This section describes materials that are submitted by your high school teachers through the Common Application website.
The school counselor is the teacher who submits documents like the transcript and the school report . In most schools, this role is filled by the Dean of Studies, or the Careers & Guidance Counselor.
High School Transcript ¶
The school counselor uploads your transcript.
The transcript contains all of your term grades since form 1, and your GPA on the 4.0 scale, e.g., sample transcript :
Please note that the transcript should:
- Be prepared on a school letterhead
- Bear the official school stamp
- Signed by an authority, e.g., the Principal, or the Dean, etc.
School Report ¶
The school counselor uploads the school report. The report answers questions like:
- How many students graduated with you?
- How many of your classmates end up attending university?
- Does the school offer advanced classes? How many can a student take?
- What was your rank (e.g., top 5%) in the graduating class?
- Does the school report GPA? What was your GPA? What was the highest GPA in the graduating class?
- In comparison to your graduating class, how demanding was your coursework?
- In comparison to your graduating class, how impressive are your extracurriculars?
- In comparison to your graduating class, how do they rate your personal qualities and character?
- Have you already taken the leaving exams (e.g., KCSE)? If so, attach an official copy of the results.
Teacher Recommendations ¶
Teacher recommendations give the college an unfiltered view about you from a third party. They reveal aspects about you that your test scores and application essays may not convey. For this reason, they should be taken really seriously. A majority of colleges will require two to three letters of recommendation from different people, mostly teachers and counselors. A few tips on getting good recommendation letters:
Start early, e.g., in June/July. In August, your teachers may be away on holiday. After September, they may be busy with national exams. Come November/December, they may be away on holiday.
Get recommenders' emails (preferably Gmail) and invite them to Common App early enough. You might have to show some teachers how to navigate Common App, especially if they are doing it for the first time.
Choose a teacher who has known you closely during your last two years of high school. Such teachers can write better letters of recommendation for you since they still remember you. Most schools prefer that you have one Science/Math teacher and a Humanities/Languages teacher.
Teachers who you worked with outside class are solid recommenders. Colleges want to know your character outside of school work. Are you passionate about anything? How are your social skills? These are things such recommenders could shed some light on.
Make an appointment with potential recommenders and discuss what you’d like highlighted in your recommendation letter. Remind them of things that interested you in class. Talk about your accomplishments. Highlight your extracurricular interests. Reflect on challenges you encountered and how you overcame them. Discuss your future plans. This will enable the recommender to refer to specific examples.
The Teacher Recommendations Kit has 3 sample letters of recommendation. Show these samples to your teachers. Letters written for US college applications need to be very detailed and personalized.
Waive your right to view the recommendation letters. Allow your teachers to upload their recommendation letters confidentially.
Throughout the process, keep reminding them about the deadline. Find out if they have run into any roadblocks. Eagerly offer your assistance, e.g.,
- Running errands like printing and scanning documents
- Troubleshooting their Common App account
- Answering their questions about the application process
Don’t forget to thank them after the submissions. When college decisions are announced, let them know how it went. They are proud of you :-)
Uploading of Documents (Advice for your Recommenders) ¶
Open a Common App Recommender Account, preferably using a Gmail account.
Fill in information about the student and your relation to them. If you’re a school counselor, please complete the school profile as well.
Type the letter of recommendation. Print the letter on paper bearing the school’s letterhead, stamp and sign the letter.
Scan the letters/transcript & send it to your email.
Aim for readable Black & White PDF scans. The Common App will not allow you to upload large files.
Each document should be scanned as an independent PDF. For example, do not combine the transcript with the KCSE result slip. If a document has two pages, both pages should be in the same PDF.
Upload the scanned PDF(s) in your Common App account. Submit your recommendation. Confirm with the student that they also see that you submitted the recommendation from their Common App. We advise students to waive the ability to view the actual letter.
Note that the school report contains information that is specific to your high school. This helps US universities understand what you achieved in light of what you had available.