LOR for Canada

While applying for higher education like MS, MBA etc. to universities abroad you might have heard a word called Letter of recommendation/reference (LOR), but what is it? LOR for Canada is an important document to be submitted by the students seeking admission to the top universities. These documents are essential for the committee to evaluate the applicants proficiency.

Writing LOR in a proper format highlighting your strengths, academic performances etc. will give a better idea about your capabilities to the admission committee. This document is usually provided by someone who knows you very well such as professors, mentors etc. Through this article LOR for Canada you will know more about  its structural and submission guidelines, tips to be followed, sample documents etc.that will aid you to keep your writings sharp and professional.

LOR for Canada: structural guidelines

A LOR should briefly provide information about your academic records, skills, talents, any unique certifications etc. to the university’s admission department. Top Canadian universities are very particular about these application documents like LOR, SOP, Resume or Essays.
Following appropriate guidelines while writing will make your Letter of recommendation look impressive and benefits in the student visa approval process. 

Type of LOR for Canada

LOR for Canadian universities mostly vary based on the specialisation of the applicants. Most recommendation letters in Canada are categorised into 2 types: academic and professional. Details are given in the table below.

LOR- Academic

LOR- Professional

An academic letter of recommendation describes the achievements made by the student towards the degree completion. If the student is applying for UG courses and graduate degrees like MS, canadian universities ask for academic letter of recommendation It is usually written by the faculty of student’s previous academic institution The reference person can be a principal, teacher, counsellor or dean of the organisation you have studied.

A professional letter of recommendation details about the career growth of the student as an employee in an organisation and the role they had played. Universities in Canada have made work experience of the applicant mandatory to enrol for the courses like MBA. A professional LOR along with updated CV were asked as a part of the admission process. The professional LOR should be written by the company manager, team leader or co-worker and must highlight your performance, work experience, leadership skills and behaviour.

Recommenders choice

Here is the list of different recommenders we can choose to get LOR from them.

• A letter of recommendation from your professor/faculty is always advisable.
• If the student has no previous experience then a letter from an academic advisor is acceptable.
• For pursuing masters program a letter of recommendation either from internship or previous job will be considered.
• Letter of recommendation can be taken from the department’s chairperson, team leader, manager or any employer.
• Recommendation letter from the head of department, thesis coordinator and the Dean of the organisation is also acceptable.

Submission guidelines

Canadian Universities provide different formats to submit your drafted LOP in a feasible way. 

• Electronic reference: University will share a unique and secured link to the referee asking him to login and submit the letter of recommendation online.
• Paper letter of reference: Some Canadian universities ask their students to prepare a reference letter on the official letterhead of school/university and mail it to the admission committee.
• Paper reference forms: Some universities provide LOR form or provisional LOR form to the student to fill and mail directly to the admission committee.

How to write a perfect LOR for Canada? 

Letter of recommendation portrays how well you are prepared for higher education. Writing a perfect LOR that represents your biodata and unique qualities will ease you in getting admission in the college you applied to. The following points will help you in framing the reference letter.

1. Start with briefing your relationship with the applicant:
   Here, mention the connection you had with the student, your first interaction details, relationship you had like mentor or teacher, how long you know him etc. 
2. Why do you recommend him/her:
   Highlight the unique qualities and talent that the applicant had thereby stating the reason for the reference. Also say how successful the student could be in future.
3. Highlight some other qualities of student: 
   Along with the academics, share other special qualities that the student possesses that impresses the committee. Make sure not to post any fake content that may create problems in the future.
4. Be genuine: 
   Never lie in the reference letter that causes a serious impact in your career. Your genuinity will help you to sustain in future as well after admission.
5. Your word should be action oriented:
   Don't bluff the words that make your letter look less impressive to the committee. Be specific about your thoughts and words.
6. Put an invitation to contact you: 
   At the end of the letter invite the committee to contact you for any additional information/queries related to the applicant. You can also specify the timings to reach you out.
7. Mention an appropriate business closing and put your name:

Be professional while closing the reference letter. You can use Best Regards, Sincerely, Thanking you, Regards etc. Specify your contact details below it.

Number of LOR required in Top Canadian Universities

Canadian Universities ask for reference letters based on the degree you opt to pursue. Given below are some of the top universities and their specific LOR requirements for a particular course.

