LOR from Grad and Under program

[icedance]

Hey All

I am thinking of whether I should get a letter from my undergraduate program. I have my under in China, although the best program. Now I am studying in U.S and 3 letter writers are all senior professors, who are famous in each subfield. But someone suggest me to get one still from my under program because I studied 4 years there, while only 2 yrs in U.S.

What do you guys think? Of course, the one I get from under can not compete with American professors at reputation.

Thanks

[runonsentence]

If you potentially have three strong letters from a graduate program, I say use them. If you think one of your letters would be stronger coming from this Chinese program, then get one from your undergrad professor. It's all about what you think will be strongest. It sounds like you think your grad program will have stronger letters, especially since you indicated those letter writers are well known in their subfield.

I don't think there's a real right or wrong, here. But letters from your grad program professors will be best able to reflect your recent work (whereas your undergrad letters would be, by comparison, a little out-of-date, so to speak) and will be better able to speak to your capacity to do graduate-level work.

[fuzzylogician]

LORs from your current program are probably your best bet - they will be more updated, speak to your current activities and research abilities within a grad program and will be from professors who understand the American system better than foreign professors. I think it'd look completely natural if you only chose writers from your current grad program and not from your undergrad so there is no need to choose a writer just to "represent" your old school. But as runonsentence correctly points out, if you think one of your professors from undergrad can write you a stronger letter than one of your professors from grad school, choose the stronger letter.

Edited September 26, 2011 by fuzzylogician

[icedance]

Thank you guys! Very helpful