<p>I worked over the summer under a manager with a PhD in Physical Chemistry at a pharmaceutical analysis lab. I was in the lab every day running HPLC and GCMS for QC purposes. It was also my job to write reports, take inventory and do any necessary maintanance of instruments. I fulfilled the job to expectations and also found the solution to a problem that saved the company at least 10000 USD in direct costs and 2 months of supplies, therefore I expect a solid letter.</p>
<p>Would this be a good recommendation letter writer? I only have 2 professors that would write me a letter, is a manager with a PhD just as good?</p>
<p>What level are you applying to? MS or PhD? Either way, this would be a good addition to your recommendation list. However, if you are applying for a research master’s or PhD, you need to have a research advisor as a recommender in addition to the professors. This guy would be your additional, 4th recommendation in that case.</p>
<p>I would check to see if the schools you are applying to have any preference about that.</p>
<p>unfortunately i do not have a research opportunity yet… i did before and i blew it, got a B then an F, no excuses, just personal reasons. i have applied to numerous other undergrad research positions at my university and no professor accepted.</p>
<p>i thought that a technical manager with a PhD should be at equivalent to a professor? i mean that’s what both are, right? managers and researchers with PhD level technical knowledge.</p>
<p>An F is pretty pathetic; I’m not sure it’s worth the opportunity cost to spend time on this application. You clearly don’t have the dedication needed to actually excel in this position even if you were hired.</p>
<p>Do your schools require the recs to be specifically from a professor? If not, then a manager could be just as valuable.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If you are applying for a PhD program, you need research. Offer to intern at labs instead of being paid. Yes, it will suck but if you do that one summer, you can use that to get a paid position within the lab or at another one. </p></li>
<li><p>There is a difference between a manager with a PhD and a professor, especially in your case. The lab you worked at is more on the technical side, less research related. You were testing compounds for safety or things of that nature, right? That is not really what PhD schools are looking for when they mean research, though the experience is valuable nonetheless.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>hey like i said, no excuses on the F, i accept i did bad work, disagree it was F bad, probably a C, but that’s life. again, people do turn around when they find their real interests. again, what are you worried about? a company let me in to use machines worth hundreds of thousands USD, i made a positive contribution to the company, the manager’s agreed to write me a letter, i’m not seeing how i’m lacking other than a grade from a research project in a field extremely far from what i plan to do.</p>
<p>the schools i looked at do not seem to absolutely require recommendation from professors. i think that’s be fine. it’s not like i have no professors writing, there’s 2 that can write me good letters, just that it’s only for classes and i want someone who can testify to my ability to do hands on, real work. my question is, would this manager’s word carry as much weight as a professor?</p>
<p>mace: thanks for the help. i was doing quantitative analysis on drug samples. i agree though, it is more technical than theoretical research.</p>
<p>I still don’t know if you are applying for a master’s or a PhD, but it would be very strange not to have a research advisor write you a recommendation if you intend to pursue anything research related. If it’s not a master’s focused on research, then it doesn’t seem like a big deal to get the third recommendation from this guy. I would always contact the school to clarify it, though.</p>
<p>First, a PhD in X is not the same as a Professor in X. As you know, university research is very different from the type of work one does in industry – and for this reason, your manager has a completely different set of metrics when it comes to evaluating your potential. That said, his letter should be included in your package, especially in programs that allow an optional fourth letter. If you don’t have a third professor, go with this guy as your third, knowing that his letter won’t be held in the same regard as a professor’s. Applicants often have two strong letters and one that doesn’t carry as much weight; in your case, you will be including a non-academic letter that describes your abilities in the field, so it won’t be as weak as a “did well in class” letter. Still, you should check the websites of individual programs. Some explicitly state that all letters must come from professors. </p>
<p>As MaceVindaloo points out, master’s programs have a different set of criteria. In this case, your manager’s letter probably would be considered a strong contribution.</p>
<p>For what it is worth, I had more than 1 F on my transcript, AND had a PhD in industry write one of my three letters. I did just fine. As Mom noted, many people have one “weak” LOR, and I would consider an industry LOR from a PhD to be superior to a “got an A in my class” letter from a professor.</p>
<p>I do agree with the crowd that your weak spot is your lack of research experience - this is something you should address, especially if you want into a PhD program. Alternately, a masters program is more likely to admit you without that research experience.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the help.</p>
<p>I’m just looking for any grad program, I was thinking of applying to Master’s at more selective universities and phD programs at the very non-selective ones. However I think it’ll be better if I stuck with master’s for all programs. In that case, it seems like it won’t matter too much.</p>
<p>Will I still be able to do a thesis and have the opportunity to do research or even publish if I enter a master’s that’s at first all coursework based?</p>