Writing and Managing Letters

When a student, postdoc, or colleague requests a recommendation letter from you through AcaTrove, the request appears in your Letters inbox. This article covers how to respond to requests, write or upload letters, and manage your letter-writing commitments.

Viewing Incoming Requests

Navigate to /letters and open the Incoming Requests tab. Each request shows:

• The name of the person requesting the letter.
• The position or program they are applying to.
• The submission deadline.
• Any supporting documents they have attached (CV, job posting, personal statement).
• The current status of the request.

Click on a request to view its full details and attached materials.

Accepting or Declining a Request

When you receive a new request, you have two options:

Accept -- Click Accept to confirm that you will write the letter. The requester is notified that you have agreed. The request moves to your active commitments list.

Decline -- Click Decline if you are unable to write the letter. You can optionally include a brief message explaining your decision. The requester is notified so they can ask someone else. Declining promptly is considerate and preferable to leaving a request unanswered.

Writing a Letter

Once you have accepted a request, you can write the letter directly within AcaTrove:

1. Open the accepted request from your Incoming Requests tab.
2. Click Write Letter to open the letter editor.
3. The editor provides a workspace for composing your letter. The requester's supporting documents are accessible in a sidebar for reference.
4. Write your letter. The editor supports standard formatting including paragraphs, bold, italic, and letterhead-style headers.
5. Your work saves automatically.
6. When the letter is complete, click Mark as Complete.

Alternatively, if you prefer to write in your own word processor:

1. Open the accepted request.
2. Click Upload Letter and select your completed letter file (PDF or DOCX).
3. The uploaded file is stored in AcaTrove and associated with this request.

Managing Your Commitments

The Incoming Requests tab shows all your letter commitments in one place. You can:

• Filter by status to see pending, in progress, or completed letters.
• Sort by deadline to prioritize letters with the nearest due dates.
• View your total commitment count to assess your current workload before accepting new requests.

Updating an Existing Letter

If circumstances change after you have completed a letter -- for example, the candidate applies to an additional position -- you can update the letter:

1. Open the completed request.
2. Click Edit Letter to revise the content, or Upload New Version to replace the file.
3. The previous version is preserved in the letter's version history.

Tips

• Review the attached supporting documents before writing. Tailoring your letter to the specific position produces a more effective recommendation than a generic one.
• Respond to requests promptly, even if your response is a decline. Candidates need time to find alternative references.
• When writing for the same candidate across multiple positions, start with a base letter and create position-specific versions. The Portfolio feature makes it easy to manage multiple versions.
• Deadlines on your dashboard's action items reflect your accepted letter commitments, so you will see reminders alongside your other upcoming tasks.