Interfolio for English applications??

[riverbender]

I was talking to my advisor about the uncertainty of this year's cycle and the possibility of being shut out being more likely if cohorts are smaller, etc. He recommended having my letters of rec submitted on interfolio so I would have them ready to go this year and next. I was a bit shocked by this because I thought interfolio was a big red flag in academia. So out of curiosity, is it something people use and I am completely missing out or is it a big hurdle to one's application? 

(I'm aware some schools allow it and some don't. Mostly interested if anyone has used it or has any insight on the matter)

[Indecisive Poet]

9 hours ago, riverbender said:

I was talking to my advisor about the uncertainty of this year's cycle and the possibility of being shut out being more likely if cohorts are smaller, etc. He recommended having my letters of rec submitted on interfolio so I would have them ready to go this year and next. I was a bit shocked by this because I thought interfolio was a big red flag in academia. So out of curiosity, is it something people use and I am completely missing out or is it a big hurdle to one's application? 

(I'm aware some schools allow it and some don't. Mostly interested if anyone has used it or has any insight on the matter)

I think most people choose not to use it but I don't see why it would be a 'red flag'. I used it last year because one of my recommenders hinted very strongly that it would be easier on her if I did. I applied to 14 total programs last year – looking back at my notes now, I can see that 8 of those programs accepted letters via Interfolio and 6 did not. This meant 7 total uploads for my recommenders instead of 14. I was admitted to 4 of the 8 Interfolio-compatible programs and 4 of the 6 programs that did not allow uploads via Interfolio.

It costs about $40, I think, to subscribe to Interfolio for a year, and you get something like 50 letter uploads included in that subscription. I'm not sure it's something I would have done if my recommender hadn't pushed me to do it, but it can help your recommenders cut down on uploading time if you plan to apply to more than the usual 10 or so programs. Just double-check which programs do and don't take it first and make sure your letter-writers know they will have to do some uploads separately.

Can I ask (out of curiosity) why you think interfolio is a red flag in academia?

[riverbender]

52 minutes ago, Indecisive Poet said:

Can I ask (out of curiosity) why you think interfolio is a red flag in academia?

It's something I heard *once* somewhere and has stayed in my mind but I have no idea where it came from. I think that person simply meant it was better to have customized letters but again, I don't remember where I heard it. Thanks for sharing your success story using it, it definitely is encouraging to hear!!

[Indecisive Poet]

On 10/15/2020 at 3:27 PM, riverbender said:

It's something I heard *once* somewhere and has stayed in my mind but I have no idea where it came from. I think that person simply meant it was better to have customized letters but again, I don't remember where I heard it. Thanks for sharing your success story using it, it definitely is encouraging to hear!!

Ah, I see what you mean. My recommenders only wrote one generic letter anyway – I don't think writing a customised letter for each program was ever in the cards, and my understanding is that that is not something recommenders generally do, Interfolio or no Interfolio (though I could be wrong about that!). In any case, it didn't seem to hurt me.

[The Maritime Scholar]

I like the idea of Interfolio, but I submitted my applications yesterday and there were already about four out of 12 schools that didn't accept Interfolio. I just feel that if my recommenders are taking the time to write my LOR, then they can take the time to upload each letter. It shouldn't be a hassle. I'm not sure $48 (even though I didn't have to pay for it because it was paid for as a gift) a year is worth it, if I'm just going to use it once (at least for now). Interfolio can maybe be more useful when applying to teaching positions, but I'll have to see when the time comes for that. 

Anyways, fingers crossed ?