• Request a Recommendation Letter (Waiver Form)
• Request a Dean's Letter
• Guidelines for Mailing Recommendations

Keeping general letters of recommendation on file is a valuable service provided by the College. You can ask a professor, teaching fellow, supervisor, or mentor for such a recommendation at any time. Your letters will be kept on file in the Pforzheimer House office and can be sent out at your request to employers, graduate schools, or fellowship committees.

As a rule of thumb, you should always ask for a recommendation from the person who best knows you and your work. If your TF is more familiar with the quality of your work than your professor, by all means ask him or her to write you the recommendation. Moreover, do not be shy about asking your recommender whether he or she feels comfortable writing you a good letter. You might also want to supply that person with a detailed resume describing your activities and how they have contributed to your personal or academic development. If you waive your right to view the letter, which is highly recommended, then the letter must be sent directly to the house office.

Students who are interested in obtaining letters of recommendation for the files must follow the procedures detailed below:

• Contact the instructor, advisor, etc. about writing a letter of recommendation for your academic file.
• Provide each recommender with a Request for a Recommendation form, which must be signed by you and the recommender. This form can be obtained from the Resident Dean's Office or online.
• Recommendation letters should be mailed directly to:

  Pforzheimer House
  Office of the Resident Dean
  56 Linnaean St.
  Cambridge, MA 02138

Once the office receives letters they will be checked for signatures and for the required accompanying request form, and then placed in your folder.

If you need a Dean's Letter to be written on your behalf, then fill out and sign the Request for Dean's Letter form which is available in the Resident Dean's Office and online.

You can request that a letter be sent to a third party by contacting Jason, the staff assistant, at pforz@fas.harvard.edu or stopping by the Resident Dean's Office. You will need to provide the information outlined in the mailing request form. Your student files are kept in the Resident Dean's office for seven years after you leave Harvard.

If you have any questions about these procedures please contact Jason, the staff assistant, at pforz@fas.harvard.edu, 5-8176, or stop by the Resident Dean's Office.