Institution	LOR for PG Diploma	LOR for MS	LOR for MBA
University of Toronto	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Professional LOR
University of British Columbia	3 Academic & professional	3 Academic & professional	3 Academic & professional
McGill University	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic & professional LOR
University of Montreal	1 Academic LOR	1 Academic LOR	1 Academic LOR
McMaster University	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR
University of Alberta	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR
University of Waterloo	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic & professional LOR
Western University	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR
University of Ottawa	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Professional LOR
University of Calgary	2 Academic & Professional	2 Academic & Professional	2 Academic & Professional
Dalhousie University	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic (or) professional
University of Victoria	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic LOR	2 Academic (or) professional LOR

LOR sample for Canada or Canadian universities

It is a great pleasure to recommend <Student Name> to the PG program in the stream of cyber security at MVB University, <City>. Myself <Name> working as a professor in the department of computer science at SV university. I knew her for the past 4 years and taught her the various core subjects like object oriented programming, database management systems etc. in each semester.

I interacted with her for the first time in the orientation session organised on the joining day for  the new academic year XXXX batch. Since then due to her best ideologies and intellectual skills she has been one among the highest league of the students.

Her determination, self motivated attitude, and active participation in the debates made her stand as the topper of the university xxx batch with a good score in the academics. During the final semester she has chosen a research based project related to”Data security and confidentiality“ and formed a team to work on this project. This projected her leadership and team coordination skills that was appreciated further after delivering a valuable output.

She was an active member in extra curricular activities like chess, badminton. She represented our university in an intercollege competition by winning a gold medal in badminton. Holding 2 years of work experience as information security analyst at XYZ company she decided to progress her studies further to fulfil her ambitions.

Taking note of her academic proficiency, critical thinking and experience I firmly recommend XYZ for the admission in your esteemed university.  Please feel free to reach out for any enquiries.

Yours Sincerely,
Name of the Recommender
Designation, Department
College/University, City
Contact Number: 0000000000
Email Id: XXXXXXX

LOR sample for Canada or Canadian universities pdf

Sample letter of recommendation for UG in Canada

Date
Recipient address

Dear Sir/Madam

I <Professor Name> wrote this letter to recommend <Student Name> a student of<School Name>,<City>. He started his education/schooling from our school and continued till class 12.  It was a pleasure having him for these long years in our organisation as a best student. I was working as a school principal for 22 years in this organisation and was his physics teacher in the high school.

<Student name> was one of the brightest students of our school. He was always appreciated and awarded for his academic expertise, sincerity and dedication towards his studies. He always has a zeal to learn and experiment new things with the existing knowledge to discover something advanced. His willingness to learn latest technologies has made him an ideal candidate and titled as an “All rounder”.

Apart from studies he was also good at martial arts. Out of 10 students from our school who participated in the national level karate championship <Student Name> is the one who won the silver medal in technical fight. 

Without any hesitation I am recommending <Student Name>  for the admission of bachelors  in your esteemed graduate school. I wish him great success in all his future endeavours. Incase of any query please feel free to reach me.

                                         Thanking you

With Regards,

Name of the Recommender

Designation, Department

College/University, City

Contact Number: 0000000000

Email Id: XXXXXXX

Sample letter of recommendation for UG in Canada pdf

Sample letter of recommendation for MBA in Canada

To
The Department of Business management
Schulich School of Business
Date

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am pleased to recommend <Student Name>  to pursue an MBA program in your esteemed University. As a project manager working at <Company Name> I have known her for the past 2 years and found her to be an inspired, dedicated and hard-working professional.

<Student Name> as a company advisor played a crucial role in dealing with the company finances and she even helped us to run the company smoothly during tough situations with her innovative and efficient concepts. Her ideologies and capacity to shoulder responsibilities with a positive attitude to uplift the company marks her as an important and valuable asset to our organisation.

Furthermore I observed her coordination, team management skills, and constant encouragement to our employees that helped them to work under challenging situations without losing any hope. She is determined and driven to achieve perfection. I believe this quality will lead her to climb the ladder of success.

I was happy for her decision regarding higher education. I believe that  her professional and academic background fits best for your university and will benefit to enhance her career in future. I strongly recommend her for the MBA program in your Institution. Kindly reach out for any other queries. 

