Reference Letters

[victorias]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I know that it is not ideal to get reference letters from TA's or post docs and that letters are best to come from faculty members.

During my senior thesis, I worked directly under the supervision of a post doc. He is now a faculty members at another university. Is it okay to get a letter from him? I feel that he can talk more about my abilities and strengths. If this is not a good idea, I can ask the PI for a letter. What's the best approach to this?

Thanks

 

[kitkat13]

You would ask your PI for the letter. He/She would have the post-doc write it (in most cases!), and would just sign off on it.

 

[victorias]

You would ask your PI for the letter. He/She would have the post-doc write it (in most cases!), and would just sign off on it.

Thanks! I will look into that.
It's just that the post doc has now moved onto becoming a professor himself at a university across the country. He is no longer working for the PI.

 

[victorias]

Getting a letter from someone you studied under as a post doc who is now faculty is fine. The reason why having a faculty sign is more a matter of the writer's experience to judge students. That is, a professor who has been teaching for 20 years can say "one of the best students I have seen in 20 years" where as a post doc could say, "of the few students I supervised, he was the best" which could mean you screwed less than the other few. Now that he/she is faculty elsewhere, they can use that experience of judgement even though they knew you a few years past: "while he/she was one of the students I supervised very early in my career, he/she still stands out among the many I have seen since"

Thank you! This is very helpful.