Research On The Influence Of Recommendation Letter System On The Enrollment Of Doctoral Candidates In China

The recommendation letter system,as a recommendation mechanism for applicants,provides a way to observe students from a multi-dimensional perspective and conduct a comprehensive evaluation.It should also be an important part of the admission process for doctoral students,but the recommendation letter system is currently It seems that it has not been able to play a substantive role in China,so studying the implementation of this system in China will have important practical significance.This study first sorted out the relevant provisions of the recommendation letter section of the 2020 doctoral admission documents of 41 world-class university construction universities(except Shanghai Jiaotong University),and found that the content mainly concentrated on the recommendation person,the recommendation letter content,and the recommendation letter processing and Three ways of delivery.After that,an in-depth interview was conducted with 33 interviewees of a certain H university,and then the degree of importance of the recommendation letter system in the admission process of doctoral students was explored by various actors,and further elaborated which factors restrict the substantive role of the recommendation letter..The study found that although applicants attach great importance to the role of recommendation letters,as the group with the fewest resources in their hands,they have less influence on the role of recommendation letters,and recommenders,reviewers and evaluators are important in the process of resource exchange.On the one hand,the recommendation letter system did not attract the attention of the three,mainly reflected in: the main body of the recommendation letter is unknown,the exaggeration of the recommendation content and the opacity of the mailing method affect the authenticity of the recommendation letter;the review of the recommendation letter is in a heavy form The status of the evaluation is light;the characteristics of the recommendation letter vary from person to person during use.The above three factors all have an important impact on the recommendation letter system in the admission process of doctoral students,which has affected its substantive role.The shallow reason for the "suspension" phenomenon of the recommendation letter system is that the recommendation letter system does not attract enough attention from all parties,but the deeper reason is still rooted in the system level,mainly from the application of recommendation letters,writing,Links such as mailing and review point out the lack of recommendation letter at the system design level.On the basis of the above conclusions,the reasons for the difference between the recommendation letter system between China and the West are discussed,mainly due to: individual rational choices;institutional conflict and institutional transformation;the difference between acquaintance society and stranger society;trust model and society The atmosphere of integrity is different.Finally,through reflection on the essence of the recommendation letter,it leads to the question of the existence or abolition of the system,and proposes to strengthen the system innovation and optimize the process of using the recommendation letter;attach importance to personal credibility and accelerate the construction of the academic community;establish a feedback mechanism for system supply to avoid The three aspects of power abuse are constantly repairing and improving relevant system designs to fill the loopholes in the system.