The letter of recommendation that got me into Yale (and Princeton, and Columbia, and other Ivys)

Yes, my company, 1600.io, helps students prepare academically for their SATs, and we also provide instruction on college application essay writing and we give advice on other aspects of the admissions process. But there's one component of an application that doesn't get enough attention, I think: letters of recommendation. In this video, I discuss a letter that a teacher wrote in support of my applications, and I explain why I believe it was essential for my acceptance to Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, and other top institutions. I hope you find it helpful and inspiring.

[@jtorrico]

Isn't this indicative of how fickle highly rejective admissions can be? What about the students who don't have the luck of having a teacher who is a great writer and able to connect with them?

[@iramihir]

I agree

[@mr.erikchun5863]

in other words where is your white privilege right?

[@aryamankukal1056]

recs are bs, no teacher actually tries on recs bc they have to write so many for so many diff students are they're not getting paid, it's all about ecs and stats

[@aryamankukal1056]

@@Rammyrich these days students tell teachers what to write, so none of that matters, they literally ask us for class anecdotes and our resume, i’ve seen some of my rec for summer programs and stuff, it’s mostly just cliche stuff or something specific copy pasted from what we told them

[@dracotitanfall]

Yeah the education system is garbage

[@insight1631]

This is actually the best and perfect recommendation later I have ever seen on the internet. Thank you and your teacher on this recommendation letter really has given me deep insight to include in a letter. Thank you!

[@baharrezvanifar5088]

All I can say is that I'm truly thankful for your video

[@amanpandey6081]

This was clean and legit !! Thank You.

[@ishxnnn]

Amazing rec letter man.

[@ishxnnn]

Really inspirational

[@1600io]

Thank you!

[@lijinzhang8326]

amazing

[@gulzahraali]

I dont know how normal this is, but in most schools in Pakistan that I've studied in, the teachers ask you to write your own letter of recommendation and they just take it, sign it and send it. So, even if I did make an impact on my teachers, they wont be writing it themselves. What would you reccomend in my situation?

[@zaynshabbir9892]

Thappa lagwao sir ka

[@gulzahraali]

@@zaynshabbir9892 Even if I did, it wouldn't carry the weight that a teacher's own perception does. What spark they see in you....

[@fozilmukhtorov8822]

bro its the same here in Uzbekistan

[@motaphe5732]

Its the same for most Asian countries ig

[@zainabissadandeatingburger4401]

Hey, I notice you've sent the comment a year ago but if you're still applying to universities abroad I can help you with that. I had the same issue and I had to write my own teacher recommendation letters, I wouldn't say they were perfect but they got me into some decent liberal art colleges in the US. You can have them as a sample or something

[@kingdomlifeimpact5644]

Wow. Great story and letter of recommendation. Congratulations and I wish you the best in life. Jesus loves you .

[@noonie-i2g]

I don’t have quirky little stories like this 😔

[@S0FIAV]

Same

[@roses2170]

2:44

[@aakashhaque9805]

Wow

[@ravshanbekrahmonov660]

just vaow. This was more than a video. The way you talk is ineffable.

[@graylester9575]

Why does he look so much like young stephen Hawking?

[@disrespecttha5]

This was amazing George! This opened up a whole new perspective for me. I’m going to get my two favorite teachers to write my recommendations.

[@1600io]

Wonderful!

[@jamesk8s1]

Update June 2023. George this was so helpful to me. My student was accepted into Yale, her 1st choice. 52K applicants and only 2K were accepted into Yale. I worked on her rec letter daily for just over a month, and I am so glad that I had seen your video to help guide me! Gratefully!! 🙆🏻‍♂

[@nathanaelmehari1909]

Much respect man👏👏

[@ahmedsaadsabit1749]

