Search the Community

I need some help deciding on who will write my LORs for my application cycle this fall. LOR 1: My master's program research project advisor and have taken an UG and grad class from her, and done well. LOR 2: My grad chair who taught a grad class I did well in. LOR 3: This is the tough one. I'm really leaning towards Option 2, but I've known Option 1 for a long-time and he was going to be my advisor, but due to his inability to commit I went with LOR 1 writer as my advisor. - Option 1: The professor who I thought I was going to get to RA with but ends up I cannot, and he is very distant from academic commitments in general, like helping supervise independent research and replying to emails. He is semi-respected though, as a micro-theorist, but probably not that well known. I have known him since 2010 and have been emailing and discussing research with him, even in person, since then, but he tends to always want to drop any long-term efforts. He has some idea of the kind of research I enjoy, but I'm not so sure he would want to put those ideas into writing on my LOR. I took grad micro from him and did well. - Option 2: The professor I now TA for, who also has appointments at Columbia and NYU as an adjunct professor. He has nominated me for TA of the Year and thinks pretty highly of my TA work, coming up with my own initiatives to help the 133 students improve their grades and maximize their learning. This semester is the first time I've met this professor. I have emailed him before about a now defunct research proposal I had and he gave me some pointers and said it was a good idea. Have never taken any of his classes. Would there be any reason to choose Option 1 for LOR 3?

Hi! I am writing an application form for the econ Ph.D. program this year (2021 Fall) However, I have some problems with LoR. As everybody knows, I need 3 LoRs and I've already got permissions from 3 econ professors who know me well. However, one of 3 professors also gave permission to another student whose application lists are pretty much same with mine. about 80%? I think it matters a lot. Should I find another professor for 4th recommendation ? (as long as the university allows 4 LoRs) Thanks

Hi! I am writing an application form for the econ Ph.D. program this year (2021 Fall) However, I have some problems with LoR. As everybody knows, I need 3 LoRs and I've already got permissions from 3 econ professors who know me well. However, one of 3 professors also gave permission to another student whose application lists are pretty much same with mine. about 80%?) I think it matters a lot. Should I find another professor for 4th recommendation ? (as long as the university allows 4 LoRs) Thanks

Hello all, I am beginning to think / prepare to apply to graduate programs this cycle. I think that I have a profile with a decent chance of admit for a top ten school (high grades in econ & math at a T15 undergrad, full time research assistant for 2 years, etc.) However, I am having trouble choosing my third LOR writer. Given that the other two letters will come from senior, well-published professors, which should I choose between: (1) A senior lecturer at the T15 undergraduate school who helped advise my thesis and regularly advises honors econ students; or (2) An associate professor at a relatively unknown university I RAed for a few years ago (have not kept close contact) who publishes frequently in top field journals with a few articles in general interest journals. My prior is that both letters would be of similar quality--strong but not excellent. Additionally, both potential recommenders received their PhDs from top five programs. I guess my main question is how disadvantageous is it to have a recommendation from a senior lecturer compared to a professor? Would that outweigh the lecturer being in a better position to make relative comparisons between me and other top students at my undergrad?