Regards

Name of the Recommender

Designation, Department

Name of the Company, City

Contact Number: 0000000000

Email Id: XXXXXXX

Sample letter of recommendation for MBA in Canada pdf

Sample letter of recommendation for MS in Canada

To
The Department of Psychology
University of Alberta
Date

Dear Sir/Madam,

It is with pride and satisfaction that I am recommending <Student Name>  for the admission in Master’s program in your esteemed university. As a professor and head of the psychology department I have known her for the past 4 years while she was a student at our <Name of the College>.

Having interacted with her by handling classes related to the psychology subjects I know her quite well. She was a bright student in academics and her active participation in classroom discussions projected her keen interest in various technological advancements. Her discipline and punctuality made her stand well in academics.

I was her project guide in the final year project “emotional intelligence as predictors of police officers psychological well being” and was impressed with her strategic thoughts. This project exposed her team work , research methodologies and placed her as best among the other students. Her clear, precise and well thought presentations in delivering an output clearly shows her innovative ideologies/thoughts.

 She is well proficient in extra curricular activities like chess. Working as a forensic science intern at XYZ company she decided to improve her knowledge further through higher studies.  With her keen interest in this domain I am confident that she would definitely be foremost through her capabilities and knowledge she gained. Hence,  I strongly recommend her for the post graduate program in your esteemed university. I wish her good luck in all her future endeavours. 

Yours Sincerely,

Name of the Recommender

Designation, Department

College/University, City

Contact Number: 0000000000

Email Id: XXXXXXX

Sample letter of recommendation for MS in Canada pdf

Important tips for writing a LOR

An applicant should always remember that the admission committee runs over a large number of letters and countless records. We have to put our best to get through the selection. Here are some important tips to be remembered while drafting LOR. 

• Be wise while choosing someone to write a reference letter for you. Their authority and designation will add weightage to the letter.
• Along with the academics and potentiality your reference letter should also speak about your character and disposition. Admission committee sees LOR as a big picture describing your personality and contributions.
• Before writing your reference letter the recommender should have a brief understanding about your profile, course and the interest you hold.
• LOR should be printed on university/college or company’s letterhead and sealed with the respective firm official stamp along with the recommender’s signature and details.
• For professional LOR it is advisable to take it from a recent workplace.
• Just ensure that the information your recommender provided in the reference letter is clear and accurate.
• LOR should not be handwritten. Font size to be maintained is 11 and text should be black in colour.
• Make sure to avoid grammatical and spelling errors. Don’t exaggerate the points that fail to impress the committee.

Other links

• Letter of Recommendation(LOR) for Masters programs
• Letter of recommendation format
• LOR samples

Summary

Letter of recommendation decides your future admission in a particular university. Hope through the “LOR for Canada”  article you came to know content to be written, what to be highlighted, recommender’s choice etc. to high the chances of selection/success in the application. 

FAQ for LOR for Canada

1. What is the word limit for LOR?
Some Canadian Universities specify the word limit. It recommends a number of words to put in the reference letter. In case if it is not mentioned then maintain a word limit of 400-500 for his document.  

2. Is LOR required for a Canada student visa?
Many universities in Canada require at least 3 LOR’s some may ask for just one or two. Academic LOR is preferred for bachelors programs. In case if the student has any internship or practical experience then a professional reference letter might be needed. 

3. Will the LOR be verified?
After the submission of a LOR request letter by the applicant, the application is redirected to the ULB verifier. This USB verifier cross checks and marks the application as recommended or not recommended based on the information shared.

4. Can we give a personal email address to LOR?
Generic email IDs are not accepted by the admission committee of the Canadian universities. Always prefer to write the official email ID of the recommender to avoid any other issues or serious rejections.

5. Can a letter of recommendation be faked?
If an applicant was caught being forged the letter of recommendation his/her application will be rejected to pursue higher studies. Beyond that this incident will be saved in their records and will face even more severe consequences.

6. What makes a strong LOR?
Exhibiting the applicant’s leadership skills, dedication, focus, ability to grasp new concepts will highlight the reference letter. Balancing the connection between the past work and how it relates to their suitability for the position makes the letter of recommendation strong.

7. What do universities look for in LOR?
Admission officers intend to know more about the applicant’s personal qualities and strengths from the recommendors. The personal qualities include integrity, humour, passion, thoughtfulness etc. Officers especially value the strength of the character and demonstrated leadership qualities.