Reusing LORs for Nominations

[purechaos78]

Is it advisable to reuse letter of recommendations for nominations?

I have some sources who know me very well, however, there are a total of at least 7 LORs that I need for my nominations and I am not sure I have 7 or more LOR sources who can provide a detailed insight into my integrity and leadership abilities.

Thanks,
Chaos

 

[THParent]

There's an acronym problem here that's going to mess everyone up who comments.
An LOA is a Letter of Assurance (which is very nearly a "golden ticket" to get an Offer of Appointment, if the condition of the LOA is met)
Since there are five SAs (USAFA, USMA, USNA, USMMA, USCGA) an applicant to all of them could conceivably have five LOAs, but it would be as rare as a Unicorn.

I believe that you are asking only about recommendation letters.
If you are applying for a Member of Congress (MOC) nomination, you can certainly use the same recommendation letters for each of your Senators and your District's Representative.

If you are asking about the Class of 2023, then you are way ahead of the game!
A lot of MOCs haven't even opened their application process yet, and most have a due date in September.
Good for you though. Getting squared away early is always good.

 

[time2]

I agree, the terminology is jumbled. If you are asking about recommendation letters, it partly depends on what the MOC or SA is requesting. Some may ask for specific information in the recommendation letter and following directions is part of the SA application process. Since it is only March, you are too late for this year's cycle, so have to assume you are talking about applying in fall when most of the applications open.

 

[purechaos78]

There's an acronym problem here that's going to mess everyone up who comments.
An LOA is a Letter of Assurance (which is very nearly a "golden ticket" to get an Offer of Appointment, if the condition of the LOA is met)
Since there are five SAs (USAFA, USMA, USNA, USMMA, USCGA) an applicant to all of them could conceivably have five LOAs, but it would be as rare as a Unicorn.

I believe that you are asking only about recommendation letters.
If you are applying for a Member of Congress (MOC) nomination, you can certainly use the same recommendation letters for each of your Senators and your District's Representative.

If you are asking about the Class of 2023, then you are way ahead of the game!
A lot of MOCs haven't even opened their application process yet, and most have a due date in September.
Good for you though. Getting squared away early is always good.

I guess I forgot my morning coffee. I meant to put LOR (letter of recommendation). I have two MOCs who already have theirs open for 2023 applicants.

Thanks for the in depth clarification!

Regards,
Chaos

 

[JRS92078]

Also curious about this. My DS will be at the USAFA Prep School next year and is reapplying for NOMs. Can he ask the same people to write his Letters of Recomendation.. and can they be identical as what theye submitted to Senators and MOC this past year?

 

[falconchic88]

OP, my kids tried to ask as few people for LOR's as possible. They would give them packets with instructions on how to complete each MOC's LORs. So one person might have written the same letter for 2 MOCs, just changed the addressee, and that same person might also have filled out the form LOR from the 3rd MOC, depending on what type of LOR each MOC required. There is no need to have 9 or so different people writing LOR's.

JRS, check with your MOCs' Service Academy admin person about the recommendation letters. Our district rep said DS does not need to submit new letters. The only thing he needs to submit is senior year transcript, prep school grades if available, and any new test scores, I'm hoping Senators are similar.

 

[Oscar Whiskey]

Also curious about this. My DS will be at the USAFA Prep School next year and is reapplying for NOMs. Can he ask the same people to write his Letters of Recomendation.. and can they be identical as what theye submitted to Senators and MOC this past year?

+1

 

[purechaos78]

OP, my kids tried to ask as few people for LOR's as possible. They would give them packets with instructions on how to complete each MOC's LORs. So one person might have written the same letter for 2 MOCs, just changed the addressee, and that same person might also have filled out the form LOR from the 3rd MOC, depending on what type of LOR each MOC required. There is no need to have 9 or so different people writing LOR's.

JRS, check with your MOCs' Service Academy admin person about the recommendation letters. Our district rep said DS does not need to submit new letters. The only thing he needs to submit is senior year transcript, prep school grades if available, and any new test scores, I'm hoping Senators are similar.

Thanks, I will look into contacting MOC admin to clarify.

 

[HoustonGuy]

This is where a little patience and planning can make things easier on those doing recommendations. Wait until you clearly understand the requirements of your two Senators and your Representative. Also wait until you know the requirements of the USAFA. Once you know all the requirements, you can probably map out a plan to minimize the number of truly unique questions those writing recommendations have to address -- you can probably make it easier by providing them with templates for each letter with the different names, addresses, etc. If you rush to get each recommendation done as soon as each is immediately open, you will be hitting up the "recommenders" multiple times. Be mindful of their time because if they are teachers they are probably being asked to do recommendations for a lot of students seeking to attend lots of different universities. A little patience and planning will make your job (and theirs) a lot easier.

 

[purechaos78]

This is where a little patience and planning can make things easier on those doing recommendations. Wait until you clearly understand the requirements of your two Senators and your Representative. Also wait until you know the requirements of the USAFA. Once you know all the requirements, you can probably map out a plan to minimize the number of truly unique questions those writing recommendations have to address -- you can probably make it easier by providing them with templates for each letter with the different names, addresses, etc. If you rush to get each recommendation done as soon as each is immediately open, you will be hitting up the "recommenders" multiple times. Be mindful of their time because if they are teachers they are probably being asked to do recommendations for a lot of students seeking to attend lots of different universities. A little patience and planning will make your job (and theirs) a lot easier.

Good idea, I never thought of providing templates for them to fill out. I am in college and am requesting LORs from a couple of my professors in addition to my high school hockey coach.

Thanks for the advice,
Chaos

 

[USMA 1994]

Be sure to check with your MOC. In Texas, the Senators and my local MOC do not keep anything from year to year. I do not see anything wrong with re-using the letters for the nominations.

 

[redwhitebluemom]

I guess I forgot my morning coffee. I meant to put LOR (letter of recommendation). I have two MOCs who already have theirs open for 2023 applicants.

Thanks for the in depth clarification!

Regards,
Chaos

Hi Chaos. A piece of advice - Be sure to read all of the MOC’s full requirements. My son has requested LOR’s only to discover than one of our MOC’s requires a specific form be completed in place of a letter. Now we have to go back to the drawing board for this MOC!

This is definitely a fun process that requires a lot of patience and persistence!