Application time is in full swing, and all of us - your parents, teachers and counselors, and most of all, you - are probably feeling a bit harried. When you're worried about exams, grades, applications, essays, and Christmas shopping, it is easy to put things off until the last minute, and to forget about the impact on others.

You may forget that teachers, for example, who write your recommendations in their "spare" time, while teaching, correcting papers, writing exams, and preparing for class, are even more pressed for time than you are.

Most of the time, they are happy to write those letters, because they are excited about your future plans and want to do whatever they can to facilitate your success. But they need your help to do a good job.

Try making use of the following suggestions:

- Only ask for a recommendation if it is required, or if you feel the recommendation will point out something about you not otherwise demonstrated in your file.

- Ask those teachers who know you well enough to be able to comment specifically on your work or your character (not necessarily the teachers who gave you an "A").

- Give teachers at least two weeks notice before the deadline. Writing a single recommendation may take up to an hour, and teachers may have several to do at one time.

- Don't expect - ask! Teachers not only can but probably should decline if they don't know you well enough, or if they don't feel their observations will be to your advantage, or even if they're just plain overwhelmed.

- Provide a stamped, addressed envelope if the recommendations are to be mailed directly. Teachers also have the option of returning recommendations to the guidance office for processing, if they prefer.

- Find a way to say, "Thank you." Write a short note or stop by and tell teachers how you fared in your college search. Remember that they are interested. After all - that's the whole point!