The Ethics of Recommendation Writing

International Students
1

<p>Hi guys,</p>

<p>While writing recs seem normal for English-speaking teachers/counselors in places like Singapore, India, or UK, it is often a challenging task for those who are not fluent in English and not familiar with admission process. As a result, some students in these countries opt to write it themselves and have their teachers sign. While I understand the concern that translating a Chinese or Korea letter into an English one may seriously affect the letter’s style and the quality, this raises an ethical question too: Isn’t the whole point of a letter of rec about giving admission officers an objective, third-person assessment of your personality traits, character, MORALITY and INTEGRITY? Now you are ‘recommending/praising’ yourself!!</p>

<p>Three quick questions:

  1. How popular is this phenomenon in your high school?
  2. Do you think writing your own rec is regarded ethical? Would you suggest this ‘approach’ to future students?
  3. Finally, I personally would like to hear any thoughts and ideas on this topic.</p>

<p>:)</p>

2

<p>Personally, I do not think that <em>IN UK</em> they have any problems writing a letter of rec <em>IN ENLISH</em> :), or lack familiarity with the process. Forgive me if I am mistaken. Otherwise, interesting topic. Because in other countries they do.</p>

3

<p>Some students from non-English speaking countries opt for translation by a certified organization, normally a language center or some sort.</p>