A letter of recommendation is a formal letter written on behalf of an applicant in order to provide recommendation of his skills, experience and qualifications. It is usually written by a respected individual who is familiar with the applicant and can vouch for their recommendation. The writer could be your former or current employer, teacher, client, parent or friend.
A letter of recommendation could be written to help a person secure a job, an admission, a scholarship or an award/benefit.
A letter of recommendation must be written with a caution as these 3 elements must be put in place to produce a good letter of recommendation. What are these elements?

Elements of a Good letter of Recommendation

The writer of a letter of recommendation must ensure that the following elements are clearly stated in their letter:
1. Who they are and their connection with the applicant they are recommending,
2. Why the applicant is qualified for the recommendation and;
3. Specific qualifications that prove the applicant is qualified.

Who they are and their connection with the applicant they are recommending;

The writer of a recommendation letter is expected to state who they are and their connection with the applicant they are recommending. Therefore, the writer would briefly state their names and their position in the society before moving on to state their relationship with the applicant.
By briefly stating who they are, the receiver of the letter can choose to make a little research about the writer in order to verify who they are and their relationship with the applicant and if they are worthy of giving recommendations.

Why the applicant is qualified for the recommendation

After the writer and their relationship with the applicant have being established, the writer can now state their recommendation and their reasons for the recommendation. This involves shedding more light on how the writer and the applicant’s relationship have helped the writer establish his grounds on the reasons why he feels the applicant would be the right candidate for the application.

Specific qualifications that prove the applicant is qualified

To further help the recipient see reasons for their recommendation of the applicants, the writer must state specific skills and qualifications that identifies the applications. This could include others skills that may not have being included in the resume of the applicants as well as personal opinions they might have about the applicant.

Features of a Letter of Recommendation

A recommendation letter is written in the form of a formal letter and therefore, possesses the following features of a formal letter.
Address of the writer,
Date
Salutation
Body
Closing Remarks
Signature and,
Name of the Writer.

It would not be necessary to point out the address of the recipient and the Salutation, especially if you do not know who they may be. In such case, it would wise to use, “To whom it may concern.”

Example of a Letter of Recommendation

Below is a letter of recommendation written by Dr. David Daniel, a lecturer of English in the University of Ikeja. He is writing a recommendation letter in behalf of his best student, Victor Samuel, who plans to intern as a writer in a magazine company.

10, Elijah Street,

Sango town,

Ikeja,

Lagos state.

22^nd of December, 202

To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing in behalf of Victor Samuel, a student of mine, who desires to intern as a writer in your publishing company. I am a lecturer of English in the University of Ikeja and I highly recommend you consider Victor Samuel as he is one of my best students here in the Institution I lecture. He has proven himself an outstanding student and commendable writer.

Moreover, Victor Samuel is known for a number of articles and short stories he has written and published especially on the internet. You can see some of his articles on the internet at www.writershub.com/victorsamuel and see for yourself that he is really passionate about writing and would be really helpful for your magazine company.

Once again, I really recommend you consider him for an intern writer for your magazine and should you have any question, feel free to call me on 08055552211.

Yours Sincerely,

[signature]

Dr. David Daniel.