LOR - Too early to request? Forum

[Darmody]

I want to have one LOR from my employer but I am currently only a sophomore. Since I won't be applying to law school till fall of 2014, and I will most likely end work this summer (2013), would it still be wise to ask for the LOR the following summer (2014)? Or should I ask before I end work while I am still fresh in my employer's memory? Or not ask at all and find a new candidate for a LOR?

[PRgradBYU]

It's relatively early to be worrying about stuff like that. If you end up leaving your job this summer, just stay in contact with your boss so he or she will remember you and still be able to write a killer LOR later on. The content of your LORs is more important than the recommenders themselves; whatever you do, build a relationship with your recommender--whether that be this employer or a future employer--to the point where they won't hesitate to sing your praises in an honest, well-written LOR.

[TripTrip]

I want to have one LOR from my employer

Why? Unless your professors all hate you, don't use your employer. LORs from employers are for people who have been out of school for ten years. Law schools want LORs from people who have overseen you academically.

Make friends with a prof instead.

[Darmody]

I want to have one LOR from my employer

Why? Unless your professors all hate you, don't use your employer. LORs from employers are for people who have been out of school for ten years. Law schools want LORs from people who have overseen you academically.

Make friends with a prof instead.

I will have LOR from professors too, but I feel I have made a strong relationship and believe my employer will speak very highly of me and write a solid LOR. Should LORs be from professors or would having one from work and 1-2 from school be good too?

[TripTrip]

I want to have one LOR from my employer

Why? Unless your professors all hate you, don't use your employer. LORs from employers are for people who have been out of school for ten years. Law schools want LORs from people who have overseen you academically.

Make friends with a prof instead.

I will have LOR from professors too, but I feel I have made a strong relationship and believe my employer will speak very highly of me and write a solid LOR. Should LORs be from professors or would having one from work and 1-2 from school be good too?

Get at least two professors. If you're applying out of undergrad and can only get one professor, schools are going to wonder why you could only get one.

I'd recommend reading some of the information put out by the law schools on letters of recommendation though. Some of them say letters from employers are strongly discouraged.

[Darmody]

It's relatively early to be worrying about stuff like that. If you end up leaving your job this summer, just stay in contact with your boss so he or she will remember you and still be able to write a killer LOR later on. The content of your LORs is more important than the recommenders themselves; whatever you do, build a relationship with your recommender--whether that be this employer or a future employer--to the point where they won't hesitate to sing your praises in an honest, well-written LOR.

I will keep this in mind and will stay in contact with my employer. Depending on whether I feel I can get better LORs from future employers/professors, I will keep this as a backup I guess.

[Darmody]

@TripTrip: Thanks. I will look more specifically into the law schools I intend on applying and see what they recommend.

[redline380]

@TripTrip: Thanks. I will look more specifically into the law schools I intend on applying and see what they recommend.

they recommend an LOR from a professor, not your pot-smoking manager at subway. as stated, unless you've been out of undergrad for some time, which you haven't, get an LOR from a professor. law schools want students who will perform academically at their school. your boss saying you're an awesome "sandwhich artist", or you show up on time, or you are great to hang out with will not earn brownie points with admissions committees. a professor saying you pay attention in class, learn the material well, and perform well in class making you a good candidate for law school will catch the eye of admissions committees.

as for finding professors to write LOR's, do what I did. I buddied up to one prof. hell, i even ate dinner at her house. i knew i would have no problem getting a solid character LOR from her. the other LOR i have on file is from a professor that loved me in her classes. i paid attention, asked questions, and performed well in all her classes. i think it also helped that she was my international relations teacher that taught a couple of undergrad law courses. from her, i was counting on a solid LOR that displayed my academic ability.

edit- i'd like to add to this that how you interact with your professors is huge to getting a gainful LOR from them. besides the other two prof's i listed, i had another poli sci prof that disliked me with a passion. we were at completely opposite ends of the political spectrum everyday in class. in fact, he even called my idea's about obama's healthcare overhaul being illegal "bullshit" to the entire class (everyone in the class received an apologetic email for his outburst, even though the vast majority favored his view). however, i guaran-damn-tee you i'd get one hell of an LOR from him because i had the balls to speak my mind in his class despite being increbidly outnumbered.

in short, get LOR's from prof's. And, make a name for yourself in class. don't be that quiet asian sitting up front. be the loud ass in the back with relevant questions. don't be afraid to participate. prof's will love you for making their class more interesting and more than just regurgitating the book.