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Recommendation Letter
Standard
letter of recommendation forms can serve as templates for writing effective
letters of recommendation quickly and easily; the most practical are software-driven
The ultimate
template for a letter of recommendation is a letter of recommendation
form. Using these forms, the writer simply fills in the blanks, and the
letter essentially writes itself.
The appeal
of such a concept is obvious; however, in practice it is difficult to
find a form that can provide more than the most basic and generic of letters.
In addition, sending a form with hand-written responses is anything but
professional; so in the end the form needs to be completely re-typed -
defeating the whole purpose of using the form in the first place.
In practice,
the only letter of recommendation forms that can deliver the results required
with the convenience desired are those that are software-driven. Often
called "letter generators", these programs allow you to fill
in the blanks and pick and choose options and then push a button to get
the letter you need. Different generators are available to produce all
kinds of business letters, including letters of recommendation.
For
example, the following options might be presented to allow the user to
change the salutation of a letter:
Whole
sentences can be traded in and out in this way. For example:
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Letter
generators also collect contact information, so that the writer's name
and title can appear after the salutation. Similarly, they collect the
job candidate's name so that it can be used throughout the letter as well.
For example:
In
this example, the candidate is a male and would be referred to in the
letter as "Randal" (rather than "Mr. Breaux"). This
information can then be applied to the text of the letter. For example,
if this contact information is applied to the following user selection:
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it
would produce:
Randal has been a model employee and has mastered all the
skills needed to perform his duties.
(Of course,
the bold-facing would not appear in the actual letter;
I've just used it here for emphasis.)
Generating the Letter
This
is the coolest part: Once all the options have been selected, the user
then presses the appropriate button and... Presto! The system generates
the final letter automatically, fully formatted and pretty much ready
to go.
If
the final letter is not quite perfect, the user can go back to adjust
different options and fire off another version, going back and forth until
satisfied.
Finally,
most generators allow you to copy the final letter and paste it into a
word processor for final editing, spell-checking, etc. In
this way, the user can produce professional results in minutes.
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Letter-Machine.com
The
only commercially available letter generator for letters of recommendation
is called Letter-Machine.com. The software is web-based, so instead of
having to download the software and install it on your own computer, you
access it through the Internet using your browser. The company sells year-long
subscriptions to its service, so if you sign up they will provide you
with a password ("unlock key") that will be valid for one year;
this password will get you into the system.
Although
somewhat unusual, this membership-type arrangement works very well. You
do not have to worry that the software will conflict with other software
you have already installed, and you can access the program from any computer
with an Internet connection. Also, from time to time the company issues
updates which you will instantly have without doing anything on your end.
The
software itself is easy to use, and on-line videos are available to guide
you through how to use it. In practice, though, they aren't really necessary
since the system is very simple to use.
Many
"versions" of the program are available - so you can select
the type of letter you want to write: job application, student admission,
etc. The letters produced are quite good and use the "success formula"
structure we discuss here. A money-back guarantee is offered if you are
not completely satisfied, and the company is extremely good about refunds.
For
more information, see Letter-Machine.com.
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