The Beginner's Guide to Brag Sheets - Templates & Examples

How to Use Brag Sheets for Letters of Recommendation

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Writing a brag document for a letter of recommendation is an excellent first step in the process. Most colleges request recommendation letters from teachers who've taught you in junior or senior year core subjects and your school counselor or official. 

Schools may permit extra letters from recommenders such as your boss, a supervisor at an organization you volunteer with, coaches, or anyone else you can speak about your character. 

Getting into college can be competitive, especially if you have your heart set on attending one of the nation's best schools. When you're up against students with similar GPAs and test scores, qualitative application elements like supplemental essays and recommendation letters are crucial to help you stand out. 

That's where your brag sheet comes in. If you need a letter of recommendation, a brag document can help recommenders produce detailed accounts of why you're an excellent college candidate. They provide them the insight they need on your: 

• Character
• Personality
• Values
• Accomplishments
• Future plans

Depending on how many students attend your high school, your teachers may be teaching hundreds of students every semester. Even if you and your teachers had a closer relationship, they can't remember every detail about you. We're sure they'd appreciate a refresher.

Writing a brag document for recommendation letters means you don't have to worry about a generic account, and it makes your recommenders' lives easier. You can include details that your recommenders may not have known about and provide good adjectives on your brag sheet for them to use in their letter. 

More detail and evidence always make for a better recommendation!

Remember, though, that brag sheets are not resumes. If you’re writing a letter to a college admissions office or filling out your application, don’t include your brag sheet! It’s just for your recommender to see. 

How to Write a Brag Sheet 

Remember, the purpose of your senior brag sheet is to give your recommender a refresher on you, your achievements, and your plans. However, it's best to start at ground zero. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create your brag packet. 

Step 1: Basic Information 

This may seem obvious, but the first things to include on your sheet are: 

• Your name
• Your contact information
• The school you attend & your grade

Although your recommender may know this information already, you should include it anyway. This way, you can avoid errors in your recommendation letters, like your recommender spelling your name incorrectly or stating that you’re in the wrong grade.

Step 2: Academic Accomplishments

Your academic achievements, like your GPA and test scores, are arguably the most important aspect of your college application, so you need to make sure they’re highlighted early on. In this section of your sheet, you can list the following: 

• Your current GPA 
• Your class rank (if you know it) 
• Standardized test scores from the PSAT, SAT, ACT, AP, IB, or dual enrolment exams
• Any academic awards or honors you've received

Step 3: Extracurriculars

Now, you can broaden your horizons to all the other things you’ve been involved in. 

Extracurricular activities demonstrate your passions and interests, as well as your willingness to commit and take on different responsibilities. These are great qualities for your reference to highlight in your recommendation letter, as they’ll help you get into clubs in college. 

Here is what you can list in this section: 

• All of your extracurricular activities with your position, when you participated in them, and the time commitment
• Any school clubs or out-of-school clubs you participate in 
• Leadership experiences
• Sports involvement
• Previous or current employment status

Step 4: Additional Information

Now that you’ve included the most important information on your sheet, you can add supplemental information if you still have room. This could be any information that will help your reference write a strong letter for you, including: 

• Your top school choices 
• Potential majors or minors you're interested in
• Your career goals or possible career directions (not every high school senior needs to know precisely what they want to do for work)

You may also want to put in some ways you would describe yourself: 

• What are your greatest strengths? 
• How would you describe yourself in three words or less? 
• Did you face any obstacles during your high school career? If so, how did you rise to the occasion? 
• Is there anything else you want your recommender to know about you before they start writing? 

Remember, you want to give your recommender everything they need to write a comprehensive letter without overwhelming them with a 10-page essay. Keep things detailed but concise. 

Step 5: Tips, Tricks, and Considerations

Putting aside your humility and listing all the wonderful things about you can be both uncomfortable and liberating. Here are some extra tips! 

Considering Talking to Your Recommenders in Person First 

You might want to let your recommender know that you'll be asking them for a letter shortly. There's nothing wrong with giving recommenders a heads-up. 

If you don't talk to them before, you might want to tell them why you chose them as a recommender in person in advance. Choosing recommenders is essential: the people who will provide you with the best letters aren't necessarily the most popular teachers in the school. 

Think about why their perspective would be valuable: 

• Have they taught you science courses since the 9th grade? 
• Do you participate in a club that they run? 
• Have they watched you overcome an obstacle and come out victorious? 
• Did you once struggle in their course? Did you take steps to improve your academic performance?

