agreeing to be my recommender for my college applications. I will be applying as a freshman through the Common Application to schools like _____________ as well as separately to _______(different portal) _________ and ________ (yet another portal, if applicable)_________. If it is not too much trouble, I hope that you will be able to save the letter in your hard drive as it will be needed for upload to more than one application website.

 

Common Application Early Action Deadline: November 1, 2016

1. I will invite you to upload a letter of recommendation. Please follow the instructions in the email that you will receive from the Common Application site. It will prompt you to set up an account with the email address I used to invite you. They will ask you to complete your profile.
2. Kindly note that the Common Application does not currently support Microsoft Edge (please check if Common App updates this in subsequent years!). If you encounter difficulties, please try a different browser such as Firefox or Chrome.
3. When asked, “Do you complete applicants' academic ratings on the Common Application Teacher Evaluation?" I would be very grateful if you could mark “yes†to complete the ratings section.  You may always mark “No Basis†if there is a category you feel doesn't apply.

(we copied and pasted deadlines and details for other portals just changing names here and there...add relevant instructions for other portals if different)

 

This link provides very good ideas on what to include when writing recommendations: http://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/writingrecs

 

With many thanks,

__________(student name)______________

Encl. High School Resume

[anne1456]

I love how you organized the letter quark, it is very helpful!

[Luckymama]

Good gravy, that will save dd some stress! I'll have her adapt as necessary.

 

Thank you, quark :)

[quark]

Our stress level has definitely dropped too now that he has a plan. Credit definitely goes to posters in this thread :). We might tweak the words a bit but at least we have a script/guide to help.

[Dmmetler]

Watching-we're having similar issues with a different online App, where one says she never got it, another has started it but not finished it, and one finished with no issues :(. I hate to nag, but ideally we need everything completed by the end of the month. It was SO much easier when you just gave the instructor an addressed and stamped envelope and they wrote their own letter...

[quark]

DS used the first part of above (post 20) to approach his instructor today (but in his own way; DS really balks at asking for things like a "strong" recommendation because he thinks it's being braggy/ asking for too much etc.) and the prof said yes and apparently many other nice things about DS besides. :001_wub: That's a good sign, I'm so relieved!

 

But prof wants a one-page bio before he starts to write the letter. I'm not sure if DS made it clear that the prof needs to upload the letter. Going to follow up with an email containing part two of above.

 

One-page bio? We have the one-page transcript and two-page resume (hard to fit into one page). Going to hope that will be helpful and not too much. Would love thoughts/ additional tips if others have them!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

DS used the first part of above (post 20) to approach his instructor today (but in his own way; DS really balks at asking for things like a "strong" recommendation because he thinks it's being braggy/ asking for too much etc.) and the prof said yes and apparently many other nice things about DS besides. :001_wub: That's a good sign, I'm so relieved!

 

But prof wants a one-page bio before he starts to write the letter. I'm not sure if DS made it clear that the prof needs to upload the letter. Going to follow up with an email containing part two of above.

 

One-page bio? We have the one-page transcript and two-page resume (hard to fit into one page). Going to hope that will be helpful and not too much. Would love thoughts/ additional tips if others have them!

Ds has had similar requests from recommenders. He tends to cover where and when he interacted with the recommender, what he has done for academics and what his future goals are. He may mention that he is a homeschooler.

 

Just as an example some of his recommendations are for programs that require strong math and science ability. Others are based on aptitude for language and regional studies. So he would want certain things emphasized.

[quark]

Ds has had similar requests from recommenders. He tends to cover where and when he interacted with the recommender, what he has done for academics and what his future goals are. He may mention that he is a homeschooler.

 

Just as an example some of his recommendations are for programs that require strong math and science ability. Others are based on aptitude for language and regional studies. So he would want certain things emphasized.

 

This is super helpful Sebastian. The prof knows him well so DS will leave the bolded out. He didn't think to emphasize some things. I'll pass this great advice on to him. Many thanks!!!

 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

This is super helpful Sebastian. The prof knows him well so DS will leave the bolded out. He didn't think to emphasize some things. I'll pass this great advice on to him. Many thanks!!!

 

 

Even when the prof knows a student well, it can help to remind exactly which course(s) they take.  For example, if the most recent class is a calculus, they might forget that they also taught the student a year earlier in trig.

[JanetC]

I would add to the second letter, "please send me an email when you have submitted the letter so I can make sure it's tagged as complete on the common app portal."

 

If you ask anyone other than a high school teacher, they will probably find the whole thing frustrating and confusing. It is very hard for a recommender to tell whether they have submitted their final letter. They think they're done but there's one more button to pus somewhere. It's best to log in to the Common App and verify it's really submitted.

[daijobu]

Resurrecting this thread for it's annual update.  I wanted to add something I just learned.  Contrary to my assumption, applying as an "Educational Professional" this does not turn you into a counselor in the eyes of the CA.  In fact, it does nothing official.  All it does is allow you see the student's application process, which is valuable, but not the same as seeing it from the counselor POV.  

 

You can only become a counselor when you are invited to become one by your student.  And you can do that in advance by creating a fake student account first and then inviting yourself.  HTH.