Dear {{Scholarship Name}},
I am writing a letter on behalf of {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}, an international studies student at {{University}} University who is applying for the {{Name Scholarship}}. To get straight to the point, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} is, without a doubt, one of the strongest undergraduate students I have had the pleasure of working at {{University}}.
I am {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}’s co-advisor for his/her honors thesis and he/she has enrolled in several of my classes. Most recently, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} was the sole undergraduate student in a graduate seminar I taught titled Qualitative Methods. His/her performance was outstanding. I enjoyed watching his/her successfully grapple his/her way through some very difficult readings in social theory. Additionally, he/she was a discussion leader he/she grounded very difficult theory which helped alleviate some of the initial nervousness of the other students in the class. As I noted from his/her discussions, he/she is one of those rare students who can operate at an advanced theoretical level while keeping firmly rooted in an empirical realm.
Over the past year, I have watched {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}’s interest in {{Studies}} blossom into a very powerful thesis topic on {{topic}}. My area of expertise is in {{area expertise}}; for this reason, I am confident when I say he/she has chosen a fascinating topic for exploration. As part of his/her research, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} conducted a case study of {{topic}}. {{Explain qualities}}
Having carefully reviewed {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}’s data based on his/her case study, I can affirm that his/her work is top-notch and is on par with the graduate students in the geography department. Such a claim is no small matter. {{University}} University’s {{Department}} is the highest-ranking department in the country based on a recent report by the Council, so it is important to understand that I am comparing {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} with some of the best graduate students in the discipline.
Finally, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} has a strong understanding of political theory and a strong intellectual facility. He/she writes well and clearly and will complete his/her career at {{University}} University undoubtedly to much acclaim. He/she is a r...
I am pleased to write in support of {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}’s application to receive a {{Name Scholarship}}. I know {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} well; he/she initially developed his/her thesis proposal in one of my classes and I direct a workshop in which he/she is bringing that proposal to fruition with other seniors. I am also his/her honors advisor in {{Science}}, and I selected his/her to serve as the undergraduate representative to the department Undergraduate Committee, which I chair. We talk frequently about his/her academic interests, career goals, travels, and many campus responsibilities.
{{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} is impressive and growing more so each year. His/her academic work is excellent: he/she writes well, he/she offers valuable and at times exceedingly insightful comments, he/she is always prepared, and on group projects, he/she elevates the performance of those around his/her. But without doubt his/her finest academic achievement is the honors thesis he/she is now writing. I believe it will be among the best we have seen here in the last ten years, and we produce an average of eight to ten these a year.
{{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} developed and refined his/her research proposal on {{topic}}. No honors student that I have worked with, let alone a sophomore, has developed a research idea, and then set up the appropriate fieldwork with comparable skill and determination.
{{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} used his/her junior year to do advanced graduate course work on comparative methods. He/she then spent the summer conducting interviews and doing archival research. And what a trove of material he/she has developed! Rich, sensitive, and theoretically revealing interviews that demonstrate his/her grasp of the material and ability to connect with his/her subjects. I expect his/her thesis to make important academic contributions to our notions of identity and its importance to politics as wells as substantive contributions to our understanding of politics in regions plagued by years of conflict. My hope is that he/she will continue to mine his/her material and push his/her ideas in advanced academic work, preferably in USA.
But to fully appreciate {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} you need to go far beyond his/her intellectual abilities. He/she is a force on campus and outside, but one who tends to work within rather than outside the system.
{{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} is responsible, organized, articulate, exceedingly driven, and personable. Other students defer to his/her judgment and arguments. I chose his/her to serve on my undergraduate committee, which is engaged in an overhaul of our curriculum, for all these reasons. But I have been pleasantly surprised by his/her work on the committee because of the extent to which he/she has been such a forceful advocate for students’ interests. This is not the easiest thing to do—to tell three professors what they should be doing. From the first day, however, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} demonstrated the role he/she would play, and we quickly came to rely upon his/her as a vital participant in our deliberations.
I should note one or two other aspects of {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}}’s personality and character as well, in that they are so public and striking. First, he/she is aware and involved with contemporary politics, in particular issues important to youth. His/her work to promote voting among college students, his/her web broadcasts of the conventions, his/her active support of the quality team teaching program at the {{University}} Institute for Learning, and his/her recent involvement with the World Summit all demonstrate, to me, that he/she has his/her finger on the pulse of the college campus, American youth, and increasingly international youth as well. This is an essential part of how he/she defines his/her leadership skills.
Second, {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} is wonderfully authentic. He/she talks about his/her accomplishments with joy, his/her failures with disappointment, and his/her plans with enthusiasm. Finally, he/she is ambitious without seeing himself/herself in competition with others. In a variety of settings, I have seen his/her contributions to other students and the larger community.
I believe {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} {{Mr./Mrs.}} {{Name Student}} is a ....
Please contact me if I can provide any additional information. Yours sincerely,
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