Recommendation Letters

[Liza_Ann_92]

Hi! Mini-vent time!!

So I'm kind of experiencing anxiety at the moment trying to apply for grad school. I've emailed 2 professors 2-3 times over the last month asking if they'd be able to write letters on my behalf and no responses. I currently have a SPED professor writing me a letter and a former supervisor agree to write me one. As backups, I have two SPED teachers I worked alongside, my current supervisor (principal at a school), and an assistant principal from my current work site. I haven't asked any of my backups yet because I wanted to have 2 or 1 CSD professor on board. I'm aware of remote learning occurring at my university too, so I'm sure all professors emails are swapped. ?

I'm worried about the possibility of one falling thru, having no CSD professors to write me letters; therefore causing me to put applying on hold. I'm aware a lot of admission committees want to hear from other CSD professors about academics and the ability to be successful in graduate school. Sometimes I feel like having most of my letters coming from supervisors or colleagues may work against me, *shrug* 

My major GPA was a 3.3, but last 60 units wad a 3.58. Cumulative GPA was a 3.4. Low GRE scores (280, AW: 3.00) and I'm studying to retake it. A lot of extra curricular activities when I was in school, worked in special education was an paraprofessional, ABA therapy..

I really need some encouragement right now. It just feels like bad timing, idk. Is anyone else experiencing or faced this dilemma before?

Edited September 5, 2020 by Liza_Ann_92

[S.of.S]

On 9/5/2020 at 12:23 PM, Liza_Ann_92 said:

Hi! Mini-vent time!!

So I'm kind of experiencing anxiety at the moment trying to apply for grad school. I've emailed 2 professors 2-3 times over the last month asking if they'd be able to write letters on my behalf and no responses. I currently have a SPED professor writing me a letter and a former supervisor agree to write me one. As backups, I have two SPED teachers I worked alongside, my current supervisor (principal at a school), and an assistant principal from my current work site. I haven't asked any of my backups yet because I wanted to have 2 or 1 CSD professor on board. I'm aware of remote learning occurring at my university too, so I'm sure all professors emails are swapped. ?

I'm worried about the possibility of one falling thru, having no CSD professors to write me letters; therefore causing me to put applying on hold. I'm aware a lot of admission committees want to hear from other CSD professors about academics and the ability to be successful in graduate school. Sometimes I feel like having most of my letters coming from supervisors or colleagues may work against me, *shrug* 

My major GPA was a 3.3, but last 60 units wad a 3.58. Cumulative GPA was a 3.4. Low GRE scores (280, AW: 3.00) and I'm studying to retake it. A lot of extra curricular activities when I was in school, worked in special education was an paraprofessional, ABA therapy..

I really need some encouragement right now. It just feels like bad timing, idk. Is anyone else experiencing or faced this dilemma before?

I'm sorry about your worries. Applying can be such a drain! Frankly, just be sure you know what each school wants specifically. I know some require at least 1 academic reference, and others want all letters to be academic. It sounds to me like you have a good roster of letter writers! If you're really worried you could also ask your admissions counselor and explain to them your situation. I know some people have had some luck in that as well! Best of wishes to you on your journey! 

[Cece93]

On 9/5/2020 at 3:23 PM, Liza_Ann_92 said:

Hi! Mini-vent time!!

So I'm kind of experiencing anxiety at the moment trying to apply for grad school. I've emailed 2 professors 2-3 times over the last month asking if they'd be able to write letters on my behalf and no responses. I currently have a SPED professor writing me a letter and a former supervisor agree to write me one. As backups, I have two SPED teachers I worked alongside, my current supervisor (principal at a school), and an assistant principal from my current work site. I haven't asked any of my backups yet because I wanted to have 2 or 1 CSD professor on board. I'm aware of remote learning occurring at my university too, so I'm sure all professors emails are swapped. ?

I'm worried about the possibility of one falling thru, having no CSD professors to write me letters; therefore causing me to put applying on hold. I'm aware a lot of admission committees want to hear from other CSD professors about academics and the ability to be successful in graduate school. Sometimes I feel like having most of my letters coming from supervisors or colleagues may work against me, *shrug* 

My major GPA was a 3.3, but last 60 units wad a 3.58. Cumulative GPA was a 3.4. Low GRE scores (280, AW: 3.00) and I'm studying to retake it. A lot of extra curricular activities when I was in school, worked in special education was an paraprofessional, ABA therapy..

I really need some encouragement right now. It just feels like bad timing, idk. Is anyone else experiencing or faced this dilemma before?

You should see if they REALLY want those academic recommendations letters. I applied to schools that required them but to be honest I didn’t think any of my professors knew me so I just went with all professional. Contact the schools and ask them.

