As a professor, every recommendation letter I have written (or that was written for me) is never seen by the student. The letter writer is contacted directly an

As a professor, every recommendation letter I have written (or that was written for me) is never seen by the student. The letter writer is contacted directly and given a URL to upload the letter. I've read a lot of recommendation letters too. None have been bad, but you can definitely tell when the writer doesn't know the student well when all they really say is "This student received a good grade in my course." I've seen a few highly opinionated letters that openly discuss a students weaknesses, but also sing their praises regarding their strengths. Those letters felt the most genuine, plus the students were all-stars.