A character reference (also called a personal reference) is written to discuss someone's positive qualities and attributes. The letter is written by someone the person knows or has shared a personal experience with, such as a friend, neighbor, teammate, fellow volunteer or clergy member. Many students submit a character reference letter when applying for scholarships. There are a few things that you should do in order to write a character reference for a scholarship.
Instructions
1. Verify the type of scholarship the student is applying for. This information can help you to decide which positive attributes, activities and events to address in the letter. For example, if the student is applying for a football scholarship, you can discuss his accomplishments with football. Such as his good qualities on the football field and how well he works with fellow team members.
2. Decide which qualities or attributes you are going to address. You should highlight at least three of the student's most outstanding qualities and make sure that these things are appropriate for the letter. For example, you can state that the student is organized, efficient, ambitious, hardworking, determined, patient or people-oriented.
3. Identify three activities, accomplishments or events that you can highlight about the student. For example, if the student is applying for a music scholarship, you can reflect upon specific awards that she won or received while participating in her school's band or choir.
4. Prepare the character reference letter and include an introduction, body and closing section. Address the letter to a specific person (if you have the information) or simply write "To Whom it May Concern." Create an introduction about two to three sentences stating who you are and how you know the student. The body of the letter should be several paragraphs about the student's positive attributes and qualifications. Finally, write a closing that contains your actual recommendation statement.
5. Review the letter and proofread it for errors. Be sure to utilize the spell check function and read over the letter at least twice. Make the necessary corrections and save it to a disk.
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