Recommendation Requests

Studying abroad is a big decision for our UNC Charlotte students and it is likely to be a life-changing one. With that being said, it is important that UNC Charlotte Education Abroad properly vet students as part of the application process to determine whether or not a student is prepared for an international experience. Letters of recommendation greatly aid EA in determining whether or not a student is academically and personally prepared.

Types of Requests

Letter of Recommendation

A letter of recommendation is an assessment of a student who is applying to participate in a study abroad program. EA asks that the recommender comment on the students’ academic attributes, such as competency in their major/minor, capacity for independent study, resourcefulness, reliability, integrity, etc. Recommenders are also encouraged to attest to the students’ character or personal attributes, such as maturity level, ability to adapt to new circumstances, self-confidence, emotional stability and open-mindedness.

Language Evaluation

A language evaluation is required at time of application for students who intend to take one or more courses abroad in a language other than English in a level higher than beginner. The language evaluation is a set of several questions asking the faculty member to rate the students’ command of the foreign language on a numeric scale. Only a faculty member who has taught the student the language they will be studying in abroad is eligible to complete a language evaluation. Language evaluations contain helpful information for EA and the host institution in regards to the students’ language level if they will be taking courses abroad in a language other than English. We do not want to set students up for failure as all grades earned abroad will appear on the students’ UNC Charlotte transcript upon return. These language evaluations are a good gauge of whether or not a student is prepared to take courses in another language.

How to complete a Recommendation REquest

Students will be able to list a faculty member’s name and email within their online EA application. Once the student submits their electronic recommendation or language evaluation request, the faculty member will receive an automated email with further instructions on how to access the online recommendation form.

All letters of recommendation and language evaluations should be completed in EA Portal. UNC Charlotte faculty will be able to log into the portal with their NinerNet credentials. Faculty will also be able to see any other recommendation or language evaluations pending or completed requests in the portal. Please don’t hesitate to contact the EA with any issues while completing the form.

EA advises faculty to avoid naming the specific name of the program in the letter of recommendation. In the event a student is shifted to their second or third choice university, letters of recommendation may need to be sent to the host university, therefore the letter should be kept general or will need to be re-written. Faculty who feel they cannot give a genuine recommendation of a student is advised to meet one-on-one with the student to better learn about their motivations for going abroad or kindly request the student asks another faculty member.