Hi! I’m a Virginia student who is a Virginia Space Coast Scholar 20’ (VSCS). I am currently applying to college and considering who I should ask for letters of recommendation. I plan to ask people close to me for LOR (teachers, counselors, mentors, etc.) In August of 2020, I received a letter from a member of the House of Delegates congratulating me on completion of VSCS. At the ending of the letter, the government official said something along the lines of continuing to work on my academic journey and that if they can ever be in assistance to my future pursuits to contact and reach out to them (lists phone and email address.)
After researching, a lot of people advised against requesting LOR from gov. officials as they aren’t personal. However, given that I received this letter, would it be beneficial to request a LOR? I don’t want to come across as unprofessional by requesting a LOR from them but I think it’s worth a shot to ask. Any opinions?
I would check schools you are applying to and see if any even take LOR’s from a Gov Official. Many schools don’t take that many LOR’s and the ones they do are from your teachers and GC. At least that was out experience last year.
No. U got a form letter. Yes you did great but they have zero connection to you and the letter would be meaningless. Obviously you need two teachers. If you go outside school get someone who knows you and define you…employer, rabbi/priest, coach, activity leader etc
That’s kinda what I was assuming too based on what I read on other forums/threads. I just wanted to double-check and make sure. I’ll definitely try to stick with more personal LOR, thank you!
ah I didn’t know that! I think I’ll stay on the safe side and opt-out of requesting one as most forums and replies are advising against it (plus taking into account what you said, I realize it’s probably best not to). Thanks for the reply!