Help me choose 4 out of 5 Recommenders

[Waves]

The PhD program (Social Work) I'm applying to requires 4 (minimum of 2 academic). I have 3 professors that are willing to write strong recommendations for me and my current supervisor. The 5th person I had asked if she would be willing is a Judge. Most of the cases I handle is in her court room and she has complimented my work (lots of lengthy cour reports, working with diverse clients and interdisciplinary team, trials, etc.). She said she would be more than willing to write a strong recommendation for me.

So I am wondering if I should stick with 2 academic, 1 superviosr and the Judge or 3 academic and 1 supervisor? Any thoughts??

Thanks in advance!

[Kitkat]

The PhD program (Social Work) I'm applying to requires 4 (minimum of 2 academic). I have 3 professors that are willing to write strong recommendations for me and my current supervisor. The 5th person I had asked if she would be willing is a Judge. Most of the cases I handle is in her court room and she has complimented my work (lots of lengthy cour reports, working with diverse clients and interdisciplinary team, trials, etc.). She said she would be more than willing to write a strong recommendation for me.

So I am wondering if I should stick with 2 academic, 1 superviosr and the Judge or 3 academic and 1 supervisor? Any thoughts??

Thanks in advance!

I am not in your field, so take this with a grain of salt, but what I would say is see if the programs that you are applying to will take a fifth rec first. Explain the situation, saying that you think that they would get a better idea of your qualifications. If not, I think the recs that you should send on depends on what you would want to do after you get your PhD. If the work that you have done with judge is something that works well with you want to continue doing, I would say go with that.

[Waves]

Thanks Kitkat! I had asked them and the ysaid they would take 5 although they said they only typically read 3 or 4. So not sure what to do and the Judge just wrote me an email asking where the recommendation materials are. :-(

[votanor]

same as kitkat I don't know much about social work programs but I would stick with the required 4 letters and the judge sounds like an excellent choice especially since she commended you on your work. In what capacity did you work for the judge - was it during a paid position, internship etc. and did you report directly to her? These would be things to consider but if she agreed to write the letter then it means she knows you and likes you enough to make a strong statement about you.

Edited October 29, 2010 by yaronatov

[Waves]

Hi Yaronatov! Thanks for your reply. I did not report directly to the Judge as I have a supervisor but my cases are heard in her court. She reads my court reports (that includes facts, assessments and recommendations) and she sees me in her court room a lot of times, discussing cases with attorneys, professionals from other disciplines, and with her and have been qualified as an expert witness in her court room during a trial. Not sure though if she is going to point this out in her letter. So yeah, not directly reporting to her but the bulk of what I do are written in a court report and that makes her familiar with my work.

I hope that my explanation made sense.

[schoolpsych_hopeful]

I would definitely have the judge write one of your letters. The context in which she saw you work is way different than your professors, so she'll be able to provide a different perspective. Especially in a field like social work, I think her letter would be very advantageous.

As for the other letters, I would go with your supervisor and 2 professors. This is an overstatement, but letters from professors usually say basically the same thing. This will vary a bit depending on how much you worked with them (i.e., just in class, conducting research, etc.). If I were you, I'd ask the two professors who know you the best and who will write the strongest letters.

Edited October 29, 2010 by schoolpsych_hopeful

[DrFaustus666]

Hi,

First let me preface this by saying my employer is the U.S. Judiciary, where judges are have only slightly lesser status than the deity of your choice. So, take it with a grain of salt.

I'd ask the Judge. I also don't know your field, but I do know mine -- and around here, if a judge smiles at you, you get promoted; if he/she frowns at you, you might receive a disciplinary letter.

My two cents.

Good luck.

John

[Waves]

Thank you all! DrFaustu, thanks for putting it in perspective. yes, that holds true also over here where I work. I'm fortunate that this Judge sees the value of my work and respects it. I had asked her back in July and had recently gotten an email from her asking for the forms because she would like to help me as much as she can.

so today i emailed her my reply and the automated email for request for reference.

Thanks again!