Employer vs Professor LOR Forum

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JDeterminedF

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Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by JDeterminedF » Sun Jun 27, 2010 3:38 pm

Hey. I'm kinda new to this forum and I'm not certain if this has been posted already, but which would be better for an LOR? I've been at my current job for almost 2 years and my previous job i was at for about 2 years and left on good terms. Even with all of this, would an academic LOR stil be the best route?

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Bildungsroman

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by Bildungsroman » Sun Jun 27, 2010 3:41 pm

Get at least two academic LORs. An employer LOR, as long as they can sing your praises and how smart you are and how hard of a worker etc. is a good addition, but you should always, when possible, have 2 academic LORs (usually professors) as a minimum.

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JDeterminedF

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by JDeterminedF » Sun Jun 27, 2010 5:24 pm

thanks for the info..

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kalvano

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by kalvano » Sun Jun 27, 2010 5:58 pm

Get both.

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angiej

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by angiej » Sun Jun 27, 2010 9:26 pm

Bildungsroman wrote:Get at least two academic LORs. An employer LOR, as long as they can sing your praises and how smart you are and how hard of a worker etc. is a good addition, but you should always, when possible, have 2 academic LORs (usually professors) as a minimum.
+1. In fact I asked the same question to an admissions counselor at one of the law schools I'm applying to and they specifically told me that if I have strong work experience they want a LOR from someone who can attest to my work ethic and professional skills.

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hsprophet

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by hsprophet » Mon Jun 28, 2010 11:52 am

How long have you been out of school? The longer you are out, the less schools care about academic letters (generally). Some say they are a must, while others say employer ones will be fine.

I've been out of school 6 years and did not have an academic letter.

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JDeterminedF

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by JDeterminedF » Mon Jun 28, 2010 12:11 pm

Thanks for the assistance all...
hsprophet wrote:How long have you been out of school? The longer you are out, the less schools care about academic letters (generally). Some say they are a must, while others say employer ones will be fine.

I've been out of school 6 years and did not have an academic letter.
I'm in school full time right now, but I also work and have volunteered. Looks like the consensus is an academic is always the way to go, but a good employer LOR wont hurt in addition.

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kalvano

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by kalvano » Mon Jun 28, 2010 12:14 pm

If you're in school right now, then an academic LOR is an absolute requirement.

The only time professional LOR's are an acceptable substitute is if you have been out of school for some time.

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Fred_McGriff

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by Fred_McGriff » Mon Jun 28, 2010 12:58 pm

I've been out for 2 years, and I think I'm going with 1 academic, and one professional, considering going with 2 academic.

lsatextreme

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Re: Employer vs Professor LOR

Post by lsatextreme » Mon Jun 28, 2010 1:12 pm

I'd even err on the side of securing at least one academic LOR unless you're a nontraditional applicant having worked for a hefty number of years and it's pretty difficult to secure one so far out from having last attended college.

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