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Thanks for the quick response! I've got one more if you don't mind. This is a question that should definitely be asked on a school by school basis, but I'd be c

Thanks for the quick response! I've got one more if you don't mind. This is a question that should definitely be asked on a school by school basis, but I'd be curious to know if it is a common occurrence as well (from your experience as a professor). I have a fair more amount of experience as a software engineer in industry than as a student; is it common for prospective students to ask schools the permission to substitute a letter of recommendation from a professor for a letter from a manager or boss?

mattmight 15y ago
It depends on what you're applying for. For undergrad transfers or a terminal masters applicant, industry recs are generally OK. For a Ph.D. student, not much more than one industry rec would be commonly permissible, unless they're from an industrial research lab. For a Ph.D. student, a good industry rec will focus on character, strong work ethic and specific examples of problem-solving ability. Industrial assessment of research potential tends to be mentally damped by the reviewer unless the recommender has a Ph.D.