2019-20 College Recommendation Requirements
Hopefully, you won’t be asking your high school teachers to write you a letter of recommendation hours before the application deadline. In fact, we recommend locking down your recommenders well in advance. Enlightened College Applicants will get ahead of the game by utilizing our user-friendly list of recommendation requirements at 367 premier colleges and universities. Also included is whether each institution requires a recommendation from a guidance counselor. All information was collected from institutional websites in August 2019 in order to provide our readers with the most up-to-date information.
| Institution | Teacher Recommendations Required | Counselor Recommendation Required* | Additional Info |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Florida | 0 | No | |
| Boston University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Evansville | 0 | No | |
| Boston College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Denver | 0 | Yes | |
| Birmingham Southern College | 0 | No | |
| University of Delaware | 0 | Yes | |
| Berry College | 0 | No | |
| University of Dayton | 0 | No | |
| Berea College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Dallas | 0 | Yes | |
| Bentley University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Connecticut, Storrs | 0 | No | |
| Bennington College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Colorado Boulder | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Beloit College | 1 | No | |
| University of Cincinnati | 0 | No | One teacher letter is highly encouraged |
| Belmont University | 0 | Yes | |
| University of Chicago | 2 | Yes | |
| Baylor University | 0 | No | 2 letters of recommendation are recommended |
| University of Central Florida | 0 | No | |
| Bates College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of California, Santa Cruz | 0 | No | |
| Barnard College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of California, Santa Barbara | 0 | No | |
| Bard College | 2 | Yes | One from math/science and one from humanities |
| University of California, San Diego | 0 | No | |
| Babson College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of California, Riverside | 0 | No | |
| Austin College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of California, Los Angeles | 0 | No | May ask for a letter of recommendation as part of a supplemental application review |
| Augustana College (IL) | 0 | Yes | Teacher letter is recommended |
| University of California, Irvine | 0 | No | |
| Auburn University | 0 | No | |
| University of California, Davis | 0 | No | |
| Arizona State University | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Honors |
| University of California, Berkeley | 0 | No | May ask for a letter of recommendation as part of a supplemental application review |
| Appalachian State University | 0 | No | |
| University of Arizona | 0 | No | |
| Amherst College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Alabama | 0 | No | |
| American University | 1 | Yes | |
| United States Naval Academy | 3 | Yes | |
| Alma College | 0 | No | |
| United States Military Academy | 3 | Yes | |
| Allegheny College | 1 | Yes | |
| United States Merchant Marine Academy | 2 | Yes | |
| Alfred University | 0 | Yes | |
| United States Coast Guard Academy | 2 | Yes | |
| Albion College | 0 | Yes | |
| United States Air Force Academy | 3 | Yes | |
| Agnes Scott College | 1 | Yes | |
| Union College | 1 | Yes | |
| Tulane University | 0 | Yes | |
| Tufts University | 1 | Yes | Must be junior or senior year teacher |
| Truman State University | 0 | No | |
| Trinity University | 1 | Yes | |
| Trinity College | 2 | Yes | |
| Towson University | 0 | No | |
| Thomas Aquinas College | 3 | No | |
| The College of Wooster | 1 | Yes | |
| The College of New Jersey | 0 | Yes | Strongly encourages 2-3 total letters of recommendation |
| Texas Tech University | 0 | No | |
| Texas Christian University | 1 | Yes | |
| Texas A&M University | 0 | No | One (1) letter recommended for applicants to BBA Honors |
| Temple University | 0 | No | |
| Syracuse University | 2 | Yes | |
| Swarthmore College | 2 | Yes | |
| Susquehanna University | 0 | Yes | |
| SUNY, University at Albany | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY, Purchase College | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY, Oswego | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY, Oneonta | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY, New Paltz | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY, Maritime College | 1 | Yes | Can be two teachers and no counselor, if desired |
| SUNY, Geneseo | 1 | No | |
| SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 0 | No | |
| SUNY University at Buffalo | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY Stony Brook | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| SUNY Binghamton University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Stonehill College | 1 | Yes | |
