最近，我參加了一些招生改革座談會(huì)，來(lái)討論下一年處理申請(qǐng)時(shí)可能出現(xiàn)的變動(dòng)。有好幾個(gè)招生委員會(huì)，并不是說(shuō)所有的招生委員會(huì)都會(huì)改革，只是在審理過(guò)程中可能會(huì)有一些輕微的變動(dòng)（例如也許是PS要求方面的一些改變）。暑期結(jié)束我會(huì)在博客上更新這些信息。

這些座談會(huì)使我想起了去年冬天審理的申請(qǐng)。我想借去年的案例給接下來(lái)的申請(qǐng)者提供一些長(zhǎng)期規(guī)劃的建議。

首先請(qǐng)注意，我們的網(wǎng)申系統(tǒng)現(xiàn)在是關(guān)閉的。每年申請(qǐng)截止日期過(guò)后，我們會(huì)關(guān)閉網(wǎng)申系統(tǒng)，每年11月份會(huì)再次開通。我們計(jì)劃今后9月1日開啟網(wǎng)申系統(tǒng)。當(dāng)然不是說(shuō)你現(xiàn)在不能開始準(zhǔn)備。接下來(lái)的幾個(gè)月，我會(huì)大量發(fā)布一些關(guān)于如何組合申請(qǐng)材料使你的申請(qǐng)脫穎而出的相關(guān)文章。

首先我強(qiáng)烈建議你謹(jǐn)慎考慮請(qǐng)誰(shuí)做你的推薦人。在申請(qǐng)中，推薦信是一項(xiàng)非常重要的材料。我的建議是在申請(qǐng)日期截止之前幾個(gè)月聯(lián)系推薦人，請(qǐng)他們將你的推薦信事宜記上日程。長(zhǎng)時(shí)間深思熟慮后寫出來(lái)的推薦信要遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)勝于匆匆忙忙寫的推薦信。

推薦信最好要同時(shí)介紹申請(qǐng)者過(guò)去和未來(lái)，并且將哈佛大學(xué)肯尼迪學(xué)院招生委員會(huì)比較重視的一些問題都描述出來(lái)。我們希望所有的推薦信都能描述申請(qǐng)者的過(guò)去經(jīng)歷。但是真正優(yōu)秀的推薦信不僅描述過(guò)去經(jīng)歷，而且也應(yīng)該展望未來(lái)。能夠提供給你推薦人足夠資料推薦你入學(xué)的最好方式是多一些溝通交流。

從邏輯上來(lái)說(shuō)，我建議你在截至日期前幾個(gè)月與推薦人聯(lián)系讓他們幫你寫推薦信。第一次交流比較簡(jiǎn)短，其目的是詢問他/她是否愿意幫你寫推薦信，與此同時(shí)，提前定好下次交流的時(shí)間，一個(gè)月或者更長(zhǎng)時(shí)間。
在第一次交流后，你需要給推薦人發(fā)信息，加深他對(duì)你的印象，以便順利的進(jìn)行第二次談話。給他發(fā)一份你當(dāng)前的簡(jiǎn)歷以及一些具體的信息闡述你準(zhǔn)備去哈佛大學(xué)肯尼迪學(xué)院學(xué)什么。

在接下來(lái)的交流中，我建議你們討論你未來(lái)的目標(biāo)，以及哈佛大學(xué)肯尼迪學(xué)院如何幫助你實(shí)現(xiàn)這些目標(biāo)。另外，也要說(shuō)明肯尼迪學(xué)院錄取委員會(huì)對(duì)學(xué)生的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力和公共服務(wù)意識(shí)尤其感興趣。優(yōu)秀的推薦信一般包括你之前經(jīng)歷和能力的總結(jié)，以及對(duì)你領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力和公共服務(wù)意識(shí)的未來(lái)體現(xiàn)。

