Thank you for LOR - letter or card?

[spaghetti]

Hi y'all, 

 

I'm really sorry if this has been asked before. I tried searching for thank you note threads but couldn't find an answer to my exact question (maybe my search wasn't thorough enough).

 

When thanking a teacher for writing a letter of recommendation, should I send an email or a card? I think the card would be more personal, but I would want to thank him/her immediately after seeing the letter has been submitted, and the e-mail would be faster than mailing a card. Would it be overkill to send a thank you e-mail and a physical card?

 

Also, do I send the card/email right after he/she submits the letter of recommendation or do I send it after acceptance/rejection?

 

Thank you for your help, gradcafe!

[reddcurry]

first: I had never even considered sending a thank you but it makes so much sense I feel like "d'uh, thank them" and wonder if it's too late to thank the prof who wrote me a LOR in 2011....

second: though I'd never thought of this specifically, I am well-versed in correspondence etiquette. Send the thank you after he/she submits, do not wait to hear back from the school. You can send another letter/email once accepted, but it may be difficult to thank someone upon rejection cause then you'll probably mention it and that's just not a fun thing to do (I've done it, it sucks, it's an awkward "I let you down" type of thing and just not pleasant).

Also, just send a card. Have it ready, and send it once you get the confirmation that they sent your LOR. No need to e-mail as well. Mail isn't that slow, maybe 3 days if it's in the same country, and that's a lovely amount of time for the prof to deal with his/her other stuff before they get a friendly thank you  Also take this opportunity to thank the prof for how he/she taught you as well, not just about the LOR. It'll demonstrate that you truly enjoyed and benefited from the relationship, regardless of the result of your application.

Good luck!