| Stevens Institute of Technology | 1 | Yes | |
| Steston University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Stanford University | 2 | Yes | Grades 11 & 12 teachers recommended |
| St. Olaf College | 1 | No | |
| St. Mary's College of Maryland | 2 | Yes | |
| St. Lawrence University | 2 | Yes | |
| St. John's College, Santa Fe | 1 | Yes | |
| St. John's College, Annapolis | 1 | Yes | |
| St. Edward's University | 0 | Yes | |
| Spelman College | 2 | Yes | |
| Southwestern University | 0 | Yes | |
| Southern Methodist University | 0 | Yes | |
| Smith College | 2 | Yes | |
| Skidmore College | 2 | Yes | |
| Simmons College | 1 | Yes | |
| Siena College | 0 | Yes | |
| Sewanee: University of the South | 1 | Yes | |
| Seton Hall University | 1 | Yes | |
| Seattle University | 1 | Yes | |
| Scripps College | 2 | Yes | |
| Sarah Lawrence College | 2 | Yes | |
| Santa Clara University | 1 | Yes | |
| San Francisco State University | 0 | No | |
| San Diego State University | 0 | No | |
| Samford University | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Saint Michael's College | 1 | Yes | |
| Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame | 0 | Yes | |
| Saint Louis University | 0 | No | |
| Saint Joseph's University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Saint John's University (MN) | 0 | No | |
| Rutgers University | 0 | No | |
| Rollins College | 0 | Yes | |
| Rockhurst University | 0 | Yes | |
| Rochester Institute of Technology | 0 | Yes | |
| Roanoke College | 0 | No | Recommends one letter |
| Ripon College | 0 | No | |
| Rice University | 2 | Yes | |
| Rhodes College | 1 | Yes | |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 1 | Yes | Preferably a math or science teacher |
| Reed College | 2 | Yes | |
| Ramapo College of New Jersey | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Quinnipiac University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Purdue University | 0 | No | |
| Providence College | 1 | Yes | |
| Principia College | 1 | Yes | |
| Princeton University | 2 | Yes | |
| Pomona College | 2 | Yes | |
| Pitzer College | 2 | No | |
| Pepperdine University | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Penn State University | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Honors |
| Oregon State University | 0 | No | |
| Ohio University | 0 | No | Two (2) letters strongly recommended for applicants to Honors |
| Ohio State University | 0 | No | |
| Oglethorpe University | 0 | No | |
| Occidental College | 2 | Yes | |
| Oberlin College | 2 | Yes | |
| Northwestern University | 1 | Yes | |
| Northeastern University | 1 | Yes | |
| North Carolina State University | 0 | No | |
| New York University | 1 | Yes | |
| New Jersey Institute of Technology | 1 | Yes | |
| New College of Florida | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Muhlenberg College | 1 | Yes | |
| Mount Holyoke College | 2 | Yes | |
| Morehouse College | 1 | Yes | |
| Mississippi State University | 0 | No | |
| Milwaukee School of Engineering | 0 | No | |
| Millsaps College | 0 | No | |
| Middlebury College | 2 | Yes | |
| Michigan State University | 0 | No | |
| Miami University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Messiah College | 0 | No | |
| McDaniel College | 0 | No | |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 2 | Yes | MIT requires one (1) recommendation from a math or science teacher and one (1) recommendation from a humanities, social science, or language teacher. |
| Marquette University | 0 | Yes | |
| Marlboro College | 2 | No | |
| Marist College | 1 | Yes | |
| Marietta College | 0 | Yes | |
| Macalester College | 2 | Yes | |
| Loyola University Maryland | 1 | Yes | |
| Loyola University Chicago | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Loyola Marymount University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Louisiana State University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Lewis & Clark College | 1 | Yes | |
| Lehigh University | 1 | Yes | |
| Lawrence University | 1 | Yes | |
| Lake Forest College | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Lafayette College | 1 | Yes | |
| Knox College | 1 | Yes | |
| Kettering University | 0 | No | |
| Kenyon College | 1 | Yes | |
| Kalamazoo College | 1 | Yes | |
| Juniata College | 1 | No | |
| Johns Hopkins University | 2 | Yes | |
| James Madison University | 0 | No | |
| Ithaca College | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Indiana University | 0 | No | One (1) letter required for applicants to Honors |
| Illinois Wesleyan University | 0 | Yes | |
| Illinois Institute of Technology | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Howard University | 1 | Yes | |
| Hope College | 0 | No | |
| Hood College | 0 | No | |
| Hollins University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Hofstra University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | 1 | Yes | |
