When do you give a gift to...

yosup
Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:11:10 +0000

Although one of my teachers refused the gift because she thought she was fulfilling her duty to her students and she didn’t want any monetary rewards for it.



I guess I just feel the same way as your teacher. If you do well in a class, it’s your teacher’s duty to write you a recommendation for college (at least IMO). Of course they don’t have to, but refusing a good student a recommendation is unheard of in my school, and teachers here do it pretty much for everyone who asks (although it may not be a good one). Teachers here think of it as part of their jobs; if they refused to write letters, we wouldn’t be able to go to college.

I guess I’m just trying to say that by writing you a letter, teachers and especially a counselor aren’t doing anything extraordinary for you. If you like the teacher, then a Christmas gift is a great idea, but I don’t think a gift is expected or necessary for writing a LoR. Besides (and I know this is just me lol), if I ever help someone out I’d prefer a heartfelt “thanks” (o_O) over a gift card or money.