Embarrassing Typos in Letter of Recommendation

SirPingPong
Wed, 14 Jan 2015 01:19:02 +0000

I just found this out today, and I am fairly stressed/freaking out.

So, back in December — I signed the FERPA on the Common App to waive my recommendation viewing rights. I did not read either of my two recommendations that were sent off to various Ivy Leagues and other private schools. I didn’t think much about them.

Fast forward to today — I pick up a printed copy of the same recommendation from one of the teachers for a scholarship that I need to mail. As I’m folding the letter for the envelope, I catch that in the first sentence, I am referred to as “her” (I am male). Of course, I had to keep reading it…

I read the letter. Most of it is not from a rec “template”, and the middle portion is actually pretty good and unique. But then, in the final two paragraphs, s/he repeats three whole sentences back to back. THREE. WHOLE. SENTENCES. At this point, I’m thinking that they didn’t even take the mere 10 seconds to skim/proofread what they wrote. I mean, this is my future here!

The grammar mistakes continue. There’s about 3-4 minor ones like the “her” in the beginning, the one big repetition one, then his/her name is at the bottom (not even signed) with a “Feel free should you feel for more information on [my name]” in a different sized font. At one point, s/he even refers to me as a “simple student in many ways”, by trying to emphasize that there’s more to me than meets the eye, but the point doesn’t come across as fully intended…so it appears that s/he is painting me as simple-minded when that is not the intent.

The letter was sent to about 10 schools,two of which I was deferred from ED/EA back in December.

So finding this out now, I’m wondering what I can do about it if anything. I talked to my counselor and s/he was concerned as well, and suggested s/he could shed light on the situation briefly in the Mid-Year report, something saying that s/he saw the letter as part of the scholarship application and was concerned it would negatively affect my application, so s/he would write that the recommendation writer was stressed/busy and didn’t proofread correctly instead of Adcoms assuming they didn’t care about my recommendation. I seriously could understand a few typos, but this just reeks of minimal effort despite the letter’s length.

I have no clue what to do (or if anything should even be done). Should I follow my GC’s suggestion for the Mid-Year report? Can I get the teacher to email an amended recommendation to regional admissions rep with an apology? Should I send a third rec from the humanities department to support this typoed one? Should I cross my fingers and just hope for the best? Should I even be concerned about this at all? I feel like I should be, since I dropped nearly $1,000 of my OWN hard-earned money along with countless hours preparing for these applications, just to have a teacher I trusted botch with typos like this.

Any help is appreciated!