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Articles of interest to law and pre-law students will be featured here. Some of the articles will be rotated as they are quite informative. Most are written by John Richardson, however some other authors will be featured, as well as any other sources of key info for law students. So, keep checking back for new articles and information.

The Richardson Newsletter

Effective Letters of Reference -
and how to get them.

If you are thinking of applying to grad school, or some kind of professional school the chances are that you will need a letter of reference.

Be careful about how you go about getting them. In my years of counseling students I have seen students ruined by bad letters and helped enormously by good letters. So, here are some suggestions for how to approach the problem.

There are two kinds of letters. The first is an academic reference. The second is a non-academic reference. An academic reference is to comment on your ability to do academic work. A non-academic reference is to be used to comment on your capacity as a worker, volunteer, or anything else.

You should first determine the kind of reference that is required. In other words, what kind of reference is relevant? Is it an academic reference or is it some other kind of reference? Then determine what are the admissions criteria for the program that you wish to enter. For example, is work experience taken into account? What about extracurricular activities? The kinds of references that are relevant for mature students may be different from the references that are helpful for those who have always been in school.

Once you decide who you are going to approach you must first qualify the person and then educate the person.

First, the qualification issue. Never simply ask someone to write you a reference. They may write a negative or otherwise unhelpful one. The appropriate qualification question is:

"Do you feel that you could and would you be willing to write me a positive letter of reference?"

If the person says no, then run. If the person says yes, then move on to the education issue. Now, the education issue. Students frequently assume that professors know about the admission requirements for the program they are trying to enter. There is no reason why a professor should. Hence, it is your job to meet with the professor and explain the admission requirements and what sorts of things would make the letter of reference relevant. This will ensure that the letter is focused and useful to the committee that is deciding on the fate of your application.

One final comment. Many students are concerned that they don't know a professor well enough to ask for a letter of reference. First, why not meet one? They don't bite. Second, many of you know your teaching assistants reasonably well. Teaching assistants can be sources of very credible and helpful letters of reference.