What do you guys think of submitting a 4th LOR?

[burgundywave]

My original plan for my recommenders was as follows:

Recommender #1:  Current research supervisor & professor (pretty well-known in my area of research)

Recommender #2:  Summer research supervisor & professor (famous in his area)

Recommender #3: Professor & Dean of my program. 

However, I just asked recommender #2 for the LOR and he said no. It was a definitive no, there is no way I'm getting a LOR from him. In substitution of Recommender #2 I will ask a post-doc I was working with in that research group. It's a good thing because he's in a way better position to evaluate my abilities than the prof. However, he is not a prof. 

Because Letter #2 will be perceived as a LOR of "lesser" quality by the admission committee, I'm thinking of submitting a 4th letter to compensate for that. The 4th letter would be from a prof I've been TAing for for nearly a year. However, his area of expertise (finance) and the course I'm TAing has nothing to do with what I want to research/study. I know for a fact that he would ask me to draft the letter for him because my friend asked him for one before.

So, what do you guys think? Does anyone have experience with submitting a 4th letter? 

Thanks!

 

 

[TakeruK]

I would only submit a 4th LOR if it was as good quality as the other three. I would not use another LOR of "lesser" quality (what you're suggesting for you #4) to "compensate" for a "lesser" LOR (#2). After all, what looks better: 2 out of 3 strong LORs or 2 out of 4 strong LORs?

[fuzzylogician]

Did prof #2 say 'no' because he doesn't know you well enough? If so, maybe there is a way to have him co-sign the letter with the postdoc, to make the situation better. Either way, I agree with what TakeruK said above: only include additional materials if they strengthen your application. 

[burgundywave]

Alright, I think I'll stick with 3 LORs then. Thanks
@fuzzylogician: no, he knows me pretty well. At first he said he didn't have time and when I insisted that a letter from him would really mean a lot he said that I should have told him that I didn't want to do grad school with him. If he had known he wouldn't have given me the research position. He never asked what my future plans were when he interviewed me. Anyway, we're in pretty bad terms now so I can't really ask him to co-sign the letter. How bad does it look though to have a postdoc writing your letter without the prof co-signing it?

 

[fuzzylogician]

Alright, I think I'll stick with 3 LORs then. Thanks
@fuzzylogician: no, he knows me pretty well. At first he said he didn't have time and when I insisted that a letter from him would really mean a lot he said that I should have told him that I didn't want to do grad school with him. If he had known he wouldn't have given me the research position. He never asked what my future plans were when he interviewed me. Anyway, we're in pretty bad terms now so I can't really ask him to co-sign the letter. How bad does it look though to have a postdoc writing your letter without the prof co-signing it?

That's too bad about the professor. It's fine not to have the letter co-signed by the prof. You're getting a detailed letter from someone who knows you well, and that is a strong letter. If the prof had co-signed, it might have been given somewhat more weight, assuming that the prof is well-known and experienced and the postdoc isn't. That said, we can't quantify how much it would have helped, and again, the letter you'll have sounds like a good one. It doesn't look bad just because it's only from the postdoc.

[burgundywave]

That's too bad about the professor. It's fine not to have the letter co-signed by the prof. You're getting a detailed letter from someone who knows you well, and that is a strong letter. If the prof had co-signed, it might have been given somewhat more weight, assuming that the prof is well-known and experienced and the postdoc isn't. That said, we can't quantify how much it would have helped, and again, the letter you'll have sounds like a good one. It doesn't look bad just because it's only from the postdoc.

I'm glad to hear that. Thanks for your help!