Importance Of Letter Of Recommendation ( LOR)

Before we dive right away into the importance of LoRs and how do you get it, let us understand the meaning of LoRs. An Letter of Recommendation is a paper that provides the admission executives with a comprehensive report of your candidature for admission into the concerned University.

This paper presents a promising depiction of your experience, accomplishments, expertise, and abilities to the admission council which is generally conveyed by a recommender through the suggestion letter. An LoR displays information that is not mentioned in your resume or SoP. Generally, LoRs are categorized into two types:

Academic LOR

An academic LoR is generally submitted by a faculty member of your undergrad institute preferably one who has a close relationship with you. It's important that you ask from a professor who knows you well and has relevant experience with you.

Professional LOR

The Professional Letter of Recommendation addresses your professional experience with the company, your ability to work in a team and also cites your leadership and management skills. It's helpful if the recommender is your project head or your management head who has witnessed your growth in the company. The recommender should support your claims and ventures to make your letter a credible one.

Wondering what needs to be in a letter of recommendation?

An LoR must include three essential components :

1. A dedicated paragraph where your professor/recommender explains how they know you and the duration of your relationship with them.
2. An assessment of your profile by the recommender.
3. A profile on your skills and accomplishments.

The LoRs should provide your qualifications and achievements endorsed by the relevant recommender such that the admission committee can review your profile from a third person perspective. Approaching a teacher who knows you skin-deep can help you as he can refer to your personal character, strengths, and weaknesses in the letter. Lastly, your projects mentioned in the SoP should also align to that mentioned in your LoRS.

4 reasons why LoRs are important for landing an admission-

1. LoRs provide a third perspective impression of an aspirant's candidature.
2. The letter provides a profile of your leadership and team-management skills to the admission officers.
3. The letter states that the professor knows the student and offers some substance to explain the scholar's credibility and personal character.
4. This letter also provides the admission council a review of the candidate's expertise and achievements that are not included in the SoP.