tried transcribing it, has some issues i am too tired to fix: To whom it may concern, George's the best student that I ever had the pleasure of teaching. This is no small feat. I have had many excellent ivy caliber students, however it was obvious right away that George was brilliant and excellent than all the rest. We were discussing the declaration of independence in class and the question was asked, why does something seem to last like the Declaration of Independence and other seem to fade with time. I mentioned, that whether there are few seminal recordings of Robert Johnson or Shakespeare Sonnet 1-16, those things that speak to a deeper part of our being survive the test of time. We moved in a contemporary examples of what each of us thought what something that would survive the test of time? George suggested the Classic Parker 51 pen. I've heard of Parker pens, but I had no idea that Parker was the quintessential pen of then George was a resonant expert. Later on that week as I searched through a junk drawer in my kitchen I ran across a parker pen. On the side it was written in silver lettering, and I realized it was a genuine Parker 51, the same pen George was talking about in class. At first I thought, how ironic. A classic pen advertising a defunct airline. I had and have no idea where this pen was from or if it always been in the drawer, but a realization dawned upon me. I was reminded of learning a new vocabulary term and then seeing it several times the following week, seemingly for the first time and wondering whether like the pen, those words had always been there? This is Georges gift, he has the ability to see the ordinary differently in the rest of us. What's more, George has the ability to tell it others see it differently too. I found having him in class not only made his fellow students want ----- seldom does the student have this effect on the teacher, but George is no ordinary student. Whether he is playing the Violin the Orchestra or the Bass in the all state band, George humbly brings his brilliance to bear. He brings it to bear in his music and his studies. George has remained on the very top of his high school class, having top of the who's who class in the --- we offer -- count. These are all important in understanding George but there's more. He is modest and liked by his peers, George makes the intellectual cool and people like being around him. When I started this letter yesterday I thought of the Parker 51 that started it all. As I looked for the pen I realized it wasn't in the Kitchen drawer. I described it to my wife and she said she had thrown it out at that morning because it was out of ink. Digging out of the Garbage, I pulled out the Parker 51 from the trash, none the worse for were rescued from the ?boleivioun on last time. I decided upon writing this letter to give George the pen, because really, if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have known it existed anyway.

[@alwaysshrey]

thankyou so much

[@dannymanflexstar]

You're a real one, G 👊

[@maryama5828]

THANK YOU!

[@bethzy335]

Thank you a lot ❤❤❤❤

[@chadchampion7985]

😈😈😈😈😈😈😈

[@owenlin6357]

I loved this video and the rec letter! I was wondering how we could get what I wanted the teacher to write about and in the best way possible because a brag sheet doesn't tell the story if any story sometimes.

[@abelstateofmind]

my prof asked my name , before I was asked to write my own lor, ggwp.

[@glasswhite3255]

Though this video is only 10minute, it gave me the biggest insight on letters of recommendation. This helped me a lot. Thank you George for sharing your letter of recommendation. The great letter made me emotional.

[@danishpuri8783]

POV: your watching this at 1.5x

[@Kikifu_90]

It's the first time I feel so moved by a recommendation letter!

[@AAprodchannel]

This is exactly what I was emphasizing on for myself too. Its great to see your journey!

[@softlocked9586]

Thank you, George. That was very inspirational!

[@1600io]

Glad it was helpful!

[@snkhan1719]

Sorry but u could show your own letter on the screen as well. So that listeners could see n get an idea.

[@angelmau5694]

Great video George, thank you for sharing your emotional story.

[@1600io]

You're most welcome.

[@Beybleyder101]

this sounds so artificial but i guess if it works it works

[@jamesk8s1]

Thank you so much and congratulations! May you have ever greater fulfillment in life!! Best always....:)

[@blueststrawberry]

Thank u george and dan, we love u

[@1600io]

Right back atcha!

[@RodrigoarraeS]

Inspiring stuff, great story!

[@1600io]

Thanks so much!

[@nynsid]

Is this letter of recommendation also useful for university graduates when they want to study a postgraduate degree? Thank you.

[@isaacolagunju5879]

This is quite thrilling to be very honest, I have been skimming through several recommendation letters but yours was very unique and special

[@shivujagga]

Great presentation and very articulate!

[@roses2170]

2:44

[@jk6273]

I thought that other elements of merits than the SAT score are not to be seriously considered by Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and other elite universities if your SAT is below the top 1% percentile.

[@1600io]

Kids say all sorts of nonsense.

[@yassinkemal2694]

thx very much, Gorge the fountain kid

[@rowanmohamed5273]

u have a nice look i like ur face u have kind eyes

[@swift3602]

thank you, dequavian.

[@sanamalik4895]

Plz george explain me what did that line meant 'i learnt a new vocabulary weather like the pen those words were always been there

[@abigailbriones4649]

so helpful!

[@ggwellplayed-l8l]

2:45 start

[@troopernate8046]

cool

[@sidhimagoel2802]

Being an slp, it seems u used to stutter and did overcome it😊

[@TaylorZ-wo2hc]

Really, really special

[@manishmeshram51]

It was indeed amazing lor

[@sanamalik4895]

Plz george

[@vivekkumar-iz2bh]

Can you check my LOMs/SOPs? I have to apply for my masters in Germany.

[@teachersam8524]

How many LOR does it take to apply?

[@bakihanma1680]

that's so bs. literally every teacher does that with 10000000 kids., it makes absolutely no difference. A recommendation from Dan isn't getting you into yale.

[@pepaxxxsvinka3379]

That's an amazing story! Can you advise anything for LOR if I am an average student and didn't have any stories like this unfortunately?