Important Note: This article discusses classic functionality. For information on the modern applicant experience, refer to the Applicant Experience Knowledgebase article. For information on using recommendations with the most current features available as part of the 21.1 release, including the Recommender Console, auto-save for recommendation forms, and post-submission notifications for recommenders, see the Recommendations for Terra Dotta Study Abroad article.

In Terra Dotta, applicants can be required to solicit recommendations as part of the application process.

Important Note: Clients using the Admin Console should refer to the "Recommendation Forms" section of the Admin Console: Content Management Knowledgebase article for the most current information on using this feature.

This article covers the following topics related to recommendations:

Understanding Recommendations
Creating Recommendation Types
Setting the Required Number of Recommendation Types
Creating Recommendation Questionnaires
Recommendations and Application Deadlines
Admin View of a Recommendation
Recommender View of a Recommendation
Frequently Asked Questions
Video Documentation

Understanding Recommendations

A recommendation is a type of questionnaire that will be completed by a person other than the applicant. The applicant can request that someone complete a recommendation on their behalf electronically or by printing the form and giving the person the paper. This person is referred to as the "recommender." The recommender is given access to log in to the site as a recommender to complete the questionnaire on behalf of the applicant. All recommenders can be seen under Staff > Staff Permissions > Recommender group. The recommender group generally does not need to be granted any additional permissions. A recommender can complete the paper form or access the recommendation questionnaire on the website to submit responses.

Different types of recommendations may be utilized. For example, an application may require one general recommendation, one language recommendation, and one recommendation from the student's academic advisor.

This article describes how to create recommendation types, configure programs to use the appropriate recommendation types, and create recommendation questionnaires. It also describes what the recommender sees when they submit a recommendation.

Important Note: New Terra Dotta clients should create recommendation types and set the desired default recommendation requirements on the System Features page before beginning to build programs.

Creating Recommendation Types

The first step in creating a recommendation is to define which types of recommendations you wish to use. This is done under Settings > Rec Types. When an administrator accesses this tool, they are brought to a listing of the existing recommendation types in their account. The general recommendation type, though not displayed on this page, exists by default. This recommendation type cannot be deleted from the system. Since it is there by default, there is no need for an admin to create a 'General' recommendation type. Example recommendation types include: General, Language, Professor, Academic Advisor, Employer, Personal, Coach.

Note:

Admins will need the Settings: Recommendation Types (View, Edit and Delete) permissions to access this screen.
Recommendation types can only be deleted if there are no questionnaires that have used that type, including retired versions. Once a recommendation questionnaire is defined as a specific recommendation type, a lock symbol will replace the red 'X' on this form and the rec type can no longer be deleted.

To Add a new recommendation type, click the "New Recommendation" tab. A form appears for creating a new rec type. Enter the name of the recommendation type in the box provided and include a brief description (which will appear as instructions to applicants) in the Description box. Press Save.

Setting the Required Number of Recommendation Types

The global default number of required recommendations for each type can be set in the following way: Settings > System Features > Administrative tab > Default required # of recommendations .

The global default setting configured in System Features will be inherited by all new programs created after this setting is adjusted. The default number of recommendations should mirror the number and type of recommendations required by the majority of your programs. This setting can be adjusted on a per-program basis, but if your default is configured to align with the majority of your programs, then it will only be necessary to make an adjustment for the few that have different requirements. For example, if most of your programs require 1 General recommendation and 1 Academic Advisor recommendation, make that the default setting here. All new programs will inherit the default setting of required recommendation types. For programs with different requirements, go to the 'Settings' tab in the Program Builder to make adjustments.

Creating Recommendation Questionnaires

A recommendation is comprised of a series of question items and is therefore referred to as a questionnaire. The next step in the process is to create a recommendation questionnaire for each of the recommendation types on your site:

Go to Settings > Question Items and create all the question items that will be used in the recommendation
Go to Process > Questionnaires and create a new questionnaire with 'Recommendations' selected for the 'Applies To' setting. Once you have selected 'Recommendations' in the 'Applies To' box, a new drop down menu appears, from which you can select the type of recommendation. Note: If you choose to set two questionnaires for the same recommendation type and later attempt to export recommendation from an application,the second recommendation is, by design, not included in the export. However, you will see a link at the end of the response for the last question item on the first recommendation. This is expected behavior as recommendations are only exportable when there is one recommendation submitted for the recommendation type.
Go to Process > App Cycles and click the edit pencil icon for each app cycle that will use the recommendation. On the 'Questionnaires' tab, check the box to add the recommendation questionnaire to the app cycle. Note that recommendation questionnaires are listed at the very bottom of this page.