| Hiram College | 0 | No | |
| High Point University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Hendrix College | 0 | No | |
| Haverford College | 2 | Yes | |
| Harvey Mudd College | 2 | Yes | HMC requires one (1) recommendation from a math or science teacher and one (1) recommendation from a humanities, social science, or arts teacher. |
| Harvard University | 2 | Yes | |
| Hampshire College | 1 | Yes | |
| Hamilton College | 1 | Yes | |
| Gustavus Adolphus College | 0 | No | |
| Grinnell College | 2 | Yes | |
| Goucher College | 1 | Yes | |
| Yeshiva University | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Honors |
| Gonzaga University | 1 | No | |
| Yale University | 2 | Yes | |
| Gettysburg College | 1 | Yes | |
| Xavier University | 0 | Yes | |
| Georgia State University | 0 | No | |
| Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | 0 | Yes | Exception made if counselor is unable to complete request |
| Wofford College | 0 | Yes | |
| Georgia College and State University | 0 | No | Honors requires one letter from counselor or teacher |
| Wittenberg University | 0 | No | |
| Georgetown University | 1 | Yes | |
| Williams College | 2 | Yes | |
| Georgetown College | 0 | No | |
| Whittier College | 1 | Yes | |
| George Washington University | 1 | Yes | |
| Whitman College | 1 | Yes | |
| George Mason University | 0 | No | |
| Wheaton College (MA) | 1 | Yes | |
| Furman University | 0 | No | |
| Wheaton College (IL) | 1 | No | |
| Franklin & Marshall College | 1 | Yes | |
| Westmont College | 1 | No | |
| Fordham University | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 0 | No | |
| Florida State University | 0 | No | One (1) teacher and one (1) counselor recommendation required for Honors applicants |
| Wesleyan University | 2 | Yes | |
| Florida Southern College | 0 | Yes | |
| Wentworth Institute of Technology | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Florida International University | 0 | No | |
| Wellesley College | 2 | Yes | |
| Florida Institute of Technology | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Washington University | 1 | Yes | |
| Florida Gulf Coast University | 0 | No | |
| Washington State University | 0 | No | |
| Florida Atlantic University | 0 | No | |
| Washington and Lee University | 2 | Yes | |
| Fairfield University | 0 | Yes | |
| Washington & Jefferson College | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Evergreen State College | 0 | No | Two required for scholarships |
| Warren Wilson College | 0 | Yes | |
| Emory University | 2 | Yes | |
| Wake Forest University | 1 | Yes | |
| Emerson College | 1 | Yes | |
| Wabash College | 0 | Yes | |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University | 0 | No | Two recommendations are encouraged |
| Virginia Tech | 0 | No | |
| Elon University | 0 | No | One reccomendation needed for Honors Fellows consideration |
| Villanova University | 1 | Yes | |
| Elizabethtown College | 1 | Yes | |
| Vassar College | 1 | Yes | |
| Eckerd College | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Vanderbilt University | 2 | Yes | |
| East Carolina University | 0 | No | |
| Ursinus College | 0 | Yes | |
| Earlham College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Wisconsin | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Duquesne University | 0 | No | One (1) letter required (2 recommended) for health sciences majors |
| University of Washington | 0 | No | |
| Duke University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Virginia | 1 | Yes | |
| Drexel University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Vermont | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Drew University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Utah | 0 | No | |
| Drake University | 0 | No | One letter is encouraged |
| University of Tulsa | 0 | No | Counselor recommendation is suggested |
| Dickinson College | 1 | Yes | Two are strongly recommended |
| University of Texas at Dallas | 0 | No | |
| DePauw University | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| University of Texas at Austin | 0 | No | |
| DePaul University | 0 | No | |
| University of Tennessee | 0 | No | |
| Denison University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of St. Thomas (MN) | 0 | No | Two letters are suggested |
| Davidson College | 2 | Yes | Peer recommendation required |
| University of Southern California | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Dartmouth College | 2 | Yes | Peer recommendation encouraged |
| University of South Florida | 0 | No | |
| CUNY, Hunter College | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Macaulay Honors |
| University of South Carolina | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Honors |
| CUNY, City College | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Macaulay Honors |
| University of Scranton | 0 | Yes | |
