International students may underestimate the importance of recommendation letters relative to other parts of the application in the U.S. university and college admissions process. Doing so could be the difference between an acceptance and a rejection from your dream U.S. school. Avoid these four myths about recommendation letters that commonly trip up prospective international students.
相比于申请留学美国院校过程中的其他部分，留学生很可能低估了推荐信的重要性。这样可能使你与梦寐以求的美国学校在录取与拒绝间仅有一步之遥。以下有四条关于推荐信的谬见，这些常常羁绊准留学生们，请大家有则改之，无则加勉。
Myth 1: Test scores and grades matter more than recommendation letters. Every part of your U.S. college or university application is as important as every other part. Although recommendation letters, unlike tests and school grades, are qualitative, they often tell both undergraduate and graduate admissions committees a lot more about an applicant than transcripts or standardized test scores can. Maybe you only managed a B-minus in that Shakespeare class because you chose to challenge yourself with a more difficult literature class, instead of the one everyone else with your major was taking.
谬论1：考试成绩和分数比推荐信更重要。美国院校或大学申请中的每一部分都与其他部分同等重要。尽管推荐信不同于考试测验或学业成绩那样量化，但是他们通常向本科或研究生招生委员们展示了申请者成绩单或标准考试成绩之外更多的信息。也许你在“莎士比亚文学课”上只拿到了B-，是因为你想挑战自己才选了这门更难的文学课程，而并未像你同专业的其他同学都选了另一门课。
Myth 2: Nobody reads these anyway. Nothing that is asked for in your application packet goes unread. Admissions committees rely heavily on recommendation letters to find out about you as person, beyond your grades and your standardized test scores. There is so much a number or grade cannot convey. Applicants are people, and recommendation letters reveal that. Often U.S. admissions committees are more interested, for example, in how you rallied after doing poorly on the first test in a class to doing well enough in subsequent tests to manage a B-plus.
谬论2：反正也没人会读推荐信。你申请文件中的任何资料都会被审阅。招生委员们很看重通过推荐信发掘除了你的成绩和标准考试成绩之外的个人。这是一个数字或成绩无法转换得来的。申请者都是活生生的人，而推荐信恰恰展示这部分。通常美国招生委员们对于这部分更为感兴趣，例如说，你在一门课上起初成绩很差，是怎么在后续的测试中努力后来居上，而终于最后能够拿到B-的。
Myth 3: A generic recommendation letter from a high-profile person is superior to a detailed one from someone less famous. The purpose of recommendation letters is for the members of the admissions committee to get to know you: how you work, learn new things, handle challenges and interact with others at school or work. Only someone who knows you well and has worked with you and observed you closely can convey that information. If you know a high-profile person in your field cannot provide an in-depth description of you, then their letter is not as valuable as one from your immediate supervisor. After all, it is information on you that the committee is looking for, not your association with somebody famous.
谬论3：一封来自大人物的通用的推荐信好过一封来自没名气之人的详尽推荐信。推荐信的意义在于使招生委员会的成员们了解你：你如何工作、如何学习新事物、应对各种挑战以及在学校或工作中如何与他人互动。只有十分熟识你并和你一起工作过、近距离观察过你的人才能表达出这些信息。如果你在你的圈子里认识一个大人物，但他（她）却无法详尽深度的描述你，那么他们所写的推荐信并不比你亲近的主管所写的有价值。毕竟，招生委员会所希望看到的是你的信息，而不是你与某个名人的联系。
Myth 4: More recommendation letters are better. Admissions committees at many U.S. graduate programs, which commonly include members of the faculty, can receive hundreds of applications from international students. For each applicant, the committee must evaluate test scores and read application essays, a statement of purpose and recommendation letters. This takes up lots of time, which they could otherwise spend doing research, preparing lecture notes and grading exams. Many do not read more letters than they have to. When I assisted the admissions committee at the University of Rhode Island, I saw faculty members read the first three letters of recommendation that they happened to pick up from an applicant's packet and throw out the rest. Sometimes, an applicant's best recommendation letter would get thrown out. International students can avoid this by following application instructions. If only two letters are asked for, send your strongest two only. More is not always better.
谬论4：推荐信多多益善。美国研究生项目的招生委员们，通常包含教职工，收到数以百计的来自国际学生的申请信。对于每位申请者，招生委员必须评估测试分数并阅读申请论文、申请目的陈述和数封推荐信。这占据了他们本可以用于做研究、备课和批改试卷的大部分时间。他们其中很多人只阅读需要读的信件。有一次我担任罗德岛大学的招生委员，我看到身为委员会成员的教职员工阅读了一份申请中的前三封推荐信而扔掉了剩余的信件。又是，一个申请者最好的推荐信可能会被丢弃。留学生们应注意遵循申请指导而避免这些问题。如果要求提供两封推荐信，就只发出两封最有力的推荐信。并不总是多多益善。
