50+ Sample Recommendation Letters

What Are Recommendation Letters?

A recommendation letter is a formal letter written by someone with authority or in good ties with the addressee. And such a letter is responsible for validating someone’s academic performance, job experience, special skills, and character. And thanks to recommendation letters, anyone who wants to apply for a business program, personal loan, college university scholarship, or any purpose has a more solid chance to get the part rather than having no background to ratify one’s application at all.

According to Statista’s 2018 research survey, 70% of Italian millennials confirmed that they know someone who landed a job due to a recommendation.

Why Should You Consider Making Recommendation Letters?

Making a professional letter of recommendation is important to serve the document’s main purpose—to support what you know about the applicant and prove to the addressee why you think that candidate has the skills, performance, or character to land the application. Hence, it is through these documents that the organization sees the potential skills and capabilities of whoever is being recommended. So as the writer of the letter, you are the current helping hand of the candidate so that person can secure a spot in the application process.

Also, did you know that 70% of Italian millennials verified that they know someone who got a job due to a recommendation? So if you are wondering if recommendation letters are effective, statistics says a lot. Making friends in the corporate world has its advantages. You not only become capable of recommending others but other people can recommend you to other organizations as well. However, you have to consider your recommendation letter’s content carefully because your reputation upon writing it is on the line too.

What Is the Standard Recommendation Letter Format?

Just like any form of business letter, expect a standard format for recommendation letters. And if it is your first time to make such a letter, it would be safe to follow its format to impress your addressee promptly. So without further ado, the standard recommendation letter format consists of the following components:

Date: Every letter should begin with when it was written. And you only need to follow the common calendar format which states the day, month, and year.Addressee’s Details: To whom is this letter for? Insert the addressee’s details from the name or company name, physical address, email address, to the contact list numbers.Salutation: Before mentioning your statement of recommendation, be sure to open your message with a proper salutation. And you can use “Dear” followed by the appropriate pronoun and name.Introduction/Statement of Recommendation: Break the ice immediately with a straightforward introductory statement. This is the part where you note your official statement of recommendation, meaning the name of whom you recommend should be specified. Also, write what specific position the candidate is meant to be may it be a business secretary, teaching assistant, operations manager, or anything. And this introduction gives the addressee the gist of what the whole content of the letter is wholly about.Specific Reasons behind the Recommendation: You can’t easily win someone with a recommendation letter that lacks background on why the candidate deserves the part. So make sure to list down the reasons why the potential candidate is qualified for the position. This is the right time to recognize the candidate’s educational background, work experience, and other significant achievements. Also, these reasons should be relevant to what the candidate applied to.Personal Story with Proof: Something that touches your addressee is when you include a personal story that supports your reasons why the candidate deserves the position. Just keep it brief since you don’t expect the reader to always have time in reading long paragraphs. Also, be honest with the story so don’t simply exaggerate things.  And if that story is riveting enough, it is a huge factor for the potential candidate to get the role.Closing Statement: Once you have said what needs to be said about recommending someone, create a smooth transition in inserting the closing statement. This part summarizes that the document is a letter of recommendation and that you included your contact details in case the addressee wants more specific examples to support your points.Complimentary Close: Of course, you write with a complimentary close as this ensures that the letter is written formally and on a positive note. “Yours truly,” is standard but you can go for any appropriate complimentary close too.Signature Block: And what finishes your recommendation letter is the signature block. It should have your full name, position, branding, and signature to validate that you wrote and proofread your letter.

How to Write a Phenomenal Recommendation Letter

Now that you are aware of the basic recommendation letter format, it is time to get confident with how you write your letter. Rest assured, writing gets easier as you practice it from time to time. In fact, working on your recommendation letter comes off simple when you follow these helpful steps:

Step 1: Optimize a Recommendation Letter Template

Gone are the days you find letter writing to be time-consuming because sample recommendation letters are up for grabs, as listed above in this article. Premade templates save you from the hassle of making letters out of scratch. You may opt for professional or personal letters of recommendation and the best part is you can edit the design and format of each sample. And each sample is a reliable reference if you need help on how to write a letter of recommendation like a pro.

Step 2: Gather Significant Background Information

Prevent the universal faux pas of writing recommendation letters with unverified background statements. An example is when you write the candidate’s job history. How sure are you that every job position and year listed in there is accurate? Hence, you need reliable documents for proof such as a resume, verification of employment letter, graduation certificate, and other forms. The key here is to ask yourself how much you really know your candidate. Do your investigation and research to prevent believing in some candidates’ lies that could damage your reputation for recommending them in the first place.

Step 3: Follow the Basic Recommendation Letter Format

Can you recall the discussion about the standard letter of recommendation format? Be sure to follow that by starting with the date and ending with the signature block. And from the background information collected earlier, take only the important bits on what to add in the recommendation letter. Although a detailed letter makes a recommendation letter good, it doesn’t make it any better if unnecessary data were included there. Stick to what’s relevant and vital only.

Step 4: Don’t Lose Your Purpose

Some people who write too much could get lost with their purpose in writing. So put it in your head that there are three main statements of purpose behind making a recommendation letter. These are: (1) your relationship with the candidates being recommended, (2) observations or evaluations regarding their performance, and (3) reasons why such candidates deserve their desired positions. If you think your letter lacks these three factors, then you need to edit your work again.

Step 5: Take Proofreading and Editing as a Responsibility

Unleash your inner critic by proofreading and editing your work. You might get cocky that you wrote such a well-written letter yet when you read it aloud again, errors could be noticed. And it’s alright to err because there is always room for improvements after a thorough evaluation of your recommendation letter. Lastly, value integrity because you must be a responsible person as well by only mentioning the facts about the candidate you recommended. So only submit the letter to the addressee if you’re sure it’s excellently made.

FAQs

What are the benefits of a recommendation letter?

A recommendation letter has many advantages including how it can present facts not often found in a basic job letter of application. And that happens when the person who wrote the letter has found something interesting about the candidate with potential. Also, being recommended boosts the chance of the applicant to nab her/his/their desired position, especially if the one who recommended is a well-respected person. Lastly, the letter explains how the candidate brings value to an organization; hence, that’s how that person got the recommendation.

What are the two main divisions of recommendation letters?

Recommendation letters are divided into two main categories. These are according to the candidate’s hard and soft skills. Hard skills refer to the candidate’s technical capabilities or measurable skills. And it is often used in a professional reference letter. Meanwhile, soft skills are focused more on the behavior and character of a person. And it applies mostly to a character reference letter.

What are the 5Ws and how in a recommendation letter?

According to The Balance Careers, the important questions to answer or the 5Ws and how in recommendation letters are:

  • Who are you writing for?
  • Why should you recommend that candidate?
  • Where and when have you worked with whoever you recommended?
  • What is special about this candidate?
  • How did this person display impressive qualities to you?

Despite the fact that writing recommendation letters have its own challenges in ensuring you can sell your candidate to another organization, you can’t deny that it’s also rewarding how someone like you is capable of helping people with the potential to achieve their dreams. So make a recommendation letter in the best impression possible using top-notch recommendation letter templates from Sample.net. Develop a letter of recommendation that brings a positive impact to your candidate now!