FREE 6+ Sample Formal Letter of Recommendation in MS Word | PDF

Are you currently perplexed at how to go about writing a recommendation letter for someone?

Whatever the type of recommendation letter you are writing, be it an academic or employment one, you need to refer to a template in your letter-writing. For your guidance, you may download our recommendation Sample Letters on this page. These are easy to edit and available in PDF and Doc formats. Scroll down below and start downloading!

Formal Letter of Recommendation Format

Formal Letter of Recommendation for College

Formal Letter of Recommendation Sample

Example of Formal Letter of Recommendation

Academic Recommendation Letters

Academic recommendation letters are letters that are sent to educational institutions with the intent of gaining an academic slot for a prospective student or applicant. This letter should

• mention the referred person’s commendable ability to concentrate in long periods of time on dissecting academic topics and subjects
• and focus on the prospective student’s stellar intellectual capabilities and sharp reasoning acumen.

Formal Letter of Recommendation for Promotion

A formal letter of recommendation for promotion is usually sent by the following persons:

• a former colleague,
• a current colleague,
• a former/current supervisor/manager,
• a former employer, and
• a former professor.

The purpose of this letter is to increase the recommended person’s chance of getting promoted to a more prestigious or higher-paying job position within the company. In writing this letter, it is important to emphasize the following:

• good work ethic,
• good interpersonal / organizational skills, and
• stellar abilities that relates to the job position being recommended for.

For more reference, check out our collection of Letter of Recommendation for Internship.

Formal Letter of Recommendation for Graduate School

Formal Request for Letter of Recommendation Sample

Formal Business Letter of Recommendation

How to Write a Stellar Recommendation Letter

1. Research first.

Before you go scribbling your genuine admiration for the person you are writing about, you need to ask first the following questions:

• What is the purpose of the letter?
• What are the qualifications of the position (job or academic) that the applicant is applying for?
• What is the name of the person whom I shall address this recommendation letter to?

After answering these questions, you are now ready to start writing a draft.

2. Start with a formal introduction.

State succinctly that you are writing to recommend someone. After that, mention in what manner you have known the applicant (the person you are recommending) and for how long.

3. State the recommendable traits

Make sure that the traits, behaviors, and qualities that you will rave about in your letter are directly relevant to the qualities that the letter-writer are looking for. For example, if you are writing for a prospective graduate student-applicant, then you need to emphasize his/her excellent intellectual capacity.

4. Expound further.

Narrate the specific instances that happened in the past in order to prove the authenticity of your claims regarding the applicant’s character. Remember, educational institutions and companies are looking for a credible source of information regarding the applicants that they are considering. If you don’t state specific instances, the letter-receiver would most likely not believe your claims.

5. Close your letter in a formal tone.

Just like all professional letters, close it formally with polite remarks; also, don’t forget to state that if the reader has any further questions regarding the recommendation, he/she may contact you via a certain number or e-mail.

You can check out our Personal Recommendation Letters that are also available for free download.