Letters of Recommendation

The CSD letters of recommendation process is currently undergoing updates, and the new process will be posted by October 1st, 2021. All students seeking letters of recommendation in Fall 2021 should check back and follow the updated process.

Letters of Recommendation During COVID-19

Following JMU's transition to online learning, students should adhere to virtual meetings with professors unless agreed upon by both parties. In the past, students have been told that letters of recommendation should be requested in person and never by email, however, faculty members are all hosting hours virtually. Your new options include

• Emailing the professor and requesting a meeting --> they will respond with virtual or face to face time
• Attending their virtual office hours that are posted and asking them live

Letters of Recommendation in CSD (September 23 2019)

Effective October 1, 2010 undergraduate students in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at James Madison University are directed to use the following procedures when requesting letters of recommendation from faculty members for applications to graduate-level professional preparation programs in audiology or speech-language pathology.  These guidelines are in place for all faculty members unless he/she specifies otherwise.

• Faculty members in CSD are willing to take requests for letters of recommendation for graduate school until November 1st.  You should definitely make requests in person; faculty are doing this as a professional courtesy to you, so email and even phone requests are inappropriate except in exceptional circumstances. 
• Students are discouraged from asking for a letter of recommendation from a faculty member in whose course the student earned a grade of B- or lower.
• Students should provide the following materials in the packet:
  • Letter of Recommendation Cover Sheet
  • Student Recommendation Profile
  • Copy of unofficial transcript
  • Personal photo
  • Stamped, preaddressed, self-adhesive (self-sealing) envelopes for each program listed on the Cover Sheet
  • Recommendation forms from each institution (if required)
• All letters are sent directly to the program.  Faculty members will not return letters to students.  If a program requests that students collect all materials and submit in a single packet then the student is responsible for contacting those programs and informing them that letters will be arriving directly from the faculty member serving as reference.
• Many faculty members will agree to submit a letter/form electronically, but faculty members my have individual policies/limits for electronic submissions. Please recognize and respect that individual faculty members may have specific policies due to the large number of letter requests. If hard-copy letters will be submitted, the student is responsible for contacting each program to inform them that a hard-copy letter will be sent directly. Students are advised to verify and establish clear expectations with each faculty member when making letter of recommendation requests. (Updated September 19th, 2019)
• Many programs will ask the student to check a box which specifies whether the student waives his/her rights to access the letter of recommendation.  Students should consider the message they are sending when the student is unwilling to waive their right of access.  Be advised that some faculty members will not write a letter for a student who does not waive his/her rights to access.
• Materials should be provided to the faculty member at least 4 weeks prior to the application deadline.
• Submit relevant materials to the faculty member for ALL programs to which you are applying at the same time (i.e., in a single packet). Faculty members are unlikely to accept materials in piece-meal fashion.
• You should write legibly and make it as easy as possible for the person serving as reference.  This is not a time that you wish to cause frustration for someone who is writing you a letter.
• Please give careful thought regarding the programs to which you are applying, as well as about the individuals whom you intend to ask for letters.  You are interested in having letters from those who can add value to your application rather than simply repeat what is obvious from other elements of the application, for example, grades in your transcripts, GRE scores.
• If you have a deadline approaching, a very gentle reminder is appropriate.  As mentioned previously, this is not a time when you want to upset someone who is volunteering time to you.  Harassing emails and phone calls are not effective and are not positive ways to facilitate the process.
• This process needs to be adhered to due to the number of students in the CSD major and the number of programs to which students typically apply.  Writing letters of recommendation is a huge task for faculty, and this process is an attempt to make it more manageable.

Appearing on JMU letterhead stationery, a form will be used by all CSD faculty members in providing letters of recommendation for students applying to graduate-level programs.  Students do not need to provide this form; faculty members should already have it.