Asking PhD-level data analyst for LOR?

[Jeffry]

I am a current master's student, and will be applying to PhD programs this Fall for Fall 2014 admission and thought I should start considering who should write my three letters. While my first letter writer is obvious (a professor for whom I am doing research), I am unsure about my second. Working for that same professor is a university 'Data Analyst', who holds a PhD in computer science. However she is not a professor nor on any sort of tenure track (post-doc, asst. prof., etc.). I was wondering if they could potentially be an appropriate writer? If not, my other two writers would be a former employer at a restaurant, and my faculty advisor whom I've only met with once thus far (although we might meet again to discuss my master's thesis project). Of those two just listed, I am only 100% certain I could get a letter from the employer, but think I could also get one from the advisor. If the data analyst was an appropriate writer, would she be better than the employer (who has nothing to do with grad school)? Any advice would be helpful. Thanks!

[Arcanen]

other two writers would be a former employer at a restaurant

 

would she be better than the employer (who has nothing to do with grad school)?

 

 

 

You can't possibly be serious. Letters of recommendation for PhD programs need to be from people well respected in academia who are in a position to comment on your ability to perform high level research in your desired field. If you somehow managed to get into your current masters program despite sending a recommendation from this employer, you got in despite this letter, and not because of it. The admissions committee probably mocked you for it. It is not my intention to be mean, but seriously...   That you cook a mean omelet is not exactly relevant to innovative research in epidemiology.

 

It's better to have as many well-respected professors as recommendation writers as possible, but it shouldn't be an issue to have one who isn't tenure track given that they have a PhD and are presumably very familiar with your research work. 

[wtncffts]

Considering you're applying this fall, and thus will have been in your MA program for a year and a half (or maybe already done, depending on the length), you should easily be able to get three letters from profs in your current program who know your work. If you can't, you should work on that from now til the fall.