在第二次交流后，我建議將準(zhǔn)備申請(qǐng)使用的個(gè)人陳述給推薦人發(fā)一份。你的所有申請(qǐng)材料集在一起應(yīng)該像在講述一個(gè)故事，而在寫作之前提前讓推薦人閱讀你的個(gè)人陳述會(huì)讓你的申請(qǐng)看起來(lái)更協(xié)調(diào)和完整。
下一次的交流可以在申請(qǐng)截止之前的幾周，這次主要是提醒推薦人申請(qǐng)的截止日期以及確認(rèn)推薦的信提交方法。接下來(lái)的文章我會(huì)詳細(xì)闡述推薦信提交的技術(shù)性細(xì)節(jié)。一旦申請(qǐng)截止，你的申請(qǐng)完成以后，我建議你要向推薦人表達(dá)你的感激之情。

總之，在這里我建議多和推薦人溝通。盡早聯(lián)系推薦人，并且進(jìn)行幾次交流來(lái)確保提交一份高質(zhì)量的推薦信。

未來(lái)我們審理推薦信時(shí)，也會(huì)從其他方面考慮，比如推薦人以及提交推薦信的方式等。

與此同時(shí)，也附上英文原版文章。

Recently I have participated in a few Admissions Committee Working Group meetings to discuss possible changes to the application process in the coming year. There are several committees and not all will be making changes, but some slight changes are in the works (maybe personal statement changes for example) and I will post updates to this blog as things take shape over the summer.

The meetings have caused me to reflect upon the applications I read during the winter and I want to use some posts to offer some long term planning advice for those applying in the future.

I will start by noting that our application is currently not online. We take the application down after the deadline passes and the deadline was back in November. Our plan is to have the application open again on September 1st. This does not mean that applicants cannot start preparing now. In the coming months a large number of posts will focus on how you can put together the most compelling application possible.

One thing I highly recommend doing right now is thinking carefully about the individuals you will select to write letters of recommendation. Letters of recommendation are an important part of our review process and my advice starts with contacting the individuals you will choose many months before the deadline. Contacting these individuals early will allow them to put the submission of your letter on their calendar. Letters written in a rush are likely to not be of the same quality as those that are thought out over a long period of time.

The best letters of recommendation also tie the past and future together and mention qualities valued by the HKS Admissions Committee. We expect all letters of recommendation to include details on the past, but outstanding letters look beyond the past and provide commentary on the potential of an applicant. The best way to provide your recommender with the information needed to write a compelling letter is to have several substantive conversations or exchanges over a period of time.

This process will logically start with your request for the letter and I would recommend contacting those you will be asking to write your letters several months ahead of the deadline. The first exchange can be short and the main purpose is to find out if he or she can write a letter for you. During the first conversation I recommend setting up a follow up appointment a month or so later.

After this first appointment or conversation you should send information to the recommender that jogs his or her memory and sets the stage for your next conversation. Send along a current copy of your resume and some specific information about what you hope to study at HKS.

During the next exchange I recommend discussing your future goals and how HKS will help you to achieve them. It would also be wise to mention that the HKS Admissions Committee is particularly interested in comments that relate to leadership and public service. Compelling letters of recommendation include previous examples of these qualities along with commentary about leadership and public service potential.

After the second meeting or exchange, I would encourage you to send the recommender a draft of the personal statement you will submit with your application. All of the parts of your application combined should tell a story and having your recommender read your personal statement in advance of writing your letter of recommendation will likely lend cohesion to your application.

The next exchange with the recommender can take place several weeks before the deadline. This interaction can serve as a final reminder of the deadline and help to ensure the recommender knows how the letter should be submitted. I will go into the technical details of letter submission in a future entry. Once the deadline passes and your application is complete, I recommend thanking those who took the time to write your letters.

In sum, my advice in this entry is to have an extended conversation with your recommendation letter writers. Contacting letter writers early and having several exchanges over time will help to ensure a high quality letter that is submitted on time.

In the future look for entries on other aspects of the letter of recommendation process, including who to ask and the technical aspects involved in submitting the letters.