Sample Letter of Recommendation for Masters (MS) Courses

Letter of Recommendation for MS: Studying abroad is a lengthy process and once you have finalized your universities, you need to arrange your documents in order. Among these documents, SOP, LORs, and Resume are part of your application documents that will be sent to all the universities along with your application form. As you would know by now, LORs are crucial to your profile as it adds weight to your application. Thus, you need to be clear and specific about what goes into your LOR. When you apply to a university or college abroad you need to send a letter of recommendation which someone who can vouch for your potential, abilities, and character has to write. Usually, this document is written by your teachers or employers or anyone associated with you academically. Most academic institutes need strong LORs so as to evaluate your intellectual level, creativity, leadership skills and other related attributes.

Sample LOR for MS

The following is a sample letter of recommendation for MS. Instances and applications have been picked at random to create this sample. Shiksha.com strongly recommends against copying the content and suggests applicants use this article as a point of reference only.

LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION FOR MASTERS

As the Head of the Aeronautical Department at XYZ College, New Delhi, I am delighted to write this letter of recommendation for Ms ABC, an undergraduate student of this department. I have known ABC for two years now, and hence I can confidently discuss her skills and qualities. She is a highly motivated and sincere student, who has actively capitalised on every opportunity our college had to offer.

ABC has consistently been amongst the top scorers of her batch, throughout the course of her degree, and was thus one of the few people to be offered the chance to pursue an Honours degree. This requires the completion of extra credits and a publication to receive the degree. She is currently working towards that in parallel with her normal courses. She was also chosen by the student council to teach first-year students, who needed tutoring when she was in her second year.

Additionally, ABC has also successfully represented our college in numerous Aircraft Design competitions, both nationally and internationally. Most recently, her team designed a UAV for ‘Crop Health Analysis’, and won the National Aviator Challenge, conducted by QPR University. Her design reports frequently have something different and innovative in them and solve a real-life problem. Besides this, she has also sparked the interest of many students in the field of Aerospace, by taking the initiative to organize technical workshops, competitions and talks. Her event, based on ‘Air Crash Investigations’, organised as a part of our annual technical fest, in 2019, proved to be a great success.

Furthermore, ABC was an approachable and effective president of our Aerospace Club from Apr 2018 to Mar 2019. In her term, the work of this club went on seamlessly. She not only mentored her juniors in a technical capacity but her complete dedication was undoubtedly laudable.

Overall, ABC has a very strong sense of community and teamwork, with an undeniable passion for the field of Aerospace. She has demonstrated great leadership skills and proved herself to be a valuable student of our department, time and again. I am positive that she will prove to be an asset to any college she is a part of, and complete the course with flying colours. Thus, I strongly recommend Ms ABC to your esteemed institution and wish her the best in the same.

Yours sincerely,

Full name of the Recommender

Designation, Department

Name of Institution, City

Contact No:

Email ID:

Also Read: Shiksha Guidelines for LOR

Sample LOR for MS in CS

Hopefully, the above sample must have helped you with an idea about writing a LOR for MS courses. Similarly, for a LOR required for MS in CS, you will follow the same format. However, for a CS student, it is advisable to highlight technical skills like:

• What programming languages is he/she an expert in
• Coding skills and where did he/she showcase them
• Any specific project where he/she used his/her technical expertise
• Knowledge of different applications
• Any application developed/created, etc.

LOR sample for MS in Mechanical Engineering

Similar to attributes highlighted in LOR for MS CS, for a Mechanical Engineering student, qualities like the following can be highlighted, with suitable instances:

• Knowledge of the market
• Knowledge of various tools to be highlighted
• Teamwork skills
• Leadership skills
• Technical skills
• Problem-solving skills, etc.

LOR Sample for MS in Civil Engineering

For a student aiming for MS in Civil Engineering, the LOR should highlight qualities like:

• Curiosity or critical thinking
• Creativity and flair for innovation
• Collaborative spirit
• Having an eye-for-detail
• Problem-solving skills, etc.