[BriP157]

Hey Liza I'm currently having a very similar problem. I asked one of my supervisors at my job (working in an elementary school, for a tutoring program). However that is my only LOR at this moment. Last semester one of the professors I was planning on asking prior to COVID, turned out to be awful and dealt with the online switch/students very poorly. Long story short that professor was going to be my 2nd LOR and after everything that happened during COVID I could no longer ask. I am sort of freaking out as well, because all the programs I plan to apply to ask for 3 LOR. I was thinking of asking my program advisor, and two of my current professors. However, I don't know the proper etiquette to asking a professor especially while you are still taking their class. If I don't ask my current professors I don't know what I will do. 

[Liza_Ann_92]

On 9/20/2020 at 6:37 PM, BriP157 said:

Hey Liza I'm currently having a very similar problem. I asked one of my supervisors at my job (working in an elementary school, for a tutoring program). However that is my only LOR at this moment. Last semester one of the professors I was planning on asking prior to COVID, turned out to be awful and dealt with the online switch/students very poorly. Long story short that professor was going to be my 2nd LOR and after everything that happened during COVID I could no longer ask. I am sort of freaking out as well, because all the programs I plan to apply to ask for 3 LOR. I was thinking of asking my program advisor, and two of my current professors. However, I don't know the proper etiquette to asking a professor especially while you are still taking their class. If I don't ask my current professors I don't know what I will do. 

Hey! I hope you gained more recommenders. I asked a special ed teacher I worked with and one of my sped professors. I wasn't able to get in touch with one SLP professor and I'm going to get in touch with another professor this weekend. Long story short I'm 10 on the waitlist and I told her I wanted to stay on the list and ask her again at the end of the month..

[BriP157]

On 10/26/2020 at 10:02 PM, Liza_Ann_92 said:

Hey! I hope you gained more recommenders. I asked a special ed teacher I worked with and one of my sped professors. I wasn't able to get in touch with one SLP professor and I'm going to get in touch with another professor this weekend. Long story short I'm 10 on the waitlist and I told her I wanted to stay on the list and ask her again at the end of the month..

Hey Liza!! Yes I currently have my advisor and an SLP professor writing me letters of rec. Crazy how things can change so quickly. I almost didn't ask my advisor but then I thought about it, and she is the closest acadmic relationship I have. My advisor has seen my successes and difficulties and is the one who can speak to my academic journey the most acurately. I'm glad to hear you were also able to to gain more letters of rec it sounds like you are still short one though. You could always ask your academic advisor. Honestly they know us better than most of our professors and they see our grades every semester not just for one class. I hope it works out, I know this is a super stressful time. 

[mckennahslp]

Hi! So I applied last fall and none of my letter writers were CSD professors. I felt insecure about it at first, but I was told by a professor along the way that quality really matters. If you're sure the people writing you letters will write you great ones, that may be more important. It is up to you what you choose to do, but I got in! Hope that helps.

[Liza_Ann_92]

On 10/30/2020 at 10:54 AM, mckennahslp said:

Hi! So I applied last fall and none of my letter writers were CSD professors. I felt insecure about it at first, but I was told by a professor along the way that quality really matters. If you're sure the people writing you letters will write you great ones, that may be more important. It is up to you what you choose to do, but I got in! Hope that helps.

Hi! It looks like I won't have letters from CSD professors. I was starting to feel insecure too, but I'm doing better. Of course I'm disappointed, but I'm satisfied with my recommenders. I have letters from my supervisor, SPED teacher, and SPED professor all whom I have solid relationships with. I do agree, quality is very important! They will help make or break your application. 

[Liza_Ann_92]

On 10/29/2020 at 1:54 PM, BriP157 said:

Hey Liza!! Yes I currently have my advisor and an SLP professor writing me letters of rec. Crazy how things can change so quickly. I almost didn't ask my advisor but then I thought about it, and she is the closest acadmic relationship I have. My advisor has seen my successes and difficulties and is the one who can speak to my academic journey the most acurately. I'm glad to hear you were also able to to gain more letters of rec it sounds like you are still short one though. You could always ask your academic advisor. Honestly they know us better than most of our professors and they see our grades every semester not just for one class. I hope it works out, I know this is a super stressful time. 

Hi! I was able to get a third recommender, my current supervisor who I have a good relationship with. I work at a school as a paraprofessional  

[smarieSLP2b]

On 10/31/2020 at 3:25 PM, Liza_Ann_92 said:

Hi! I was able to get a third recommender, my current supervisor who I have a good relationship with. I work at a school as a paraprofessional  

I'm so glad you were able to get a third recommender, I had the same issue. Emailed multiple CSD professors and received NO reply. Some of the professors left the university and the others I'm sure either chose to ignore or are swamped due to virtual learning. Thankfully I found a third recommender as well. A grad assistant who is now a professor herself in the field. I hope anyone stumbling across these posts trying to get letters from professors realize that most schools "recommend/prefer" CSD professors but supervisors/employers or anyone considered "above you" should work to fulfill the requirements as well. I honestly think obtaining LOR's from CSD professors is much easier when you're still in undergrad.

[S.of.S]

Hey all, I'm so conflicted about something that happened with my letters and I'm wondering if anyone has gone through something similar or if they have some words of advice they can give to handle the situation (IF it can even be salvaged). 

