Reference letters from profs/department heads

[Guest ashylips]

In other words, i don't know any well enough. or more importantly, they don't know me. i'm in 2nd year and can't think of anyone who'd strongly vouch for me.

 

this sounds like a common thing, but is it too weird to go up to a prof who has no idea who i am and ask them to write about me?

[Guest BCgirl]

A reference letter from someone who doesn't know you would be useless. The reference letter writers are usually asked specific questions about you... if they don't know you, how could they answer them? All of the reference letter forms for applications that I've worked on say something along the lines of, "if you don't know the applicant well enough to answer these questions, you shouldn't write the reference."

 

You should probably try to get to know some of your professors so that they can write a decent letter for you when the time comes.

[Guest aneliz]

I agree with BC girl. Profs that don't know you make useless references because they can't say anything about you. Using them may actually cause more damage to you app than it will do you good. If you are applying to a school that doesn't specify that you need a prof reference, don't use one if you don't have a good one! Use employers, supervisors from volunteer activities, high school teachers that knew you well, coaches, etc instead. If you absolutely require a prof reference (some schools require one), try and get to know a prof or two. I know that this sounds hard and honestly, in second year I knew none of my profs well enough to ask for a reference. Give it time though. By fourth year, all of my profs knew me by name and I didn't really go out of my way to make myself known to them. As the classes get smaller and you become more interested in the content of the lectures (as opposed to the general first and second year courses where you probably don't enjoy a lot of the lectures!), you will interact more with your profs and they will also be more interested in getting to know you. Working in a research lab is also a good way to become known to the faculty in a department. Good luck!

[Guest mying]

And if you end up stuck for whatever reason, you could always just ask a prof that you had moderate interaction with, but always go with how they first react. In my first round of applications, I asked a prof if he felt he knew me well enough to be a reference, and although I expected him to say no, he surprised me by saying yes, and then quoting back to me all my grades and who my lab partner was and where I had sat in class. And I am not an outspoken student at all. Since I only used an academic reference as one of my three letters, that's all I needed him to acknowledge, and he took the time to look over my CV and get to know what I had been doing outside of the classroom as well. The only drawback was that he eventually told me he didn't think my GPA was high enough and while he could be a reference he didn't think I had a chance. That should have been a warning sign (but if my GPA had been high enough, things probably would have been fine... and in the end, he was right, and it wasn't my reference letters that got me in trouble, but my GPA).

 

Just to be different, the next round I asked my academic counsellor instead, and she was even more enthusiastic and definitely, in retrospect, a better choice.

 

Definitely try to develop a good relationship with someone who can be a reference, but if you end up in a pinch, you might be surprised at who has noticed you.

[Guest arcticaguy]

I had the same doubts when in second year. I didn't know who to use for my academic ref letter until I'd decided to do an honours thesis at the end of third year. This was because I enjoyed this particular prof's lectures and the subject material that I got hooked and for the first time began to consider research (something I'd been very much against 'til then). The letter was from a 'regular' prof. Academically, he knew me as well as the Dean of Sciences at my school, the difference is that he knew more about my non academic life, how I dealt with stress and obstacles, etc. so he could complement the letter with great personalized tid-bits.

The choice is yours, but that seems to be the overall take home message.

cheers and good luck.