Requesting Letters

How to request a letter of recommendation

• Ask Professor Chambers whether he’d be willing to write you a strong letter of recommendation. If you are still on campus, it’s best to make this request in person by setting up an appointment with Professor Chambers using his Google calendar.

• Then, complete the online request form once for each school to which you apply. To fill out the form, you will need to know when the deadline dates are for each application and the method of recommendation letter submission (e.g., email, mail, or online form).

• As part of the form, you will need to upload PDF copies of the following items. You only need to do this step for the first school that you submit.

  • Resume or CV
  • Transcript (unofficial is fine)
  • Cover letter organized as follows:
    • Dates you have known Professor Chambers
    • Contexts you have interacted with Professor Chambers (e.g., class or 290)
    • List of classes taken with Professor Chambers with the semester and year taken included as well as the grade that you received in each course. If you completed a significant project in one of those courses (e.g., Museum Research in PSY 234 or Research Study in 225), please provide a brief summary of your project.
    • If you worked in the Center for Developmental Science, please summarize your main accomplishments (e.g., tasks performed in lab, studies conducted, methods used, number of subjects tested, publications, posters, presentations at conferences, presentations in lab meetings, administrative tasks, and any other relevant information).
    • A list of the types of programs that you are applying to (e.g. Clinical Psychology, Counseling Psychology, Educational Psychology, Cognitive, Developmental, Social, and Neuroscience). In addition, it is helpful to explain why you are applying to that particular program. Why is it a good fit for you? It is also helpful to include your educational and career objectives.
    • In your cover letter, also please include the following passage so that Professor Chambers has the right to disclose your personal academic information in the letters they write about you:

“I consent to the release of personal and educational information about me in the letter of recommendation that I have requested from you. This authorization allows you to release all information about me, within the College’s possession, to the educational institutions or centralized application processing services I’ve submitted to you. This authorization shall remain valid unless and until it is rescinded in writing.”

Other things to keep in mind

Students without lab experience

Professor Chambers can write stronger recommendation letters for students that have worked in his lab. He will still consider writing letters for students without lab experience, but students should understand that these letters will only express what he knows with certainty about the student such as their grade in his class, their comments & questions, their writing and project participation (if applicable), their overall academic and work history as conveyed by their resume, and first impressions regarding their motivation and suitability for the program.

Access to information waiver

When your applications give you the option to waive your right to access your recommendation letter, you are encouraged to do so. In general, schools prefer confidential letters (i.e., letters for which the applicant has waived his/her right to read the letter), because they assume that confidential evaluations will be more candid. As a result, more weight may be assigned to such letters.