Applying to Graduate School? How to Prepare an Organized Packet for Your Recommenders

Making the letter writing process as easy and organized as possible for those who have agreed to write your letters of recommendation is worth whatever time and effort you put into it. Not only does a well-organized packet help your recommenders (or "letter writers") to generate a targeted and strong letter for you, but it also distinguishes you as a professional student. Furthermore, it almost guarantees that your recommenders will have completed your letters by the deadline you will have given them in your cover letter (we'll go over that in a second).

If you don't have 3 recommenders ready to write letters for you yet, see my article, "How to Prepare Before You Apply to Graduate School." Otherwise, continue reading.

Invest in 3 of those five-tab colorful folders from your local office supply store. Mark the 1^st tab of each folder "Cover Letter." Mark the 2^nd tab "Statement of Purpose" or "Personal Statement" (they are the same thing). Mark the 3^rd tab "CV." Mark the 4^th tab "Transcripts." Finally, mark the 5^th tab "Schools." Here's how to create the contents for each tab:

TABS #1 & 2: In order to keep my articles on applying to grad school as succinct as possible, I have dedicated separate articles to tabs #1 (the cover letter) and #2 (the statement of purpose/personal statement). If you need help with these particular items, you will want to refer to these specific articles.

TAB #3 (the CV): The CV (for Curriculum Vitae... sometimes also referred to as, simply, a "Vita") can be used for many things, but in this case, it is basically an academic résumé. In addition to supplying your recommenders with this information, you will also want to send along a copy of your CV with each graduate/law school application.

Your CV is comprised of various categories ranging from "Academic Awards" to "Volunteer Work." I know that, at first, it might seem like you haven't done much and you may even fear that you won't have anything valuable to include in your CV. However, I bet you'll be surprised about just how much you've done once you get started.