The Yale MBA recommendation questions for the Yale School of Management MBA Class of 2025 are below. Yale uses the Common Letter of Recommendation from GMAC. Two professional recommendations are required, and ideally one of your recommendations should be from your current supervisor.
2022-2023 Yale MBA Recommendation Questions
Recommender Information
- Context of Relationship
- Nature of relationship
Leadership Assessment
– Achievement
– Influence
– People
– Personal Qualities
– Cognitive Abilities
Achievement
1. Initiative: Acts ahead of need/anticipates problems
2. Results Orientation: Focuses on and drives toward delivering on goals, objectives, and performance improvement
4. Influence and Collaboration: Engages and works with people over whom one has no direct control
People
5. Respect for Others: Acknowledges the value of others’ views and actions
6. Team Leadership: Manages and empowers a team of formal or informal direct reports, including virtual teams
7. Developing Others: Helps people develop their performance and ability over time
Personal Qualities
8. Trustworthiness/ Integrity: Acts consistently in line with or follows explicit values, beliefs or intentions
9. Adaptability/ Resilience: Adapts to changing demands and circumstances without difficulty. Maintains calm optimism in the face of challenge, problems, or apparent failure
10. Self Awareness: Aware of and seeks out additional input on own strengths and weaknesses
Cognitive
11. Problem Solving: Frames problems, analyzes situations, identifies key issues, conducts analysis on the issues, and produces acceptable solution
12. Strategic Orientation: Thinks beyond one’s span of control and into the future to reshape the approach or scope of work
Peer Comparison
Based on your professional experience, how do you rate this candidate compared to her/his peer group?
- Unable to assess
- Below Average
- Average
- Very Good (well above average)
- Excellent (top 10%)
- Outstanding (top 5%)
- The best encountered in my career
Overall Recommendation
- Do not recommend this applicant
- Recommend this applicant, with reservations
- Recommend this applicant
- Enthusiastically recommend this applicant
Qualities Assessment
Below is a list of some of the qualities that describe Yale SOM students and alumni. Please review the list and check off the three (3) qualities on the list that you feel best describe the applicant. Please note that we are not looking for any specific qualities; instead, we are simply trying to get a better sense of the applicant’s strengths.
- Adaptable
- Analytical
- Creative
- Curious
- Hard-working
- Humble
- Intuitive
- Level-headed
- Open-minded
- Persistent
- Positive
- Resilient
- Responsible
- Self-motivated
- Smart
- Socially adept
Recommendation Letter
Please write an assessment of the applicant that addresses the prompts below. We are looking for your candid and accurate assessment of the applicant’s potential to be a successful leader and the specific traits the applicant possesses that evidence this potential. Please be as specific as possible and use concrete examples where applicable. Do not incorporate anything drafted by the candidate in your recommendation or have the candidate submit the recommendation on your behalf.
Please note that Yale SOM welcomes you to upload and submit letters of recommendation written in English, Chinese (Mandarin), or Spanish. Yale University will translate the letter to English for admissions review.
- Please provide a brief description of your interaction with the applicant and, if applicable, the applicant’s role in your organization. (Recommended word count: 50 words)
- How does the performance of the applicant compare to that of other well-qualified individuals in similar roles? (E.g. what are the applicant’s principal strengths?) (Recommended word count: 500 words)
- Describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant’s response. (Recommended word count: 500 words)
- Are you in a position to know whether the applicant is sponsored for the MBA by his or her current employer? If so, please comment.
- (Optional) Is there anything else we should know?
I am submitting my recommendation letter in this language:
English
Chinese
Spanish