LOR strategy

[vsting]

Hi Everyone,

I'm just starting this whole applications process and have a few questions about rec letters.

I already have 2 professors who have agreed to write me letters. Although these 2 will be my primary letters, I also have an employer at a law firm who has agreed to write me a letter. I don't expect this letter to be as strong as the others, as I have only worked for this firm for about 6 months so far and I know the employer uses a template letter.

1. I plan to use this employer's letter as a supplemental letter in case I am waitlisted. Is this a good idea, or should I just submit all 3 letters at once?

2. If I do wait until I get waitlisted to submit a third letter, should the letter from my employer be revised? By the time the cycle is in full swing, I will have worked for the firm for a longer period of time, taken on more responsibilities, and maybe the fact that I'm waitlisted will encourage my employer to write a stronger, more persuasive letter?

3. If I do wait until I get waitlisted to submit a third letter, am I telling the writer to send it directly to the law school or do I have to go through LSDAS?

[TurboGirl]

It seems to me that if you were to get waitlisted, you would want to send a knockout letter and not the least strong one to the school you are trying to get to take another look at you. I would probably just send them all at the same time and hope that the three taken together as a whole would enhance the application package and increase chances of acceptance in the first round.

[Special Agent Dana Scully]

i only used 3 recommendations, 2 from profs and 1 from my employer.  i sent all of them in at the same time.

when i was waitlisted @ Penn, i was going to get the chairman of my dept to write me a letter...if you are waitlisted, just get a totally new letter saying why you would be great for the school and why you should be taken off of the waitlist (and it would help if you could score a directed letter specifically for the school)

[«ě»]

Send all three right away. If waitlisted, dig up another professor who can write something awesomelike.

[Fallon]

Agreed. Send all three.