In an American application, recommendation letters count as much as the essays. An American high school is prepared for them: teachers write them every year, a counselor follows each student. At a French lycée, no one has ever written one, the counselor role does not exist in that form, and teachers write in French. It is not an insurmountable obstacle, provided you start early and know what universities accept.
Recommendation letters for American universities: what is required
The Common App lets each university set the number of letters. The most common pattern: two teachers, and the school counselor, who sends the School Report, the transcripts and their own letter.
| University | Teachers | Counselor |
|---|---|---|
| MIT | Two: preferably one in maths or science and one in humanities, social science or a language, not a strict requirement | Optional letter: its absence does not disadvantage the application |
| Harvard | Two, in different subjects | School Report and letter |
| Yale | Two, in core subjects | School Report and letter |
| Stanford | Two, from Year 12 or Year 13, plus an optional recommender | School Report and letter |
| Brown | Two; for a BS or the PLME medical programme, one teaches maths or science | School Report and letter |
Counselor recommendation letter: who writes it at a French lycée
Universities have planned for schools without a counselor. Stanford accepts the principal or a teacher, Harvard "another school leader", Brown another school official. It is up to the school to designate the person, and up to the family to raise the question at the start of the final year: in a school that has never filled in a School Report, it takes time to understand what is expected.
Teacher recommendation letter: choosing and preparing the teachers
The best letters come from teachers who taught the student in the last two years, in a subject related to what they want to study, and who can tell precise things: a question asked in class, a piece of work that went beyond what was expected, a progression. A French teacher readily writes a report-card comment; an American letter asks for the opposite, examples and a comparative judgement, "one of the best students I have taught in fifteen years".
The request is made in the spring of première or in September of terminale, never in November. It comes with a document that helps the teacher: the list of universities and deadlines, what the student wants to study, the moments of the year they remember, and an explanation of what an American letter is.
Language: translating a letter written in French
A teacher may write in French, provided an English translation accompanies the letter. Harvard states that a professional translator is not needed: an English teacher will do, with their name, their relationship to the student and the original attached. Stanford also asks for the original to be attached and for the translation not to be done by the student; Yale asks for a certified translation, never done by the student. The common rule: the student does not translate their own letters.
UCAS recommendation: a single reference
In the UK, the system is simpler: a single reference, written in English by the school, directly online, without which the application cannot be sent. It has at most 4,000 characters in three parts: a general description of the school, any particular circumstances with the student's consent, and what the school knows of the student that is relevant to the course. It accompanies the predicted baccalauréat grades, which the school must also provide.
2026-2027 rules. Requirements published by MIT, Harvard, Yale, Stanford and Brown for 2026-2027 applications; UCAS reference format in force for 2027 entry. Deadlines fall on 15 October 2026 for Stanford's early application and for Oxford and Cambridge through UCAS, and on 1 November for most American early applications.
Organising the calendar
An American or British application from a French lycée depends as much on logistics as on substance: designating the counselor, asking for the letters, getting them translated, checking that everything goes before the deadline. For the rest of the procedure, see The Common App from a French lycée and UCAS with the French baccalauréat.
That is work we do with families at Carmine: preparing the request to teachers, explaining to the school what is expected of it, keeping the calendar until submission.