推薦信在錄取過程中起到了極為重要的作用。實際上，僅僅是一封推薦信就有可能改變委員會對申請人的看法，從而改變錄取的結果。接下來小編為你帶來一位美國教授寫的研究生申請推薦信，希望對你有幫助。
因為推薦信中會體現教授或是導師對申請人的`意見，而他們已經和申請人在一起工作過一段時間了，所以錄取委員會對推薦信非常的看重。每個錄取委員會中都有一些經驗豐富的教授，他們閱讀過大量的推薦信，也給自己的學生寫過不少推薦信。
簡而言之，推薦信比我們想象中的重要得多，一封好的導師推薦信對於錄取結果具有很大影響。怎樣才叫“好”呢？
when / why：說明推薦人何時認識該學生，並從課堂外的其他幾個方面闡述學生的能力
detailed：詳盡詳實
specific：有具體事例
comparison：該學生和其他學生比較，解釋為什麼這名學生更優秀（如課程成績全班第一，是我帶過的最好的幾個學生之一，blabla……）
接下來我們看看一位外國教授寫的
▼
To: Graduate Admissions Committee
It is my pleasure to write on behalf of Jane Student, who is applying to the PhD program in Research Psychology at Major University. I have interacted with Jane in several contexts: as student, as teaching assistant, and as thesis mentee.
I first met Jane in 2008, when she enrolled in my introductory Psychology class. Jane immediately stood out from the crowd, even as a first semester freshman. Just a few months out of high school, Jane demonstrated characteristics commonly held by the best college students. She was attentive in class, prepared, submitted well-written and thoughtful assignments, and participated in meaningful ways, such as by debating other students.
Throughout, Jane modeled critical thinking skills. Needless to say, Jane earned one of five A’s awarded in that class of 75 students. Since her first semester in college Jane has enrolled in six of my classes. She demonstrated similar competencies, and her skills grew with each semester. Most striking is her ability to tackle challenging material with enthusiasm and endurance.
I teach a required course in Statistics that, as rumor has it, most students dread. Students’ fears of statistics is legendary across institutions, but Jane wasn’t fazed. As usual she was prepared for class, completed all assignments, and attended help sessions conducted by my teaching assistant. My teaching assistant reported that Jane seemed to learn concepts quickly, learning how to solve problems well before the other students. When placed in group work sessions, Jane easily adopted a leadership role, helping her peers learn how to solve problems on their own. It was these competencies that led me to offer Jane a position as teaching assistant for my statistics class.
As teaching assistant, Jane strengthened many of the skills I have articulated. In this position Jane held review sessions and offered out-of-class assistance to students. She also lectured in class several times during the semester. Her first lecture was a bit shaky. She clearly knew the concepts but had difficulty keeping pace with PowerPoint slides. When she abandoned the slides and worked off the blackboard, she improved. She was able to answer students questions and the two that she couldn’t answer she admitted to and said she’d get back to them. As a first lecture, she was very good. Most important to a career in academics, is that she improved in subsequent lectures. Leadership, humility, the ability to see areas in need of improvement, and the willingness to do the work needed to improve – these are all characteristics we value in academia.
Most important to a career in academics is research competence. As I have explained, Jane has an excellent grasp of statistics and other skills critical to a successful career in research, such as tenacity and excellent problem solving and critical thinking skills. As mentor of her senior thesis, I witnessed Jane in her first independent research efforts. Similar to other students, Jane struggled with finding an appropriate topic. Unlike other students, she conducted mini literature reviews on potential topics and discussed her ideas with a sophistication that is unusual for undergraduates. After methodical study, she chose a topic that fits her academic goals. Jane’s project examined [X]. Her project earned a department award, university award, and was presented as a paper at a regional psychology association.
In closing, I believe that Jane student has the capacity to excel at X and in a career as a research psychologist. She is one of a small handful of student that I have encountered I my 16 years teaching undergraduates that has this ability. Please do not hesitate to contact me with further questions.
細心的同學會發現，這名教授寫的推薦信幾乎符合小編前文提到的所有要素（detailed，specific），用具體的事例證明了申請人的多方面能力，且條理清晰，描述了申請人一步步從 student 到 thesis mantee的提升軌跡！
