Common App - what do I include in the counselor letter???

[Momto6inIN]

Ugh, this common app stuff is driving me bonkers!!! I finally wrote a school profile that I'm happy with and I wrote a "homeschool environment and experience" that is accurate and reflects our philosophy and methods well. But this counselor letter has me stumped. DS is just an amazing student and an all around awesome kid and any college would be lucky to have him. But I'm his mommy so of course I think that. 😉 This part just seems so much more subjective than the other stuff I had to write for the common app.

How have you all handled the counselor recommendation letter???

 

 

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[northcoast]

The common app stuff drove me bonkers too! First of all, you have plenty of time to get this letter done!

 

I googled counselor recommendation letters.  Here is an example:  http://blog.prepscholar.com/for-counselors-how-to-write-a-strong-recommendation-letter-for-your-student.  I will say I can't remember what websites I looked at to get ideas.  But it was a starting point.  Ultimately, we chose to speak of ds' integrity & character in making some difficult decisions during his high school years.  The letter talked specifically about the situation that forced decisions to be made.  We kept the LOR to 1 page.     

[Momto6inIN]

The common app stuff drove me bonkers too! First of all, you have plenty of time to get this letter done!

 

I googled counselor recommendation letters. Here is an example: http://blog.prepscholar.com/for-counselors-how-to-write-a-strong-recommendation-letter-for-your-student. I will say I can't remember what websites I looked at to get ideas. But it was a starting point. Ultimately, we chose to speak of ds' integrity & character in making some difficult decisions during his high school years. The letter talked specifically about the situation that forced decisions to be made. We kept the LOR to 1 page.

Thanks that is helpful! Now to think of challenging situations he's been in that show an aspect of his character... hmmmm...

 

I know I have plenty of time in theory, but the college he really wants opens Aug 1 for rolling admissions and we have plans to travel a lot this summer so I really want to get it done sooner rather than later. I don't want it hanging over me all summer when I'm trying to have a good time! ☺

 

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[Luckymama]

The counselor letter was incredibly difficult for me to write. I worked on it for an entire month last summer.

 

i created a narrative for D revolving around how her chosen coursework meshes with her passions and goals for the future. I also touched on situations when she had to advocate for herself to get to where she is.

 

I ate a lot of chocolate and drank a lot of wine that month, my language became more blue ;), and I cried from frustration multiple times.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I picked a couple traits I wanted to highlight and told specific stories that showed those traits in action.

 

It helped to complete it last. That let me not repeat topics well covered elsewhere. I also had to accept that there were many sides of my sons the adcons wouldn't see because there just wasn't enough room.

[Momto6inIN]

Somehow I doubt public school counselors have this much angst over their letters 😉

Thanks for the input everybody!

 

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Edited April 29, 2017 by Momto5inIN