Important Notes:

Recommendations cannot be configured to be conditional, deployed based on an applicant parameter value, listed as "internal use only," or deployed based on internal/external applicant type.
Recommendations can be made program-specific, program group-specific, and/or term specific.

Recommendations and Application Deadlines

Recommenders are not prevented from submitting their recommendations after the application deadline. If a student requests a recommendation, that recommendation request remains active in the system indefinitely and can be submitted by the recommender at any time.

It is the responsibility of the applicant (or, if taken on, the office) to contact the recommender and notify them of the deadline for the application so that it can be submitted prior to the application's review by the office staff. However, should the recommender not complete the recommendation prior to the application deadline, the software will not block its submission afterwards. It will record the date on which the recommendation was submitted like any other recommendation submitted for an application.

Admin View of a Recommendation

When an admin views the 'Recommendations' tab of an application, they will be able to see how many of each type is required of the applicant. The requirements mimic the number of required recommendations on the 'Settings' tab of the program builder. Should you change the program recommendation settings after applicants have submitted recommendations, some submitted recommendations could be hidden from view if the program no longer requires them. It is not recommended to adjust recommendation requirements in the middle of an application cycle.

From this view, an admin also has the following options:

Record New Recommendation: An admin is first prompted to search for the user. Then, they enter information to complete the recommendation on behalf of a recommender. Once submitted, the recommendation is immediately marked as received.
Copy Recommendation from Another Application
Generate Recommendation Request for this Application

Recording Hard-Copy Recommendations

When a recommendation is received in the mail or turned in on paper, as opposed to submitted online, it can be recorded in Terra Dotta so that both the student and staff members can see that it has been received. This is classic functionality that is not supported in the Admin Console.

If the recommendation request was made by the applicant: click on the green check mark to the right of the recommender's name in the "Recommendations" tab to mark that recommendation as received. This will record the date the letter was received but not the recommendation itself. The student will be able to see the box next to this recommender's name checked off on their application as well.

If the recommendation request was made by the applicant printing out the recommendation form and providing it to the recommender: click on the "Record New Recommendation" link of the "Recommendations" tab, enter the recommender's information/responses (usually with "on file" as the responses for the recommendation question items).

There is no marked indication as to whether or not a recommendation was submitted on paper or via your website.

Recommender View of a Recommendation

When the recommender receives the email requesting a recommendation, the recommender also receives login information. Once the recommender has logged in and is viewing the recommendation form, they will see the applicant's name, program, program location, app cycle, whether or not the applicant waived their right to view the recommendation, the name of the recommendation, and all the question items.

Note: It is not currently possible to send batch reminder emails to recommenders who have not submitted their recommendations. You can run a progress audit to see which applicants are missing recommendations, but you would need to go into each applicant's record to email the recommender who hasn't submitted yet.

Another method of finding recommendation requests that haven't been submitted is to use the ' recs pending' option on the application search results screen. This can be used to find all the requests that are not yet completed for a list of applications. There is an icon for sending an individual recommender the email again regarding the recommendation request.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I create a conditional recommendation requirement?

It is not possible to make the online recommendation system an optional part of the application process. Admins looking for an alternative might consider the following option:

Example: You want to deploy an additional recommendation requirement to your applicants with low GPAs. Create a conditional material submission that asks the conditional question "Is your GPA under 2.5?". Then select 'Yes" as the answer for the "Submission applies to applicants who respond" question. In the WYSIWYG editor, create a link to a recommendation form in your Document Center. The applicant would have to print it out and ask the recommender to fill it in and return it to you.

This material would only show as a requirement for those students with a GPA of less than 2.5 (or whatever value you choose), and an admin would need to check the material off once the additional recommendation is received.

2. Recommend is receiving "The verification / recommendation information you entered is invalid. Please try again" error message.

The most common reason the recommender may receive this message is if the profile for the student has been merged. Navigate to Maintenance > Edit User to confirm that the profile does not have "*removed". If the profile has been removed, follow the necessary steps for that profile to be altered.

Video Documentation

The Knowledgebase

Study Abroad: Creating Recommendations and Using Recommendation Types (Classic)