Professors only...?

Question

Aside from getting an A, what else must a student do in order to earn a letter of recommendation? Yes, I am doing research with one prof., but I need two more and can't seem to get any. All my prof. in my field wereVLs

Answer 1

Here is an excellent website instructing students how to get good letters of recommendation from their professors.

http://www.yale.edu/iefp/fellowships/other/asking_rec_letters.html

Given your situation, you might try to track down the visiting lecturers. Start this search by simply using a search engine, but you should also ask the department chair and/or the department secretary if they have contact information for these professors. Odds are that they will.

What impresses me most is when students make an appointment with me, and then arrive prepared, with a list of classes they had with me, the papers they wrote for those classes, and a resume.

It is also important to keep in mind that if professors hesitate (or outright refuse) to write a letter for a student, it is because they know their letter would hurt rather than help the student. Calls from parents could not change this situation.

Answer 2

If you have taken the initiative and handed in solid papers, then simply ask for them. If you have asked and not received them from professors who said they would do them, a tactic I used in undergrad was to ask the professor if he/she wanted me to write it and give it to them. You do need to know the prof pretty well for that, but many appreciate it. It saves them time and effort and you can hardly complain about the result.

If, after trying that approach, you still don't get your letters, I would sit down with either the department head for your major or the dean of your school and bring the subject up. If that fails, one last nuclear bomb is to ask Mom & Dad to call. For some reasons, schools get very uptight when parents call (regardless of who's paying your tuition).

Good Luck