Hi! I am looking for profile evaluation and some advices on LORs. Thank you so much! Type of Undergrad: B.S. (Honors) Mathematics and Economics from the top 15 in US Undergrad GPA: 4.0 (My school doesn't have A+) Type of Grad : N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: Q170 ,V157, AWA4.0 Math Courses Undergrad: Linear Algebra (A), Calculus I-III (A), Analysis I-II (A), Abstract Algebra I-II (A), Logic (A), Linear Optimization (A), Topology (A), Complex Analysis (A) Math Courses Grad: Differentiable Manifolds (A), ODE (A), Two semesters of Ph.D. analysis sequence (both A), Measure-theoretic probability (A), Stochastic analysis (IP), Modern discrete probability (IP) Econ Courses Undergrad: Intro to micro and macro (A), Intermediate micro (A), Intermediate macro (A), Econometrics (A), Game Theory (A), IO (A), Growth theory (A), Independent research (A), Honors thesis (IP) Econ Courses Grad : Two semesters of Ph.D. micro sequence (both A), First semester of Ph.D. macro sequence (IP), Advanced micro theory (IP) Other courses: Two programming classes in Java and Matlab Letters of Recommendation: Math Professor whom I did research with (Very strong - the best student he has ever had for 20 years) Assistant Professor from intermediate macro and growth theory classes (Strong) Well-known professor in micro sequence whom I did research with over the past summer (Strong) Well-known professor in micro sequence and advanced micro who is my thesis advisor now (Strong/Weak: Depending on my thesis) Research Experience: Two years of math research in dynamical systems with the first LOR writer (1 working paper & 1 in-progress) Math REU at U.Chicago over the past summer about optimal stopping time One semester of independent research class on matching theory Research on games in contracts with the third LOR writer over the past summer Honors thesis with the fourth LOR writer (I started it pretty lately) Teaching Experience: TA for analysis, combinatorics, and stochastic process classes Research Interests: Microeconomic theory (Game Theory, Information economics) Other information: IMO silver medalist for three years and Putnam top 50 for three years. Concerns: Lack of publication (only have working paper and work in progress) The most thing I'm concerned about is my fourth LOR writer. I feel like he does not know me much even though I got a very good score in his Ph.D. micro class and went to office hours talking about his paper for several times. So I decide to do an undergrad thesis with him to show my potential. It ends up that he does not have much time to talk with me. When I asked him about the LOR, he told me that "he is going to write only what he knows about me." I feel like this is a really bad sign if my thesis doesn't turn out to be great. I am thinking that I will not send my fourth LOR, but is it a bad signal if I do not send the LOR from my thesis advisor? I guess what I can do right now is to work hard on my thesis. What programs I should aim for? Am I competitive for top 10 or top 20 programs? Thanks for your advices in advance! P.S: Since I am not a native speaker, sorry for my bad english.

Test Scores: (GRE): 169 V (99%), 166 Q (87%), 4.5 AWA Undegrad GPA: 3.66 Graduate GPA: NA (B in random but hard Math Stats course) Research Experience: Undergraduate Honors Thesis with Full Professor (received high marks; did not publish) Teaching Experience: Teaching Assistant for OM course for 2 semesters Work Experience: 3 years working as a data science consultant for relatively prestigious firm. I have also served as researcher at my company through our research arm. Concentration Applying to: Operations Management Number of programs planned to apply to: 13 Dream Schools: Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Duke Other Questions: How important are academic LOR versus industry? I currently have one LOR from the professor I did my undergrad honors thesis with that I anticipate being solid Other two LOR will be from higher-ups at my firm (one is a research scientist, the other a director) [*]Is it even worth applying to the "elite" (Wharton, Kellogg, etc.) schools? What made you want to pursue a PhD? I have been interested in academia since graduating from undergrad. I enjoyed writing my thesis and working as a teaching assistant. I currently have a good job as a data scientist, but would love to be more a researcher/inventor. The academic lifestyle appeals to me as well (intellectual peers, college towns, conferences, etc.) I also have a very specific set of research goals/ideas that would be hard to accomplish in a non-academic environment. Questions or concerns you have about your profile? #1 concern is that my background isn't pure math or engineering but rather Business at major state university ​I have not taken Real Analysis, but have taken Calculus, Linear Algebra and several STAT/OR courses [*]#2 concern is my Q GRE (166) score, while good, is slightly below the averages I keep seeing (167/168) [*]#3 concern is that only one of my LOR is from an academic source (albeit a good one)

Hi Urch, long time lurker, first time poster.... I have been en route to finishing a MPP degree and am currently taking on summer RA positions for two economics professors at a top 15 econ program, unknown MPP program. While the RA positions are both with well know economists and will hopefully provide me two LoR writers, I can't help but find the RA work to be nothing more than data cleaning. I like helping and providing assistance to my professors, but I am largely scared that this position has no value to it other than a LoR that's void of any insight to my economic skills. Has anyone else done RA work? Are my worries totally overblown, is this normal? Should I say anything? Thanks for any advice, I largely appreciate it :).

PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ and Math from top school in Asia Undergrad GPA: 3.85 Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: GRE: Q169/ V169/ AW5.5 Math Courses: Calc seq., Linear Algebra seq., Linear Programming, ugrad analysis sequence, B+/A- Average Econ Courses: Honors micro/macro/metrics sequence, Game Theory, 1st year PhD micro/macro, A/A+ average Other Courses: Letters of Recommendation: Main LOR from recently promoted full prof for whom I RA'd for about 1 year part-time (micro theory); seems to like me a lot. 1 LOR from junior TT faculty I RA'd for about 1.5 years part-time during 1st-3rd year ugrad (Applied/empirical). 1 LOR from game theory course, which I topped, instructor (senior tenured faculty). Research Experience: 2.5 years part-time RA during ugrad. Did coding etc. for empirical RA, proofreading/literature review for theory RA. Teaching Experience: None. Research Interests: Micro Theory and Structural/empirical IO. What range of schools should I aim for? I am willing to do full-time RA etc. to have a chance for top 20 US; any advice? Highly appreciate any comments/advice.

How valuable is a LOR from a professor who is in their first year at a University after finishing their PhD and possibly work experience at a Fed/University as a researcher? Is it advised to avoid getting a LOR from such a person? Thanks!

In general, how would LOR writer's specialty impact the influence of the letter? For example, if I am interested in doing macro or finance, how would a strong letter from a professor in fields like labor or micro theory be viewed differently comparing to a semi-strong letter from a professor in macro-finance?

Hi everyone, while checking the status of my recommendation letters in the application portal of UCSB, I noticed that I apparently forgot to waive my right to see one of my LOR's, which has already been submitted. Unfortunately, there seems to be no possibility to delete a recommendation once it has been submitted, and the graduate office doesn't answer my requests. Obviously, I do not intend to read this LOR later and I usually always choose to waive this right, I don't know what went wrong this time. Did anyone have a similar problem before? How bad is it really to not waive this right, will it make this LOR completely worthless? Do admission committees really think that LOR writers actually pay attention to this, and change their recommendation accordingly? Any suggestions about what to do now, if UCSB does not answer? I thought about just deleting my whole application and starting a fresh one, but it seems an awful lot of trouble and also feels a bit like cheating, or could be perceived as such. I also might ask this particular recommender to notify UCSB that me not waiving this right did not have any influence on her recommendation at all. Obviously, she submitted the same letter as to every other place, where I DID wave my right to see it. Do you guys think such a mail would help? Would be great to get some experiences or feedback on this. Thanks a lot!

Hi everyone, I have the following situation regarding the choice of my LOR writers. I plan to apply to 10 programs, and I already secured two LORs for each from my undergrad and grad thesis supervisors, which should be pretty strong. However, for the 3rd recommendation, I contacted 4 Profs (call them A,B,C,D), and each of them agreed to write me a maximum of 3 'customized' recommendation letters. They are all very busy and basically they just don't want to spend the time for uploading 10 letters, filling out 10 forms, answering questions about me 10 times etc. Based on how much they know me, how 'well-known' they are themselves and how good I was in their classes, I can somehow guess how good each of their letters will be. I am pretty sure that ABC will write good letters, and they all have to tell rather much about me. With some uncertainty, I would say A>B>C. The letters from D will most likely be not as good. Even though he still has a few good things to say about me (in addition to how good my grades were), his letter may still come out just lukewarm in the end. My questions: 1) How would you match the letters of A,B and C with my programs? Does it make sense to take A for the highest ranked programs on my list, where admission may be pretty unlikely anyway? Then B for the next tier and so on? Or would it be better to save A for the reaches, where I expect to have a small, but decent chance? 2) What to do with D? Would a lukewarm third recommendation letter absolutely kill my application, even if it is just for the lowest-ranked safety, number 10 on my list (ranked 60ish)? So better don't apply there at all, if I can't get any additional letter from A,B or C? 3) Because I am not completely sure about the relative strength of ABCD, I actually thought about using the 2 remaining letters from D as an additional, 4th LOR in two of my 10 applications. They may also serve as a safety in case one of the other writers doesn't submit on time. Do you think a lukewarm, 4th LOR will do a lot of harm, if letters 1 to 3 are very strong or strong? Even though letter 4 will most likely reduce the average quality of my letters, it may still add one or two positive things about me that are not included in the other letters. In the worst case, the Adcoms will just assume that I only build strong relationships to 3 faculty members, not 4, is that really a bad signal? I know there is a lot of speculation and guessing involved here, I'm just interested what others would do in my situation. Cheers!