LOR Sample for MS in Electrical Engineering

MS aspirants for Electrical Engineering can accentuate attributes such as:

• Knowledge of circuit-design
• Knowledge of other software or tools
• Critical thinking and analyzing
• Innovation
• Organizational skills
• Complex problem-solving skills, etc.

LOR Sample for MS in Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE)

Similar to the skills of an Electrical Engineer, an ECE aspirant should emphasize qualities like:

• Interest and knowledge of technology
• Latest trends
• IT skills
• Communication skills
• Time management
• Efficiency

LOR Sample for Financial Analyst

The following are the skills to include in LOR for financial analyst:

• Accounting
• Corporate Finance
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Forecasting
• Financial Modeling
• Technical Analysis

Also Read: How to make an impressive Letter of Recommendation (LOR)

Whom should you ask for a letter of recommendation for your Master’s application?

Any university you are applying to would ask for at least two to three LORs. Thus, you have to pick three people who can do this job perfectly. The format and content of a LOR are as crucial as the recommender- the person who will be recommending your profile for admission. The choice of the recommender is solely on you. Preferably, they can be any Assistant Professors (college faculty) or Project Managers and Supervisors, with whom you share a good rapport, and have worked closely, who should write you a LOR. If you have work experience or have undergone any internship, then you can ask for LOR from your manager or team lead/project lead at that organisation. If you are going for studies directly after your Bachelor's, then you can get all three LORs from the college faculty (professors and HoD). Read How to Choose the Right Recommender to know more about it.

Difference between a letter of recommendation and a reference letter?

A letter of recommendation (LOR) is specific to academic requirements. Generally, it is required by the universities along with your application form when you make your final submission to the university. A letter of recommendation discusses your attributes and accomplishments and describes your holistic personality. It is directly sent to the university or sometimes the university sends a link directly to the recommender’s email through which they have to submit their LOR. It is more personal and discusses the personality of an applicant as a whole.

On the other hand, a Reference Letter is usually used for professional purposes when you join a new company. You can use one reference from one recommender and keep it to yourself. It is more official, hence, only professional accomplishments and performance are discussed.

Tips for Indian Students

One of the most important things to remember is that the Admission Committee comes across thousands of applications and thousands of documents. Here are a few tips to keep in mind while drafting your LOR:

• They can easily recognize if the LOR was plagiarized or written by the same person. Thus, it is advisable not to copy any content from the web/internet.
• Even if you are writing the LORs yourself, make sure the qualities and instances are genuine and differ for each LOR, as each recommender will have different experiences and associations with you.
• The content should differ as well as the style without deviating from the format.
• Apart from this, here are a few ‘don’ts’ to keep in mind if you are writing the LORs yourself: Common Errors in a LOR.

How to Submit a Letter of Recommendation (LOR)?

A student needs to keep certain things in mind before sending his/her Letter of recommendation to an international university of his/her choice. Certain guidelines need to be followed so that the process sails smoothly without any issues. Below mentioned are some of the steps which you can follow for the same:

Ask for LOR: Make a list of all those from whom you require a letter of recommendation and reach out to them to take their consent. Make sure whosoever you choose is academically or professionally acquainted with you as they would need to write about your capabilities and qualification.

Give relevant details: After your chosen writers have given their consent, give them all the necessary details related to your academics and the course you’re applying for. Also, tell them what purpose would this letter serve and about anything specific which you would like them to mention. Do mind them of the deadline as well. Do all of this before the deadline approaches so that the recommender does not write the LOR hastily.

Share the guidelines: If the university or college you’ve selected has set any LOR guidelines, help your recommender get familiar with it so that they use the correct format to write the same. This way he/she will be able to write accurately without any scope of error.

Sending the LOR: Ensure that you’re well acquainted with the medium of sending the LOR. Some institutions might want the recommender only to send the LOR directly to them whereas some may require the applicant to do so online. You should know the right process.

Learn to write LORs with the help of videos by university experts

Shiksha.com helps students apply to 300+ universities worldwide with free SOP/LOR editing services. To know more details and get a free profile evaluation, check out our counseling page.

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