LOR from a master's student?

[thereservoirdog]

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I was wondering if it would be a good idea to ask my biology lab instructor for a letter of recommendation. He's a master's student, but I was in his lab two semesters and he knows me really well . Do vet schools only want academic LORs from professors?

 

[david594]

I wouldn't. Generally they all want DVM, professor, or employer. For each there is more of a formal relation, teacher-student or employer-employee, mentor-mentee.

Lab instructor is too informal and is someone essentially your same age.

 

[VAgirl]

I would also vote no on that, adding that one of the things that I assume to be most important about a letter of recommendation is that the person is supposed to be someone whose opinion can be trusted. Not that you cannot trust someone who is young necessarily, but they haven't been in the field for years to decades. Folks who have been in a given field for a long time (or even just out in the world for a long time) often develop a sense about others and may be able to assess individuals' potential more effectively/sooner than could someone who has not worked with lots and lots of different people over many years.

I know that this statement is full of generalizations and assumptions, but I believe these are the generalizations and assumptions that adcoms would work from.

 

[Electrophile]

I wrote one LOR for a student that I TAed in grad school, but it was for a study abroad for a semester program and not something like professional school. Unless the school says so, I don't think ALL your LORs have to be from all vets or professors (I had the foster coordinator for the shelter I foster and volunteered with write me one) but it was in addition to the 2 LORs from vets and 1 LOR from my faculty adviser from grad school, not replacing one.

 

[Fairyblastt]

I would vote no as well. I would consider it if the person was a postdoc... but a master's level lab TA? Not so much. Heck, that's what I am... and if any of my students wanted me to write a LOR, I would refuse bc I would be doing them a disservice. IMO a LOR from any instructor you took only for lab (even twice), is going to be a rather weak reference anyway, so I would steer clear of that.

 

[nyanko]

For what it's worth, like Fairyblastt I am also a MS student and TA and would certainly not feel comfortable with writing a rec letter for someone, and would advise them strongly against having someone of my level write it.

 

[thereservoirdog]

thanks for the input, now the only problem is I don't know any professors very well!