I am applying for Masters in Science (MS) in Computer Science for Fall 2015. While going through the online application form, I came to know that under the "Recommendations" section, I have to provide names and emails of three recommendation providers. I just wanted to know whether it is mandatory to submit letter of recommendation electronically in addition to mailing them along with all the necessary documents or will just sending them by mail be enough ? Thank you.

I attend Temple University, and while I've had great experiences with all of them, I have had most of my economics classes taught by graduate students, which leaves me at a loss with letters of recommendation So far I have: 1. An Econ professor (MIT Grad) whom I've worked with extensively on research and departmental stuff; 2. Political Science professor whom I took a public policy analysis class and a research methods course; she was recently head-hunted by Duke to work on environmental econ. However, I'm stuck when it comes to my 3rd. I have a good relationship with a very esteemed professor (twice published in Econometrica), but he wants to do a "You write it, I sign it" deal, and I have *great* trepidation about that. My options are very limited, however. I have two other choices, a professor I took International Trade from who I had a good relationship with, but nothing research oriented. I'm currently in a grad class, but I don't know that I'll really build a relationship with him by December. Ideas? Aside from my letters, I have a pretty strong application. I scored 170V,165Q,5.0AWA, I have a 4.0 GPA, I'm in the Honors Program, I have math minor, several stat classes, and a grad econometric class, and I won a competitive research grant over the summer. I work as an economics, math, and statistics tutor for the university as well. Am I just worrying too much? Thank you to all for any advice you can give!

I've been working for about 4 years in the financial industry (mainly in quant/quant programming jobs) and now I want to pursue a PhD in Economics :eager: Two of my LOR recommendation will be written by professors working for a German university. I studied and did research with the two of them. One of them was my thesis advisor and we have published together. I would like my third LOR to be written by one of the guys I worked and researched with. He is the CIO of a relatively known Swiss hedge fund. We worked together (for about 4-5 months) in research ideas that I implemented for him, but nothing was published. Is this a yay or a nay? My reasoning is that the point of view of a practitioner might be interesting for the selection committee but a potential drawback is that my ex-boss from the hedge fund has no graduate studies (i.e. only his track record with the company and his working experience supports his word/experience with me). Another option is my current boss. He has done tons of research and is willing to give a LOR, but I have not done any research with him. We have a normal working relationship. What should I do? Should I include recommendation letters from work or should I go for LOR from academics only? Thanks in advance

Hi, I am a exchange junior in Berkeley and will stay there for only one semester. I think it is a good chance for me to choose a grad econ course that is well recognized. Here are two options: First option: grad micro (david ahn, seems a tough course), international montary econ (gourinchase), IO (edlin) Second option: grad macro (obstfeld, romer, seems easier than grad micro), some other undergrad courses which are not taught by well-known professors Taking into account LOR, grades signaling, and their weights in adcom's view, which option do you think is better for PhD application? Thanks! BTW, which professor do you think is approachable and willing to give LOR in Berkeley?

Now I have two LORs that must be included in my application. For the third, please give me some suggestions according to the info below, many thanks! Professor 1: Director of the honor program (1 year), Harvard PHD, has some famous publications in finance/banking, very positive comments on my research ability, has pushed one girl into Yale finance this year, no other courses with him, easy to communicate. Professor 2: Taught me first half of a micro core course, I aced in his part but no other communications because he has no OH, MIT PHD, game theory big shot, on leave for the coming year. Professor 3: Taught me second half of the same core course, I also aced in his part but I did not talk much with him, very nice person, Berkeley PHD, has contributions in urban economics. Professor 4: I am going to take his class this fall, which is a grad-level macro course about stochastic optimal control and its applications. UMN PHD, should be very famous in macro. I have read some descriptions and comments about lukewarm LORs, as well as those strong LORs. Does a LOR from Professor 2 or 3 or 4 more likely to fall into the group of lukewarm LORs?

