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Recommendation NIGHTMARE! Can I start a new application?

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Recommendation NIGHTMARE! Can I start a new application?

by bauer267 » Tue Aug 10, 2010 2:56 pm
Long story short...

This morning one of my recommenders walks into my office and shows me a printed copy of his LOR. I received very high marks and overall a very positive review, BUT it is obvious not a lot of thought went into this. The sentence structure is off, the topic jumps around...NO EXAMPLES to back up any claim (a month ago I spent over a hour explaining the packet of information I put together, just so this would not happen)! UGH!

From the Adcom's perspective, it would seem that I went after a high ranking officer who didn't know me that well and didn't care enough about the process. Although in reality this is not the case at all, those details are irreverent...I already expressed my concerns with him about the LOR. Pretty much he thinks he did an excellent job (evidenced by his willingness to show me the form) and Adcom is free to call him with any questions/clarifications.

I am applying to only Top 10 schools and really do not want to use this LOR as part of my application package. What can I do? Can I create a completely new application account? Should I call the schools and try to explain?
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by Tani » Tue Aug 10, 2010 9:03 pm
I recognize that you are mildly freaked out at the moment, but try to take a step back and look at the letter more calmly. First, sentence structure and grammar are not a problem. The admissions committee is not evaluating your recommender for admission. They are looking for content. On the other hand, it seems that you are concerned about the content - whether your recommender has supported his claims. There is really not much you can do about it at this point. You did your best to provide input. The fact that he has shown it to you says he is proud of it. He obviously feels he has done you a service by saying great things about you. Those "great things" will carry weight. Of course it would be better if they were thoroughly supported, but right now they aren't.

What you can't do is raise a fuss with admissions over this recommendation. That would give the admissions committee the wrong impression. You would appear to be ungrateful and micro-managing - even whiny. Not good! They recognize that not all recommenders are very good at putting together a letter. They will not "punish" you for what you see as the deficiencies. Does the writer's sincerity show through? Apparently he thinks highly of you. If his enthusiasm and regard show through, that will still say a lot in your favor.

If your other letter has not been sent in, you might check with that individual and reiterate that the school will be looking for concrete examples and ask whether that person feels he/she has enough direct material to respond to the request. Do not try to tell the recommender what to do. I always advise saying something like "if you are comfortable talking about the time we....", giving the recommender an out and taking any pressure off. Do NOT complain about your other recommender. Best case, the second writer will feel pressured to meet some standard you have set and will either worry excessively (not a frame of mind conducive to enthusiasm) or simply decide not to let you see his response. Worst case, he/she may be an admirer of the other recommender and will resent your complaining. That could dampen the second recommender's enthusiasm for supporting you.

A truly negative recommendation can hurt your chances, a less-than-specific one simply misses a chance to add a few points to your presentation. The latter is not going to trash your chances of getting into a school. Raising a fuss might.

So relax. This guy said good (if unfortunately vague) things about you. The letter is in on time and he tried to help your case. You got "very high marks" and "Overall a very positive review". Plenty of people would kill to be sure of that. It is very unlikely that his writing ability (or lack thereof) will significantly impact your chances.

Turn you attention to your own essays. Focus on those things that are under your control. Good luck!
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by tohin » Thu Jan 06, 2011 11:28 am
Hi,

Similar story.
I forwarded my manager a recommendation from someone else.
For some unknown reason, he took a paragraph from it (about team player skills) and barely edited it.
The issue is that both person are recommending me for the same school.

It looks extremely odd, as wording are identical.
This is my favorite school and I feel terrible, as I think this will look awful.

I'm also considering starting my app again and asking my recommenders to resubmit their recommendation (I don't have a Social Security number).

What do you think? What could go wrong with this?

Thanks for your advice.

Vincent
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by Tani » Thu Jan 06, 2011 11:50 am
I would not try to fool the committee by submitting two apps. Remember, the schools are looking at what is said about you, not whether your recommenders are copying off each other. If you are very concerned, contact the school and talk to someone in admissions about your concern. Using a second application could automatically disqualify you if you get caught. Very risky.
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by tohin » Thu Jan 06, 2011 12:45 pm
Tani,

First of all, thank you very much for your rapid feedback.
This is not the first time you've given me valuable advice, and I appreciate your help.

Just to clarify, I did not submit the first application.
I started it, but nothing has been validated. I did not submit it, and did not pay the app fees.
However, both recos were submitted and received by the school.
Do you think that if I started a new one, this could be considered wrong by an admission committee?

In such a case, I think I would simply submit my application and see what happens.
If the adcom asks me why there are two similar paragraphs in 2 different LORs, I'll explain what happened.
This is extremely frustrating, after 7 months of preparation to be hit so hard by sthg I have little control over.
I guess that's a valuable lesson for myself and other candidates: do not forward the LOR from a recommender to another one.

My main issue at this stage is that I applied to a mandatory itw on campus, and that I'm wondering if it makes sense to travel if my chances to be admitted are poor.

If anyone else has an idea, please feel free to step in.

Thanks

V
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