Problems getting letters of rec?

[tic112]

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I'm planning on applying during this cycle, but I'm having trouble getting letters of rec (specifically, the humanities letter). Unfortunately, I go to a huge public university and I haven't been able to get to know any professors of GSI's too well. Did anyone else have this problem? What did you do?

 

[UCLAstudent]

I'm not sure what you mean by getting more than one letter from a professor ... you can't just send in several letters from the same professor! If you did well in a class but don't know the professor personally, I think it's fine to ask for a letter. Obviously, it is better if the professor knows you, but if you are applying this year, you should take what you can get at this late in the game.

 

[mandalonius]

Yea I'm having the same problem. I don't think my rec's are going to be that good even though I sometimes go to office hours and did well in the class. Hopefully it will be good enough to keep me in the running. Anyone know professors at UCLA write good rec's?

 

[Daedalus]

mandalonius, I'm at UCLA as well, and I'm having the same issue. Since I'm a philosophy major, I'm only going to be taking the basic sciences (math 3 series, ls1-4, etc), all of which are several hundred person classes. I've gotten to know a TA that I've had the entire year fairly well, so I'm going to propose having him write the LOR and having the professor co-sign it. Does anyone know if this is acceptable to adcoms?

 

[UCLAstudent]

Is it alright to bug a professor that knows you for more than one?

Use a letter of reference service... they will copy the letters for you and thus you don't need to ask a professor for more than one.

 

[bloHaZaRd]

You should definitely set up an appointment and ask them to write one for you. You'll be surprised as to how helpful some of them are. I asked my psych prof one semester after I took his class. I didn't attend most of his lectures, but did good on the exams. It was a huge class too.
We had a nice chat about a month ago, and he asked some stuff about me and me going into medicine.
He did say that since he did not know me that well, he needed something concrete about me to write a LOR.
I told him I'd give him my PS, and he thought it was a great idea.
I already made a little word doc about my academic background, ECs, research, etc. and a bit about why I want to be a an MD. I sent him that and he has already started working on my letter 🙂

I'll still give him my PS when its done so that he can finalize it.

I hope my example helps you.

 

[mandalonius]

mandalonius, I'm at UCLA as well, and I'm having the same issue. Since I'm a philosophy major, I'm only going to be taking the basic sciences (math 3 series, ls1-4, etc), all of which are several hundred person classes. I've gotten to know a TA that I've had the entire year fairly well, so I'm going to propose having him write the LOR and having the professor co-sign it. Does anyone know if this is acceptable to adcoms?

I think some professors do that since the TAs know us better but I don't know if the TA actually writes it or gives the professor pointers. I think you should talk to the professor first before contacting the TA. I think most professors are okay with the arrangement. Good luck! Let me know what happens!

 

[Medikit]

If I apply to 25 schools do they end up having to make a new letter for each one? Or can they pretty much send the same letter to every school? Should I give them stamp money?

 

[mandalonius]

If your school has a letter of rec service then the professor should write one and copies should be sent out to the various schools. But if the professor has to send it out then I suggest you provide stamps and addressed envelopes, etc. And a nice thank you card! 👍

 

[alpha]

get your school's letter service to send out the letters. if your school doesn't have one, use www.referencenow.com. it will save your referee a lot of trouble and give you the piece of mind of controlling when/where letters are sent.

 

[UCLAstudent]

It is fine if a TA writes the letter, as long as the professor signs it. As for UCLA teachers to get letters from ... I didn't know all of mine personally, but I provided them with a copy of a "resume" that I made, which included my grades, EC activities, and picture of me.

 

[Scubadoc]

get your school's letter service to send out the letters. if your school doesn't have one, use www.referencenow.com. it will save your referee a lot of trouble and give you the piece of mind of controlling when/where letters are sent.

Has anyone used this service before? How were they? Did your profs have any trouble with it?

 

[nina512]

So...is it okay to ask a LOR from a prof you didn't talk to that much but got an A in the class? Do people normally do this?

I feel awkward to ask my one prof, since I haven't really spoken to her directly and my class participation is so-so compared to some students. The only thing that makes me stand out is that I was one of the top 5 scorers on the mid-term.

What do you think?

-Nina

 

[UCLAstudent]

So...is it okay to ask a LOR from a prof you didn't talk to that much but got an A in the class? Do people normally do this?