I'm a sophomore at a small, top 70ish small liberal arts school with an okay economics department. I'm extremely interested in pursuing economics graduate school, and have been following this forum for a little while now. I'd really like to get into a top 20 program (wouldn't we all?), and so far I've been able to take oodles of math courses while maintaining a 4.0 (I'm taking real analysis this semester). My only problem is research. The professors at my school's economics department seem to like me, but when I ask about opportunities to serve as a research assistant, it seems like nothing exists. The department is in a bit of disarray and they all seem too busy teaching to do much serious research. So, for someone like me who wants to get research experience and LORs that will make me competitive at top programs, what's the best path? I found an opportunity over the past summer to work long distance as an RA for a young World Bank economist on an interesting project, and I could continue down that path. But, is that the kind of research experience top programs are looking for? Plus, is it even worth getting a LOR from someone who's not a professor and has never taught you in a class? Would it be worth it for me to look into the math department to do research there and get a LOR, or would that be bad because it wouldn't be from an economist? As a side note, I'm going to LSE's General Course next year, so I have a very long summer this year but almost no time next summer to do something formative. Also, does anyone know if there are RA opportunities for undergraduates (and more specifically GC students) at LSE? Thanks for your advice!

He's an electrical Engineering Phd, I was his RA for 1.5 years when I was finishing my econ UG, my work consisted on running logit regressions mostly. I think his letter would be a good one, and considering that my other 3 letters are probably going to be just "okay", i'm really thinking about asking him for a LOR. I guess this can't hurt right? Edit: Making two threads in one ANOTHER PROBLEM: One of my LOR writers told me he won't be writing me a LOR for X University (I guess he's writing another LOR for someone else applying there). What should I do? Apply to another Uni, or get a letter from someone else, which surely will be close to a lukewarm letter?

I couldn't find any specific advice on this anywhere so I was hoping someone might be able to help. I finished undergrad in Dec '06 and have applied to PhD programs twice since then -- first for 2008 admission and then again last year for 2011 admission. First time I got a couple of unfunded offers (Michigan and UCSD) and the second time all I got were rejects (applied to fewer schools, only in the NE). During the 3 years between applying I worked as an analyst in private sector in econ/finance and took 2 courses to improve my profile, but obviously didn't do enough. I've put the rest of my profile below. Anyway, to my question: how can I improve my LORs at this point? Though my 3 recommenders all have econ PhDs from top-10 places, only 1 is still teaching (another was my professor in undergrad but has since moved to a bank, and the other has always worked in finance since getting PhD). The only feedback I've been able to get on my profile is that it's a negative mark that I only have 1 "real" academic LOR. What can I do about that at this point? I've tried emailing professors at nearby (NYC) schools to see if I could work as a research assistant but no response. Does anyone know of any way to do this without going to Europe to get a Masters? I'm sort of stuck in the NY area, though if I have to I'll go where I need to. Thanks for any suggestions. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Small Lib. Arts,~35 per USNews, Math and Econ double Undergrad GPA: 3.7, 3.8 in Econ, 3.5 in Math GRE: 780Q, 620V, 5 AW Other: undergrad real analysis at Columbia (A+), phd macro theory at CUNY (A+) Math Courses: Complex Analysis (B), Multivariable Calc (B-), Topology (A), Number Theory (A-), Math Logic (A-), Groups (A), Intro to Proofs (A), Lin Algebra (B) Econ Courses: Econometrics, International Finance, Corporate Finance, Math For Econ And Finance, Game Theory, Macro Theory, Financial Econ, Micro Theory, Statistics-Econ Analysis, The Global Economy, Intro To Economics (As and A-s) Letters of Recommendation: 1 econ prof, 1 former econ prof, 1 econ phd working in finance Research Experience: 5 years in finance/econ (but none academic) Teaching Experience: Research Interests: monetary policy, macro theory Weaknesses: LORs, math grades. No thesis or anything. Maybe not enough upper-level core courses. Results: 2008: Accepted to UMich and UCSD. No funding. Rejected at pretty much every (other?) top 10. 2011: rejections!

I am visiting with my favourite faculty this week. How do I make my request for recommendations less awkward. Also, am I mad to ask my favorite professor for a LOR because I got a B in his class? He understands that I'm more capable than the grade suggests. To be honest I'm going to ask him regardless of what the advice is... just wondering what you thought out there.