So I got my three recommenders, 2 of them are academic and one is my supervisor at the school I currently work in. I was assured that they'd all sent in their letters. The last one was submitted two weeks before the admissions deadline for Emerson's 2021 Jan. Cohort. 

About two weeks after the deadline closed, I hadn't heard anything so I asked my admissions counselor how things were looking. She called me back a day later to tell me that one of my evaluators had failed to electronically sign his letter, so the review team could not make a decision until that was done! I quickly got in touch with him and he figured it out. The counselor told me that now everything had been recieved. 

Its been about a week since then and I've heard nothing else back. I'm not sure what to do, I'm an anxious mess. I guess what I'm wondering is if my chances of getting in were blown by the lack of a signature? It ended up being "fixed" but not until nearly two weeks after the admissions deadline had closed :( I suppose the only way to know for sure is to send the admissions counselor another email... but I have this irrational fear that bothering her too much will negatively impact me, which I understand is stupid since she doesn't have anything to do with the final admissions decision, but I can't seem to shake that fear just yet. I'm also worried about how much I can count on this particular evaluator, since I also sent him a request for the CSDCAS portal and he still hasn't responded. It's so surprising because we were quite close during my undergrad and I never imagined he'd be the one I have to stay on top of throughout this process! 

So... yeah there's my story and I'm not sure what to do next. I will appreciate anything any of you can offer me. Thanks a bunch ?✌

[smarieSLP2b]

On 11/10/2020 at 7:52 PM, S.of.S said:

Hey all, I'm so conflicted about something that happened with my letters and I'm wondering if anyone has gone through something similar or if they have some words of advice they can give to handle the situation (IF it can even be salvaged). 

So I got my three recommenders, 2 of them are academic and one is my supervisor at the school I currently work in. I was assured that they'd all sent in their letters. The last one was submitted two weeks before the admissions deadline for Emerson's 2021 Jan. Cohort. 

About two weeks after the deadline closed, I hadn't heard anything so I asked my admissions counselor how things were looking. She called me back a day later to tell me that one of my evaluators had failed to electronically sign his letter, so the review team could not make a decision until that was done! I quickly got in touch with him and he figured it out. The counselor told me that now everything had been recieved. 

Its been about a week since then and I've heard nothing else back. I'm not sure what to do, I'm an anxious mess. I guess what I'm wondering is if my chances of getting in were blown by the lack of a signature? It ended up being "fixed" but not until nearly two weeks after the admissions deadline had closed I suppose the only way to know for sure is to send the admissions counselor another email... but I have this irrational fear that bothering her too much will negatively impact me, which I understand is stupid since she doesn't have anything to do with the final admissions decision, but I can't seem to shake that fear just yet. I'm also worried about how much I can count on this particular evaluator, since I also sent him a request for the CSDCAS portal and he still hasn't responded. It's so surprising because we were quite close during my undergrad and I never imagined he'd be the one I have to stay on top of throughout this process! 

So... yeah there's my story and I'm not sure what to do next. I will appreciate anything any of you can offer me. Thanks a bunch ?✌

Well, Emerson College does not use CSDCAS for their online Speech@ Emerson program, I assume that's the online January 2021 cohort you applied to? I am pretty sure if the admissions counselor told you directly that everything was received/fixed in their system that they will still be considering you for their Jan. '21 cohort. Otherwise they would've let you know if it was incomplete and not being considered. If I were you, I'd consider finding another back up recommender for your CSDCAS apps. Deadlines on CSDCAS are more harsh/strict and the last thing you need is this professor submitting their rec late. I would begin gently reminding him 2-3 weeks before your CSDCAS deadlines are due. But yeah overall I don't think you should feel overly anxious about this situation. I wouldn't bother reaching out to the admissions counselor anymore, at this point the school just has to make their decision or they may allow you to resubmit your app for the May 2021 cohort.

Edited November 27, 2020 by smarieSLP2b

[S.of.S]

9 minutes ago, smarieSLP2b said:

Well, Emerson College does not use CSDCAS for their online Speech@ Emerson program, I assume that's the online January 2021 cohort you applied to? I am pretty sure if the admissions counselor told you directly that everything was received/fixed in their system that they will still be considering you for their Jan. '21 cohort. Otherwise they would've let you know if it was incomplete and not being considered. If I were you, I'd consider finding another back up recommender for your CSDCAS apps. Deadlines on CSDCAS are more harsh/strict and the last thing you need is this professor submitting their rec late. I would begin gently reminding him 2-3 weeks before your CSDCAS deadlines are due. But yeah overall I don't think you should feel overly anxious about this situation. I wouldn't bother reaching out to the admissions counselor anymore, at this point the school just has to make their decision or they may allow you to resubmit your app for the May 2021 cohort.

Thank you sooo much! Another friend of mine told me the same thing a couple days ago. I really appreciate your feedback. I'm gonna look into backups for the CSDCAS and in regards to Emerson I'm just gonna rest easy until I get a response from them.