| CUNY, Brooklyn College | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Macaulay Honors |
| University of San Francisco | 0 | Yes | |
| CUNY Baruch College | 0 | No | |
| University of San Diego | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Creighton University | 0 | Yes | |
| University of Rochester | 1 | Yes | |
| Cornell University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Richmond | 0 | Yes | Can be a teacher, but counselor is prefered |
| Cornell College | 0 | No | |
| University of Rhode Island | 0 | Yes | Can be a teacher, but counselor is prefered |
| Cooper Union | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| University of Redlands | 1 | Yes | |
| Connecticut College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Puget Sound | 1 | Yes | |
| Columbia University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Portland | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Colorado State University | 1 | No | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| University of Pittsburgh | 0 | No | |
| Colorado School of Mines | 0 | No | |
| University of Pennsylvania | 2 | Yes | |
| Colorado College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Oregon | 0 | No | Two (2) letters required for applicants to Honors |
| College of William and Mary | 0 | Yes | |
| University of Oklahoma | 0 | No | |
| College of the Ozarks | 2 | No | |
| University of Notre Dame | 1 | Yes | Counselor evaluation recommended but not required |
| College of the Holy Cross | 1 | Yes | |
| University of North Texas | 0 | No | |
| College of the Atlantic | 2 | Yes | |
| University of North Carolina at Wilmington | 0 | No | |
| College of Charleston | 0 | No | One (1) letter required for applicants to Honors |
| University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 0 | No | |
| Colgate University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 0 | No | |
| Colby College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 1 | No | |
| Coe College | 0 | No | |
| University of North Carolina at Asheville | 0 | Yes | |
| Clemson University | 0 | No | One (1) teacher and one (1) counselor recommendation required for Honors applicants |
| University of New Hampshire | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher |
| Clarkson University | 1 | Yes | Two teacher recommendations are encouraged |
| University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 0 | No | |
| Clark University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Montana | 0 | No | |
| Claremont McKenna College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Missouri, Kansas City | 0 | No | |
| Christopher Newport University | 0 | No | |
| University of Missouri, Columbia | 0 | No | |
| Chapman University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Mississippi | 0 | No | Three (3) letters required for applicants to Honors (2 teachers and 1 counselor) |
| Champlain College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Minnesota, Morris | 0 | No | |
| Centre College | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Minnesota | 0 | No | |
| Catholic University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Michigan | 1 | Yes | |
| Case Western Reserve University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Miami | 1 | Yes | |
| Carnegie Mellon University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Carleton College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Maryland, Baltimore County | 0 | No | |
| Canisius College | 0 | Yes | Recommended but not required |
| University of Maryland | 1 | Yes | |
| Calvin College | 1 | No | |
| University of Mary Washington | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo | 0 | No | |
| University of Maine | 0 | Yes | Can be counselor or teacher recommendation |
| California Institute of Technology | 2 | Yes | One from math/science and one from humanities |
| University of Louisville | 0 | No | |
| Butler University | 0 | No | |
| University of Kentucky | 0 | No | |
| Bucknell University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Kansas | 0 | No | |
| Bryn Mawr College | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Iowa | 0 | No | |
| Bryant University | 0 | Yes | |
| University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign | 0 | No | |
| Brown University | 2 | Yes | |
| University of Illinois at Chicago | 0 | No | Encouraged for all; Honors requires two letters |
| Brigham Young University | 1 | No | |
| University of Houston | 0 | No | |
| Brandeis University | 1 | Yes | |
| University of Hawaii at Manoa | 0 | No | |
| Bradley University | 0 | No | Recommended but not required |
| University of Georgia | 1 | Yes | One (1) letter required for applicants to Honors |
| Bowdoin College | 2 | Yes | Must be teacher from 11th/12th grade |
*In addition to the School Report form that counselors are also required to complete (for most schools).