These are just some examples to get you thinking. Consider the depth of your relationship and how they can speak about your character before asking the first people that come to mind. 

Brainstorm Before You Start Writing

It can be tempting to dive right in and start writing down everything about you that makes you unique. However, you might want to slow down, take a breath, and brainstorm and organize your thoughts. 

Creating an outline is important because it ensures you mention everything you want your recommender to know while cutting through the information they might not need. Beyond the basics outlined above, jot down new ideas with bullet points underneath each category. 

Above is all the information that you should put on your sheet. Write down each category that isn't basic information, and write bullet points underneath that relate to it. 

Keep It Organized

If your high school doesn't have a template, you can use one from the Internet or create your own! Whatever you decide to do, ensure your version is organized. Consider how professional resumes are structured: they're easy to read and have a logical flow. 

Do the same with your sheet. While it definitely won't look much like a resume, keep relevant themes together for better readability. 

Be Succinct: You Don't Need Pages and Pages 

On the topic of borrowing resume elements, your sheet doesn't need to be a hefty document. While you might be tempted to give as much detail as possible, your recommender probably wouldn't appreciate a 20-page essay about your life. 

Try to keep your writing tight wherever possible. Ideally, your sheet shouldn't be more than two pages unless your school's template asks for more.

Show, Don't Tell 

“Show, don't tell” means including little details to make your experiences pop. For example: “I believe my ability to lead is one of my greatest strengths. This year I helped my club with events.” 

This doesn't really tell your recommender what you did to help or the results. If you claim that you're an excellent leader, you want to back it up with more information. Instead, this example would be more effective: 

“My ability to lead is one of my greatest strengths. For example, I organized the charity ball for the Sports Club this year. I organized the raffle, delegated tasks, and decorated the space. Because of our collective effort, we raised X dollars for X charity.” 

Providing a little more detail helps back up your claims and give your recommender more concrete examples to write about in your recommendation letter!

Be Honest 

Being honest may be the best advice we can give you. You never want to lie about anything you've done or fudge any details. There are a few reasons why not: 

• Your recommender and admissions committees may sense your insincerity.
• Lying, overall, is never in your best interest in the college application process.
• Every detail you mention doesn't have to be earth-shattering: the “mundane” details of your life are just as important, so there's no need to exaggerate.
• Anything in your recommendation letters can be fair game to talk about in your college interview, so you wouldn't want to be caught off guard.

Your honest self is always your best self. You don't need to pretend to be anyone else in your college application. Authenticity is always the way to go.

Consider Your Application Narrative

Although you don't want to skip details your recommender may need, you should consider tailoring your writing to reflect your applicant persona. Your college persona shapes your narratives and application elements, acting as the common thread between your materials. 

If you're wondering what to include in a brag document, consider the theme of your essays and emphasize elements of your sheet to back it up without repeating anything. Figuring out your unique angle can be challenging, but an admissions consultant can help you identify what makes your profile so strong. 

Organize Content in Categories By Importance or Relevance

When you fill out your information underneath your specific categories or questions, ordering them helps your reader get to the most critical content quicker. You'll want to put anything most essential or relevant to you at the top of each category. 

Think about how you list activities in the Common Application, Coalition App, or other college applications: your format should place the most important information at the top of each category. 

You Don't Need to Come Off Perfect 

You may feel that everything needs to be perfect. That isn't true: briefly recounting when you faced an obstacle or “failed” can help. It shows perseverance if you can describe the obstacle and how you moved forward. 

Colleges aren't focused on students who have never done anything wrong or made any mistakes. Admissions committees want to see students who take charge and better themselves, adapt their views, or learn skills to move past unsavory situations. 

For example, if your GPA was much lower than you expected at the end of sophomore year, briefly explain why you think it was low and what you did to raise it in your junior and senior years. Showing growth is essential! 

Make It Accessible 

When we say accessible, we mean easy for your recommender to read and access. As such, we suggest not handwriting your sheet. Type it whenever possible: this way, you can email a copy to your recommenders and provide them with hard copies. It makes it easier for them to keep your information on hand.

Edit and Review 

Before you hand out your sheets, ensure you edit and review everything. Edit for concision so everything is clear and there's nothing that would confuse your reader. You want it to look polished and professional. 

Remember, taking care of small elements shows your professionalism and attention to detail, making it easier for your recommender.