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Academic Reference


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8 minutes ago, WaitingTooLong said:

Can someone please advice whether it would be a bad idea to ask a prof that I have known for less than a year to be my academic reference? I have been out of school for a while and recently went back. I have taken 3 classes with this prof but she’s known me for less than a year. 
 

Thank you! 

Speaking as a former prof, if you’ve been out of school for years then your older profs are very unlikely to remember much about you, especially if they were large classes. When I was asked to write reference for people who hadn’t taken a class with me in the last 1 semester, I never had much to say about them aside from their average / rank in the class. 3 classes with the same prof, especially if you’ve made an effort to go to office hours or participate in class, etc, and are doing well grade wise, is almost certainly going to be better than a reference from someone who knew you awhile ago but can’t speak to your current abilities.

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3 minutes ago, frenchpress said:

Speaking as a former prof, if you’ve been out of school for years then your older profs are very unlikely to remember much about you, especially if they were large classes. When I was asked to write reference for people who hadn’t taken a class with me in the last 1 semester, I never had much to say about them aside from their average / rank in the class. 3 classes with the same prof, especially if you’ve made an effort to go to office hours or participate in class, etc, and are doing well grade wise, is almost certainly going to be better than a reference from someone who knew you awhile ago but can’t speak to your current abilities.

Thank you so much. All my classes were online, so I never got to meet the prof in person. But I actively participated in class and got very high grades in all 3 classes I took with her. 
A follow up question - does the school name matter? My old school was admittedly a lot more well known than my current school, so I don’t know if it’s something I should consider.  

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1 hour ago, WaitingTooLong said:

Thank you so much. All my classes were online, so I never got to meet the prof in person. But I actively participated in class and got very high grades in all 3 classes I took with her. 
A follow up question - does the school name matter? My old school was admittedly a lot more well known than my current school, so I don’t know if it’s something I should consider.  

I really don’t think that factors into it. There’s so many other things for them to score, specifically the things that are actually on the reference form. Don’t over think it. Just get the best reference that can directly speak to the things the reference form ask about. 

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5 minutes ago, frenchpress said:

I really don’t think that factors into it. There’s so many other things for them to score, specifically the things that are actually on the reference form. Don’t over think it. Just get the best reference that can directly speak to the things the reference form ask about. 

Thank you! 

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Like any reference, the best academic reference will be someone who can comment on your abilities by using personal examples. Saying you are great is one thing, but that's a given for any reference in my opinion, and everyone's references will likely speak highly of them. What makes a reference standout is backing that up with personal examples. That can only be done if they know you well. Always choose someone who knows you on a more personal level than someone who you think had more prestige.

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I agree, this prof that you have taken 3 courses with more recently would be a very good person for academic letter in my opinion. To help them out, you can also send a cover letter of things you did in the class (ex. talk about your class participation, things you did in a group, the times you went for extra help/"office" hours, etc.). Also send them your CV. The academic reference is always hard to make it personable for the writer but these extra things should definitely help! Best of luck, cheers!

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