推薦信在西方國家是求職，求學的必備材料。
寫推薦信的人必須對被推薦者有一定的瞭解。最好有較深的資歷。如被推薦者的原單位領導，本專業的專家等，名聲越大越好。
推薦信大體上可分爲兩種：專業推薦信（特意爲被推薦人申請某一單位的某一職務而寫的。寫信人應瞭解聘方的'要求、工作性質等有關情況以便有的方矢地推薦被薦人）。通常推薦信（即一封信可以用於不同的聘人單位，通常以“To Whom it May Concern”）爲稱呼。
推薦信要多寫優點，充分肯定成績，篇幅不宜過長，也不能三言兩語。一般包括以下三個內容：
1．說明推薦人與被薦人的關係，熟識程度等。
2．概述被薦人的品質、能力、性格等。
3．建議招聘人錄用。
推薦信上應提供推薦人的工作單位、地址、電話等以便對方聯繫，簽名後必須注意職稱或學銜。
除了請別人推薦，也可以自薦，其格式與上述要求相同。
出國留學，準備申請材料是一件頗費心思的事情。申請大學時，一封很棒的英文推薦信，絕對能給你帶來絕處逢生的機會。對於如何得到成功的英文推薦信，大家各執一詞，漫天飛的教你如何寫成功英文推薦信的書，讓人眼花繚亂；也有捉筆代刀者；然而，中西方對於推薦信的觀點也有不同，尤其是英文推薦信，不妨借鑑一下如下的英文推薦信範文，給你或多或少一點啓示。
From: x x x x
Department of the SPECIAL CLASS GIFTED for YOUTHS
University of Science and Technology
Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China
July 1, 1998
Dear Sir or x x x:
I take great pleasure in recommending Ren Ren, one of my favorite students, for admission into your distinguished graduate program.
Mr. Ren was admitted in 1986 at 14 years of age into the SPECIAL CLASS for the GIFTED YOUTHS, my university 's unique program that caters to the intellectual needs of unusually talented Chinese youngsters. It was a rare privilege he earned with his nearly impeccable完美的 academic performance through the years of his elementary and secondary school.
He impressed me almost as he entered into my university, a major cradle of China' s scientific and technological talents. At the time, members of the Gifted Class all had to spend half a month studying by themselves the principles of calculus and then take an exam so that we could evaluate their self-study capability. Mr. Ren scored the highest grade in that exam. He also exhibited a keenly whetted mind during class discussions. To my regret at the time, his English was not as good as his mathematics or physics. But I noticed he made a point of working especially hard in improving his English during his five undergraduate years with us. By now, he seems to be at least as proficient in English as most of his former classmates in the Gifted Class.
In my experience with Mr. Ren, I was impressed with not only his extraordinary intelligence but also his ambitions and persistence. I am sure that Mr. Ren will be an outstanding student in any doctoral program that he may care to enroll in. So I would like to support him firmly in his quest recommendation into account when
considering his application. I would greatly appreciate it you decide to accept him as he wishes.
Yours sincerely
x x x x
Professor and Deputy Head