I feel awkward to ask my one prof, since I haven't really spoken to her directly and my class participation is so-so compared to some students. The only thing that makes me stand out is that I was one of the top 5 scorers on the mid-term.

What do you think?

-Nina

Okay. I did this, and it didn't turn out so well. I e-mailed my genetics professor to get a letter, and she said she would only write it if I got an A in the class, which I did. I e-mailed her back, and told her that she would recognize me because I sat in the front row and participated. Well, I went to meet her, and the first thing she said was, "I don't recognize you at all. Did you ever go to my office hours?" I told her that I never went to them. And she replied in a really snooty tone, "Well, I'll have to indicate that in the letter." Yikes. She wrote it for me, but I am definitely not using it.

 

[mandalonius]

Okay. I did this, and it didn't turn out so well. I e-mailed my genetics professor to get a letter, and she said she would only write it if I got an A in the class, which I did. I e-mailed her back, and told her that she would recognize me because I sat in the front row and participated. Well, I went to meet her, and the first thing she said was, "I don't recognize you at all. Did you ever go to my office hours?" I told her that I never went to them. And she replied in a really snooty tone, "Well, I'll have to indicate that in the letter." Yikes. She wrote it for me, but I am definitely not using it.

Was it Johnson? I had her for two quarters of LS but never went to a single office hour ...hmmmm...she was my backup prof

 

[nina512]

Okay. I did this, and it didn't turn out so well. I e-mailed my genetics professor to get a letter, and she said she would only write it if I got an A in the class, which I did. I e-mailed her back, and told her that she would recognize me because I sat in the front row and participated. Well, I went to meet her, and the first thing she said was, "I don't recognize you at all. Did you ever go to my office hours?" I told her that I never went to them. And she replied in a really snooty tone, "Well, I'll have to indicate that in the letter." Yikes. She wrote it for me, but I am definitely not using it.

Well, I know she knows my name because she's able to hand back my exams/papers without me identifying myself...

I did go to office hours, but it was mostly with the TA
She says hi when I see her in the hall...

I guess it doesn't hurt to ask...and if she says anything "snooty" I won't include it in my packet.

Thanks
Nina

 

[UCLAstudent]

Was it Johnson? I had her for two quarters of LS but never went to a single office hour ...hmmmm...she was my backup prof

Yep, it was Johnson! Maybe she will treat you more nicely because you had her for two quarters. I had the top score in the class, but for some reason she had to "indicate" what a slacker I was for not showing up at her office hours. Lol ... it is actually kind of funny. Luckily, I have a few letters from science profs, so I don't HAVE to use her letter.

Anyway, I think that you should still ask her for a letter. If you did well in both LS3 and LS4, that speaks volumes, and she would have lots to say about how difficult the classes are, etc. Good luck! 🙂

 

[UCLAstudent]

Well, I know she knows my name because she's able to hand back my exams/papers without me identifying myself...

I did go to office hours, but it was mostly with the TA
She says hi when I see her in the hall...

I guess it doesn't hurt to ask...and if she says anything "snooty" I won't include it in my packet.

Thanks
Nina

If she says hi to you in the hall and knows your name, then she will recognize you. I say that you should go for it! 👍 The sooner, the better. Part of the reason that my professor didn't recognize me was that I asked for the letter in March, but I had finished the class in December.

 

[Medikit]

My 2nd semester biochem teacher told me she wanted to write my letter of rec and I hadn't even asked her for one. 🙂 🙂 🙂

 

[braduva]

i'm also worried about being able to get science recommendations since i have been out of school for 3 years. there is no committee letter system at my school.. is there a general rule as to how many recommendations schools request and what the breakup is between science and non-science recs.

 

[PrettyMz4Christ]

How many letters of rec do you need? How many science/non science?

 

[phillyfornia]

i hardly went to lecture let alone office hours in college so i had to get most of my LORs w/o knowing the prof very well. i basically e-mailed them and tried setting up an appointment with them. the responses i received varied though so i would recommend hitting up a lot of different profs. some were cool and willing to write good letters of recs after talking to you. others told me that they were willing to write a letter but that it would have to be somewhat "generic" since they didn't know me personally. others simply didn't respond to my email, which i did not mind. the worst, however, were profs who said that they would be willing to write me a letter and for me to send them some info (CV, transcript, PS, etc.) but then would never end up writing the letters for you. in any case, it doesn't hurt to ask and i would guess that at a big public university most professors understand that not all students are going to be able to get to know their profs that well.