Information for Recommenders
Applications for Marshall Scholarships must have three letters of recommendation and must be submitted to and endorsed by an accredited US University.
Instructions received by Candidates
The application gives the following information to candidates about letters of recommendation:
- You should state the names of three persons who can supplement the required Letter of Endorsement by providing further details as to your qualifications․ The first of these should be designated the Preferred Recommender and this recommender should have supervised your college or university training․ The general recommendation must be provided by an academic․ One of the recommendations should primarily address your leadership and ambassadorial potential, and this need not be provided by an academic․
- At least two of these recommenders should be in the United States
- When registering recommenders, please make sure that you register your preferred recommender first, and the recommendation about leadership as your last recommendation․
- Your recommenders must submit their letters of recommendation online no later than 26th September 2023
- You will be able to see when your letters have been started and when they have been submitted, but the contents of these will not be made available to you online․
- You can delete a recommender by clicking on the "delete" button next to his or her name․
- If you have any concern that the recommender has not received the registration email or additional questions, please email help@embark․com․
The candidate must provide email addresses for all of their recommenders. Their letters of recommendation can be requested individually before they submit their application, any letters not requested in this way will be requested automatically when their details are saved to the application. They will be able to see when their letters have been submitted, but the contents of these will not be made available to them online.
NB. The institution will not be able to submit the candidate's application to the regional committee without all of the letters of recommendation.
Submitting the Letter of Recommendation
To access the secure "recommenders" section of the Marshall application system you will be sent a url. Once you login, you will be given a form which will allow you to type or copy and paste your recommendation. You will also be able to view a copy of the candidate's full application. Please note that the word limit for the letter of recommendation is 1000 words. Once you have completed the letter, you must submit it electronically by the deadline provided.
The following is the advice provided by the Marshall Commission on the contents of the Letters of Recommendation:
'Your letter should comment on the candidate's general fitness for the course proposed and the suitability of the university chosen, as well as considering how they meet the Commission’s criteria of Academic Merit, Leadership and Ambassadorial Potential. Confidential observations, negative as well as positive, on the candidate's general character as well as academic standing and ability will be of great value to the selection committees in their task of deciding which candidates should be shortlisted for an interview.'
For the recommender nominated to focus on leadership potential, the following advice is provided: 'Your letter should comment primarily on the candidate's experience in leadership and how they meet the Marshall Leadership Potential Criteria'.
The Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission is looking for candidates who have the potential to excel as scholars, as leaders and as contributors to improved UK-US understanding.
In appointing Scholars, the Selectors will assess applicants based on academic merit, leadership potential and ambassadorial potential. Details of the criteria used for selection can be found here. We ask that you consider our criteria when completing your letter.
If you have any problems or questions please contact apps@marshallscholarship.org.