Recommendation Letters-Senior mngmnt??Addl' Recommendation?

Question

Hey Everyone,

Newbie to the forum, thanks to everyone who make this the place that it is now.

My questions have to do with recommendation letters. My work place has a pretty 'open' culture, (you could walk into the CFOs office without an appointment etc.) and the work I do touches a lot of folks in senior management.

1) Schools usually stress that we get recommendations from people we really know. Now, does that necessarily mean that I'd be better off getting a recommendation from one of my peers (someone close to my title) rather than my CFO, etc?
2) I've worked with a parliamentarian back home on a charitable cause and I'd be able to get a recommendation letter. Now, since I don't work with him on a day-to-day basis, I'm thinking of sending in a supplemental recommendation from him. I read conflicting suggestions on additional recommendations but if I were to apply to Harvard, is an additional recommendation Ok or not?

Thanks in advance.
K

aerien · Answer

You answered your own first question. It's better to get a LOR from someone who knows you than someone with title. Generally speaking, that would be a current or past manager, not a co-worker/peer (unless the school specifically asks for one...aka Stanford).

As far as submitting additional letters, above and beyond what is asked for... Schools vary in terms of accepting these. If you send it in, make sure it adds something of value to your application or it might just annoy the adcom.

Posted from my mobile device

kommitted · Answer

aerian - thanks for the response, +1!

The reason I was hesitant about getting a recommendation from the senior guys was cuz they're not always "on the ground" with me, but since they sure know my body of work, I will feel free to ask

Now, to the addl' recommendation, If I need 3 recommendations, and I get all 3 from my work, I'd not be projecting my complete self and could even get monotonic. So the trade off here is between 'someone who sees me every day' vs 'someone who brings a new perspective and completes my profile'.

If I may ask how should I go forward here, is it better to

1)Go with the 3 from work and send non-work recommendation as an additional recommendation? Or
2) send the non-work as part of the first 3 and one work as an additional recommendation?

aerien · Answer

Why are you so set on sending in  additional  letters of recommendation? If a school asks for 3 letters, you can send in 2 from your workplace and 1 from outside of work -- that way, the adcom still sees a more overall picture of who you are.

If it were me, I would not send all 3 from work or all 3 from non-work. I agree with you that that can get very monotonous. Keep in mind especially that your recommenders should add something to your profile -- if you get 3 people all at the same title/level at your job, all 3 might say the same thing about you. Does repeating that information help you at all?

EnigmaD · Answer

Don't send extra letters of recommendation unless you seriously have four separate stories to tell. Chances are, you don't. If you send a crap ton of recommendations initially, the adcom will probably go *sigh*... someone can't follow instructions. Worse even, is if 2 of the LORs are similar. Just remember these are people who want to get through thousands of applications.

Here's another reason for not sending extra letters of recommendation - the waitlist. If you're someone who is lucky enough to have an abundance of options, keep one in the back pocket. It could make the difference between a waitlist -> ding and a waitlist -> admit.

kommitted · Answer

I'll remember that, thanks QiuYidio!

Recommendation Letters-Senior mngmnt??Addl' Recommendation?

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