Recommendation (Sample)

To Whom It May Concern:
Nancy Wilson is an exceptional young woman. Last year when I was volunteering for a local NGO, I recognized her as being one of my students from the Astronomy class. I was quite impressed by her thoroughness. I understand that she is applying to the MBA program at your school. I would like to recommend her for admission.
Nancy's strong points include an ability to take on challenging tasks simultaneously and produce quality results despite deadline pressure. As part of the semester end project, she had developed a computerized model of the Andromeda galaxy. The size and complexity of this project was unusually high for the nature of the course. Her software has been largely appreciated in research labs and is freely available to students. What is really impressive is that simultaneously with the project (which she completed single-handedly I must add), she was logistics coordinator of the Astronomy Society and a volunteer for children with special needs. Of course, all this was in addition to her other courses. I was quite happy to see that this heavy workload did not break her commitment and determination.
Her academic performance was also one of the best I have known in my teaching career. In a class of 38, she was in the top 3. She was the only one who undertook a project instead of taking the final exam. Projects and final exams have an equal opportunity for a high score. But, a project requires far more initiative as the nature of the work is unstructured. This should give you an idea of Nancy's willingness to take on challenging roles and coming out ahead.
If your MBA program seeks intelligent candidates with strong achievement orientation and leadership, Nancy is a good choice. She does have her weaknesses. I find her irritable with others who do not seem to be keen to do good work. I think that with time and more experience, she will become more compliant. Your graduate program in business will help her do that.
Finally, let me unequivocally state my strong recommendation for Nancy Wilson. If you have any questions or need more information, I will be happy to talk to you. Please call me at the telephone number printed on this letterhead or email me at the address mentioned above.