Academic Letters of Recommendation-Veteran Forum

[KC3542]

UGPA: 3.85/ LSAC: 3.83 (one retake of a course, 1 credit hour, I had a "C" and an "A".) Normal state school, Economics Major
LSAT: Not taken. Should hit 165, hopefully 170 (hopefully)

I apologize if this has been addressed before and my question is a bit premature as I have not taken the LSAT- intend to take in February 2017. My diagnostic was a 159 and I will be able to study a good deal from Thanksgiving to the February test (that is all I will be doing over the three weeks of block leave and will dedicate all my weekends to this). I am currently on active duty and will be applying in the Fall 2017 admissions cycle. I am trying to anticipate potential shortcomings in my application and address those as early as possible. I am pretty confident that I can count on a strong letter of recommendation from my CO, but I have no contact with any of my professors from undergrad and it is likely that my face and name have been completely forgotten by all of them. I am sure I am not alone in this regard and am seeking advice from anyone who has dealt with this situation before specifically veterans.

1. If I had a strong letter of recommendation from my CO, but a general letter from a college professor, how much does this hurt admittance chances assuming my UGPA and LSAT are hitting a school's medians with specific emphasis on T10 schools.

2. How would you guy's recommend that I tackle letters of recommendation ? I could also get a strong letter of recommendation from a practicing attorney that volunteered his time coaching mock trial at my undergrad, but I don't know if this serves as a good replacement for a letter of recommendation from a professor. Lastly, I could start reaching out to my old professors when I get back to the states, but I live in a different state and really I would only be able to update them on what I am doing since I graduated or provide them documentation that I did well in their class (not that personal relationship that cites specific examples.)

Thanks and any advice is appreciated.

[cavalier1138]

Adcomms care about two things on an LOR:

How the writer knows you.
How well the writer knows you.

Regarding the former, an academic source is always better if you can get one. I would try reaching out to professors, because you may be surprised. Some of them have pretty decent memories.

That said, the second question is equally important, and a specific letter trumps a general one. So if you absolutely can't get a professor, then get someone who works/worked with you in a non-military context. If that's the mock trial coach (I don't recommend that), so be it. But the fact that they are a practicing attorney won't mean anything if they can't write about your specific qualities.

But this is all putting the cart before the horse. An LOR will not fix a weak LSAT, which is the only thing you should be focusing on right now.

[pleasesendhelp]

I believe some schools accept up to 3, so submit all 3 when applicable. Some people say it's vital to have 2 academic LOR's, but I'd say at least one is important. Your GPA is great though, so if you score well on your LSAT (170+) and your LOR's don't basically paint you as a piece of garbage, you'll get into most if not all of the T14 with a good chance at scholarship offers. Good luck on your test!