Letters of Recommendation: Watson Fellowship
Mission: The Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Program offers college graduates of "unusual promise" a year of independent, purposeful exploration and travel—in international settings new to them—to enhance their capacity for resourcefulness, imagination, openness, and leadership and to foster their humane and effective participation in the world community.
The following questions are from the recommendation form that the Watson Foundation uses to collect recommendations. This is what they say about these questions:
The following questions are especially relevant when selecting fellows for the significant year intended by the Watson mission. Please answer each question fully and provide examples where possible. You may also add additional thoughts at the end of this form. We appreciate the effort required to write a thoughtful and personal recommendation. Thank you in advance for your candor and time.
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How long have you known the nominee, and in what capacity? (100 word limit)
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In choosing fellows, we look for a collection of qualities that we call “Unusual Promise”. These characteristics include: Leadership, Imagination, Independence, Emotional Maturity, Courage, Integrity, Resourcefulness and Responsibility. How does the nominee exhibit these qualities? (200 word limit)
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What are the nominee's areas for growth or improvement? (200 word limit)
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What evidence can you provide of the nominee’s investment in the proposed project beyond academic coursework? (200 word limit)
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Please share any additional thoughts that you would like us to consider. (200 word limit)
Internal Recommendation
Please use the questions above as a guide when writing your internal recommendation for the internal deadline for the fellowships and awards committee. You're welcome to respond to each question separately or to submit your response as a letter for the internal deadline, your choice. Internal recommendations should be sent to clbrfellowships@reed.edu.
Final recommendations will need to be submitted online. Students are responsible for registering you as their reference writer in their online application, should they be endorsed by the committee. Once they do this you will receive instructions for how to submit your response.
Questions? Please contact clbrfellowships@reed.edu