Recommender Doesn't Write English? Grad LOR Rules
A letter in another language needs an English translation, and Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford bar you from translating it. Rules and a sample brief.
Recommender Doesn't Write English? Grad LOR Rules
If your professor cannot write in English, the letter can still be in their language, but it needs an English translation, and you cannot be the translator. Harvard Kennedy School says "You, the applicant, cannot complete the translation." Stanford calls an applicant "translating" their own reference "a violation of our application terms." The recommender arranges the translation and submits both versions.
The tempting fix is to translate it yourself. That is the one thing the strictest schools ban. What you can do is make the process easy: find out each school's rule early, and give your recommender a short briefing on what a US form will ask them.
Every program page quoted below was checked on October 30, 2026.
What programs say about non-English letters
| Program | Rule, quoted | Who handles the translation |
|---|---|---|
| Harvard Kennedy School (letters FAQ, posted September 15, 2026) | "We will accept a recommendation letter in a language other than English; however, the letter must be translated into English. You, the applicant, cannot complete the translation. In such cases, both the original letter and English translation should be submitted." | Anyone except the applicant; both versions submitted |
| Harvard Griffin GSAS (letters of recommendation) | "The recommender would need to upload a copy of their original letter in the language it was written, a copy of the English translation of the letter, and verification from the professional translator certifying the translation. Translations must be literal and complete versions of the original record." | A professional translator; the recommender uploads all three files |
| University of Washington, Asian Languages & Literature (graduate FAQ, department level) | "In the case of a translated letter of recommendation, the recommender should sign the translation and submit the translation directly to the graduate school according to their instructions." | Not specified; the recommender signs and submits |
| Stanford Graduate Admissions (recommendations) | "Your recommenders must be the sole authors of your letters of recommendation. Drafting, writing, translating, or submitting your own reference, even if asked to do so by a recommender, is a violation of our application terms." | The page does not address letters in other languages; it bars you from translating |
Read the scopes: GSAS and Stanford state graduate-school-wide rules; HKS is one school's admissions blog; Washington's is one department. If your program states nothing, use the strictest version: an original, a translation you did not touch, and submission by the recommender.
More guides for international applicants are in the graduate school essays hub. Applying to a law LL.M. instead? The LL.M. recommendation translation guide covers that delivery route.
Why you cannot translate your own letter
The letter's value is that it comes from someone other than you. Washington's department FAQ puts it plainly: "the important thing is that the letter come directly from the recommender, so we know that they approve of the letter."
Berkeley's requirements page adds two facts that matter here. Applicants "may waive the right to inspect their letters of recommendation on a voluntary basis", and "The Graduate Division may verify the authenticity of academic letters of recommendation with the school or recommender." A translation you produced is a version of the letter you have read and shaped. That undoes the waiver and the reason for it.
Our view: do not translate even a "rough draft to help." Stanford's rule names translating "even if asked to do so by a recommender." The countercase: some programs publish nothing on translation. Even there, you would be guessing that silence means permission, and a recommender can get a translator without you. The international LOR ethics guide covers the related problem of being asked to draft the letter itself.
What a US letter contains that many systems omit
Stanford's recommender form shows what a US reader compares. Each recommender answers:
- "Please identify the most selective group to which you are comparing the applicant" (undergraduate, master's, doctoral or other)
- "How many years have you evaluated people in this group?"
- "Approximately how many people are in this group, totaled over those years?"
- "In overall ability (as appropriate to graduate studies) this candidate is among the:" Top 1–2%, Top 5%, Top 10%, Top 25%, second, third or bottom quarter, or no basis for judgment
- An overall recommendation, from "Strongly recommended" to "NOT recommended"
The letter prompt asks the recommender to "write candidly about the applicant's qualifications, potential to carry on advanced study in the field specified, intellectual independence, capability for analytical thinking, ability to organize and express ideas clearly, and potential for teaching." Stanford notes "The exact prompt displayed to the recommender may differ depending on the graduate program you select."
A professor used to a short certificate-style reference may not expect a comparison group, a rank or specific episodes. The European vs American recommendation letters guide explains how the two styles get misread. Your job is to tell the recommender what will be asked, in their language if needed, and then step back.
Logistics: email, upload, timing
- The link goes to the recommender. At Stanford, "the application system sends a personalized link to that individual to submit the recommendation online." At GSAS, the recommender uploads the original, the translation and the translator's certification. Make sure the recommender knows there may be three files, not one.
