How to Write a Strong Letter of Recommendation

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1. 19 July 2026 · corrected by Emir Baycan

   Fabricated quote attributed to Adam Grant. This exact quote does not appear in his published work or public statements found via web search.; Fabricated quote attributed to Liz Ryan. This exact quote does not appear in her published work or public statements found via web search.

   Before

   <blockquote> <p>&quot;I can tell within two paragraphs whether a letter was written by someone who knows the candidate well or by someone who is doing a favor. The tell is always the specificity of the examples, never the volume of the adjectives.&quot; Adam Grant, Wharton School</p> </blockquote> [...] <blockquote> <p>&quot;Numbers in a recommendation letter function as honesty markers. A recommender who tells you where a student ranks against a specific pool is someone who has actually thought about the comparison. A recommender who uses only adjectives is hedging, whether they realize it or not.&quot; Liz Ryan, human workplace advocate</p> </blockquote>

   After

   <blockquote> <p>Admissions and hiring professionals often say they can tell within a couple of paragraphs whether a recommendation letter was written by someone who genuinely knows the candidate or by someone doing a favor, and that the tell is usually the specificity of the examples rather than the volume of adjectives.</p> </blockquote> [...] <blockquote> <p>Career advocates like Liz Ryan have made the case that specific numbers in a recommendation letter function as a kind of honesty marker: a recommender who places a candidate against a specific comparison pool has clearly thought it through, while one who relies only on adjectives may be hedging without realizing it.</p> </blockquote>

   Why: Fabricated quote attributed to Adam Grant. This exact quote does not appear in his published work or public statements found via web search.; Fabricated quote attributed to Liz Ryan. This exact quote does not appear in her published work or public statements found via web search.

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1. Correction 19 July 2026

   Emir Baycan: Fabricated quote attributed to Adam Grant. This exact quote does not appear in his published work or public statements found via web search.; Fabricated quote attributed to Liz Ryan. This exact quote does not appear in her published work or public statements found via web search.

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