When/Who to ask for letters of rec?

jwilkers

I am planning on sending out requests for letters of rec on August 1st. I want to apply for the Fall 2019 cycle. If all goes as planned I am looking to hit the submit button on my apps when my September scores return in late September. Is this enough time for my writers to furnish their letters? Also, one of the professors I only had for a semester, though I am taking her this upcoming semester and sort of knew her prior through a student organization. We hit it off well and I did good in the class. Would it be appropriate to ask her for a letter?

ElleWoods77

I would ask right away . You will find although people will agree to write you a letter , it may take some people a while and you don’t want to delay sending your apps waiting for letters. I got amazing letters , but had to really stay on my recommenders to write them. I am still waiting on one lol. Especially with professors , you want to give them as much notice as possible. Life happens and people get busy, especially during the school year.

AlexRexeger

? I have been especially terrible about this. I haven’t asked anyone and I have no idea what professor to ask since I’ve been out of school for 4 years now.

Leah M B

Definitely ask ASAP. It sounds like that’s a perfect professor to ask. I’d highly recommend adding on the 7sage admissions course. It’s only $10 and there’s a really helpful section on LORs.

@AlexRexeger It’s definitely harder to get academic letters when you’ve been out a while. If there’s any professor or even TA that you think could write you a letter, that would be helpful. But professional LORs are ok if you’ve been out of school a while. Letters from your direct supervisors are preferred, someone who knows your work well, especially anything related to law, writing, research, etc. I’d also again recommend the 7sage admissions course. For only $10, it’s a really good walk through of the whole process and how to approach it.

samantha.ashley92

You can definitely ask her for a LOR. You want someone who can speak to your drive, willingness to learn, and ability to engage/participate in the classroom. If you're applying to T14 schools, it's especially important that you get two academic LORs if you can.

jwilkers

Thanks everyone! I sent out the email this morning and she joyfully accepted my request.