Requesting a Recommendation Letter
Before asking me for a recommendation letter, please first check whether I can write a meaningful and professional letter for you. A strong letter requires direct evidence of your work, reliability, and potential. If the criteria below do not apply, please do not send a request.
Can I write a recommendation letter for you?
Please answer the questions below in order. If your answer is No at any step, please do not send a request; it is better to ask someone who knows your work more closely.
You took a course with me, completed a research project, internship, thesis, or assistantship under my supervision, or collaborated with me on a paper or research activity.
I should be able to comment on specific evidence, such as your technical ability, research maturity, independence, writing, implementation skills, teamwork, presentations, or consistency.
A short meeting, a few emails, or attending one talk is usually not enough for a strong recommendation letter.
Please ask early. Last-minute requests are difficult to support, especially when the letter requires careful evaluation or a detailed institutional form.
If one of the answers above is no, I probably cannot write a meaningful and well-supported letter. A weak or generic letter will not help your application. Please ask someone who has worked with you more closely.
If all four answers are yes, I may be able to write a specific and professional recommendation letter for you. Please send one complete email with the information below.
If all four criteria above apply, include the following information in your request.
What should you send?
- Your current CV or resume.
- A short description of the program, position, scholarship, internship, or opportunity.
- A brief reminder of our work together, including the course name, project title, internship, thesis, publication, or dates of collaboration.
- A short paragraph describing what you would like me to emphasize, such as research ability, programming, independence, leadership, writing, teamwork, or perseverance.
- Your transcript, selected papers, project report, GitHub page, or any other evidence that may help me write a specific and well-supported letter (optional, but helpful).
- The exact deadline, submission link or email address, and any official instructions from the institution.
How to contact me
Send your request to mohammad.sabokrou@oist.jp with a clear subject line such as “Recommendation Letter Request — Your Name”.