Who should write letters of recommendation for me?
The best people to ask for letters of recommendation
are your professors, because law school is an academic
program. Choose those professors who are familiar with your work,
and in whose classes you have done well. The professor
of a course in which you have
done some writing or research would be a particularly
good choice. Do not choose a
politician or an attorney, unless you know this person is very familiar
with your work
through employment or an internship. If this is the case, then the politician's
or attorney's
letter should be your third letter, not your first or second. Give
your recommenders enough
time to write your letter, but not too much time. Three to four weeks is ideal.
Provide your
recommenders with a current resume and enough information about what you do
outside of
class so that they have a more complete picture of you. Also give them a transcript,
and
postage. Most professors do not mind writing multiple
letters of recommendation, as long
as they are writing one to begin with, so do not
divide up the work by giving a few
recommendation forms to one person and a few to
another. Although it is your personal
decision, many professors prefer that you waive your right to see the letter
of
recommendation. If you do not sign the waiver,
remember that this right applies only to the letter sent to the
school where you finally enroll, and not to the letters sent to the schools
where you are rejected.