Writing a Compelling Nomination
It can be easy to think of colleagues to nominate for Dean’s Distinction, Harvard Heroes, or local recognition programs—those people who are always ready to help out, to bring people together, and to think of new ways to tackle problems. But it can feel surprisingly difficult when you start to write their nomination.
You don’t have to be an especially talented writer to craft a compelling nomination. Keep the following tips in mind when drafting your nomination and let your enthusiasm shine through. If you need help, reach out to other colleagues for their feedback or reach out to the FAS HR programs team with questions.
Sincerity
Your nomination doesn’t have to sound formal or academic. It helps to come from a place of genuine enthusiasm and appreciation for your colleague. You can even write the first draft by pretending you’re telling a friend or another colleague about the nominee’s great work.
Example: “[Nominee] is my Harvard Hero because while being a first-year student, navigating a disability, and living in the city for the first time, they were there to make the transition as enjoyable and smooth as possible.”
Specificity
This is something that can help your nomination truly stand out. Instead of vaguely referring to the nominee being a valuable part of your department or team, point out specific ways that the nominee has made a difference. How exactly did they go above and beyond? What specific projects did they work on?
Example: “Their accomplishments include a successful collaboration with HUIT to establish a loaner device program. This initiative, now permanently adopted by HUIT, equips researchers traveling abroad with loaner laptops.”
Impact
What happened as a result of the nominee’s work? Again, try to be as specific as possible. This could include quantitative results like data from program participation increases or qualitative results like statements from colleagues about how they felt as a result of the nominee’s work.
Example: “Students and post-docs from within various labs have been able to conduct cross-disciplinary research thanks to their willingness to commit time to training students and executing complex projects.”
Principles
For both Dean’s Distinction and Harvard Heroes, nominators are asked to identify how their nominee exemplifies the guiding principles or nomination and selection criteria. Make sure to work these principles or criteria into your nomination, typing your specific examples into how they demonstrated these qualities.
Example: “The team exemplifies ‘collaborating with the University’s best interest in mission in mind.’ In this shared support framework, individuals with existing expertise supporting fieldwork had their existing portfolios expanded to include faculty doing this form of research.”