Stanford Targeted LORs Forum

[180degrees]

I have heard and read conflicting things about SLS preferring a targeted LOR. Some people swear that if you don't have them, you're not going to get in, but others have reported not having them and still having been admitted.

I just checked Stanford's admissions website and they state, "Stanford requires that at least two and no more than four letters of recommendation be sent directly through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service. Letters sent directly to the Office of Admissions will not be accepted. Please be aware of the high value Stanford places on school-specific letters of recommendation. If you choose to provide us with a targeted letter, please be sure to assign the appropriate targeted letter to Stanford Law School. Recommenders should be instructors who have personal knowledge of your academic work, preferably those who have known you in a seminar, small class, tutorial program or the like. If you have been out of school for a significant period you may substitute one letter from an employer or business associate. Sometimes these applicants find it difficult to obtain even one academic recommendation; in that case, you may submit two nonacademic letters. Please advise recommenders that should you choose to apply for a joint degree and/or other programs at Stanford University, the letters of recommendation may be forwarded to that program for review."

I have not yet made requests to my recommenders to create targeted letters for Stanford, but I already have two recommendation letters on file. My concern is that if neither of my recommenders has a strong connection to SLS, then their targeted letters may sound insincere. However, I don't want to hurt my chances simply because I didn't request these professors make a targeted letter for Stanford. Making the additional requests to my recommenders would likely delay my SLS app by several weeks. One of my recommenders received her PhD from Stanford, but she has no ties to the law school.

Any input is welcome. I'm curious to hear how others are handling this, as Stanford seems to be the only top school that explicitly states a preference for targeted letters.

Also, for context, my GPA is between their 50th and 75th percentiles, and my LSAT is above their 75th percentile.

[jennie]

I have the same question. Also, technically, how do the recommender send a targeted letter apart from the general letter?