The best person to write a letter of recommendation is someone who knows the applicant well and can describe that person's journey in detail, says Kristen Capezza, vice president of enrollment ...

Knowing how to write a formal letter is a very important life skill. Although a lot of our day-to-day written communication is by email, text message or social media, there are many times you will ...

Don’t be overly emotional. Even if you’re writing a formal letter of complaint, be sure to maintain a neutral and business-like tone and avoid using emotional language such as swear words.

Professors and employers are routinely asked to write recommendation letters, so they will likely know how to handle the request. That said, recommenders differ in how they approach the process.