LOR writer asked for draft that closely copies my CV/SOP

[browncow]

A professor who is recommending me called a few days ago and asked me to provide two pages of information in a fixed format that he can then pick and choose from to write his letter. The trouble is, 3/4 of what he's asked for (including GPA, major academic achievements, professional history) is already covered by my CV and SOP, not to mention my professional recommender.

 

Though he agreed weeks ago to write for me, the call made it clear he doesn't remember who I am, hasn't read the materials I sent him, and won't have time to do so. Any suggestions on how to steer him away from picking out a list of CV facts?

 

It's too late for me to look for another recommender, and I've been out of school so long anyway that a well-written letter from a nice guy who knows adcoms is as good as I had hoped for.

[TakeruK]

Are you saying that you sent him your CV and SOP already but he still made this call? Or are you worried that the LOR will just be the same content as your CV and SOP.

 

If it's the former, then I think it's still a good idea to make the 2 page summary that he requested. Make everything point form so he can decide what he wants to talk about or highlight in your LOR.

 

If it's the latter, then you probably should have sent him your CV (and SOP if it was ready) with your original letter request. It's not a problem that the LOR will contain information from your CV and SOP. Ideally, your CV and SOP would cover 100% of all the things you want the admissions committee to know, so the LOR is really the same information but presented differently. Also, ideally, all of your LORs should say the same great things about you! So, repeating information is perfectly fine!

 

I don't think it's fair to expect a professor to be able to write a LOR for you just from their memory of you. They write tens to hundreds of letters per year, for their past students, current students, past colleagues and current colleagues. Also, I would not want to have a LOR written about me with just the professor's memory. It's a good thing that they are asking for a list of things that you want mentioned about yourself! 

 

So I think you should go ahead and prepare this 2 page summary! 

[browncow]

I sent him CV, SOP, transcripts, papers, and a photo. My concerns are that he won't have any different angle, and the fact that most of his format deals with things, e.g., my professional life, that he doesn't have any relationship to and which I would not have expected him to write about.

[TakeruK]

Oh okay, I understand now!

 

I don't think it will be so bad if the LOR is writing from the list of facts, especially since it sounds like you said this was the kind of letter you would have expected from this prof anyways. What else would you have wanted to be in your LOR other than the facts from your CV, SOP, and transcripts? Normally, the LOR writer may be able to include their thoughts and impressions about you and your abilities because they had some kind of working relationship with you. But since you were saying you would expect this to be a pretty generic letter, it doesn't sound like you and this prof have this connection (i.e. the prof doesn't remember). This is fine though, it sounds like your professional reference will be very strong. 

 

If you are worried that the letter will go off topic / comment on things the prof has no awareness of, then my advice would be to use your 2-page summary to shape/craft your own letter. So, maybe focus your 2 page summary only on things relevant to your relationship with this professor? It doesn't have to be things that involved the prof. I think it would be okay for this prof to discuss your achievements while a student at their university even if they were not related to the achievements at all. Stuff like GPA, involvement in student groups, awards, etc. 

 

Overall, a generic letter that states what the prof knows about you is better than no letter at all, if you need this letter to meet the minimum letter requirement. 

[browncow]

Thanks for your advice, Takeru. I found some things to elaborate on that I think stay a little further away from just the CV.

[reinhard]

I am in the same boat, but the prof is my supervisor and the letter is less than 500 words.