- The email address. Use an institutional address if your recommender has one; the LOR email domain and letterhead guide covers what programs say.
- The deadline includes the translation. HKS says the "completed application, including all supporting materials, must be received no later than Tuesday, December 1, 2026 at 12 p.m. (noon) ET." Our recommendation: ask a recommender who needs a translator at least six weeks before the earliest deadline, because the translator's time comes on top of the writing time.
- Your legal name. Give the recommender your name exactly as on your passport, so the letter matches your file. See the name mismatch guide.
- Who pays the translator. None of the four pages says. Ask the recommender how they want to handle it, and do not choose or brief the translator yourself on the letter's content.
Constructed briefing sheet
Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant document. Context (invented): Kim Ji-woo asks Professor Park, who writes in Korean, for a letter to a US MS program. You can give this sheet in English and in your own language. It lists facts and asks; it does not draft any part of the letter.
Briefing for Professor Park: letter for Kim Ji-woo
Legal name (passport): KIM JI-WOO
Programs: MS in Environmental Engineering at [three programs]. Earliest deadline: December 1, 2026.
How you will receive the request: an email from each school with a personal upload link.
What the US form asks you (Stanford example): the group you compare me with, how many years and how many students; my rank (Top 1–2%, 5%, 10%, 25%, or lower); an overall recommendation level.
What the letter is asked to cover: my ability, independence, analytical thinking, how clearly I express ideas, and potential for teaching. Specific events help more than general praise.
Facts you may want to check, from my records: your courses I took (Water Chemistry, 2024, A; Hydrology Lab, 2025, A+); my capstone in your lab (Sept 2025 to June 2026).
Language: you may write in Korean. The programs then need an English translation that I am not allowed to prepare. At some schools you upload the original, the translation and the translator's certificate yourself.
I will not see or edit the letter. I have waived my right to read it where the form allows.
That sheet is 189 words. It gives the professor what a US form asks and the facts they may want to verify. It never suggests wording, praise or a rank.
Questions about recommenders who do not write in English
Can my recommender write the letter in Chinese or Korean?
At HKS and Harvard GSAS, yes, with an English translation submitted alongside. Washington's Asian Languages department accepts a translated letter signed by the recommender. Check each program; if it states nothing, use the strictest rule above.
Who can translate a recommendation letter for grad school?
HKS and Stanford say only that it cannot be you. Harvard GSAS asks for a professional translator who certifies the translation. Washington's Asian Languages department asks the recommender to sign the translation.
Can I translate it if my professor asks me to?
Not at Stanford: its rule covers translating "even if asked to do so by a recommender." HKS also says the applicant cannot translate.
Should I just choose a recommender who writes English?
Our view: choose the person who knows your work best. A detailed translated letter can do more than a vague English one from someone who barely knows you. The countercase: if two recommenders know your work equally well, the one who writes in English saves a translation step and time. Your recommender's ranking answers do the calibration your SOP cannot; see how to explain strict grading or an unknown university in one sentence.
Translation rules apply to your own essays too; the translated SOP guide quotes Harvard Kennedy School's bar on AI translation.
Get a free review of your recommendation letter
Get a free Quick Review of your recommendation letter against GradPilot's international academic recommendation letter rubric, which reads how the writer knows the candidate, specific incidents instead of adjectives, and a comparison that travels across systems. Recommenders writing for US MS or PhD programs can also use the graduate school recommendation letter rubric. The review is for the recommender's own letter, and the recommendation letter review page explains it. GradPilot's letter reviews aren't for a letter you drafted for a recommender to submit as their own.
Sources
Retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Harvard Kennedy School, Application FAQs: Letters of recommendation (posted September 15, 2026): non-English letters, applicant cannot translate, December 1, 2026 deadline.
- Harvard Griffin GSAS, Letters of Recommendation (no cycle stated): original, translation and translator certification uploaded by recommender.
- University of Washington, Department of Asian Languages & Literature, Graduate Admissions FAQ (no year stated): signed translation submitted by recommender.
- Stanford Graduate Admissions, Recommendations (no cycle stated): recommender form fields, letter prompt, sole-author and no-translating rule.
- UC Berkeley Graduate Division, Requirements: voluntary waiver of right to inspect; authenticity verification.
Does your letter show what you observed?
Recommenders: check your letter for firsthand examples, fair comparisons and a clear endorsement.