<p>Does anyone have any experience getting LOR's from professors of online courses? Is getting a strong LOR in this situation hopeless? </p>
<p>My undergraduate program is exclusively online (part of a well ranked university here in Boston and NOT Univ Phoenix). My adviser was overly optimistic about the situation which scared me a little. </p>
<p>This is what one of my professors wrote me:</p>
<p>"Yes, I'll be glad to write you a letter of recommendation to help you with the process. Your work did stand out during the term and I do remember it to be of a high standard, so I can write you a brief but positive letter which points to this fact. I won't need the rest of the material you are talking about, though- I still do have all of your coursework, and I'll only be addressing your actual performance in the class (both your academic work and positive interaction with your classmates and myself)." </p>
<p>I am applying to Masters programs in Journalism but many of the schools strongly preffered academic over professional recommendors (unless they were internship supervisors in a newspaper or media setting)</p>
<p>Oh yeah, really no way to get out of that. Maybe you can substitute supervisors. Do you have any journalism related experience? Those would provide the best recommendations. If you don't you should start volunteering for publications...even if it is a local church or non profit organization. You can maybe help with their newsletter or web site.</p>
<p>The demands of working full time and going to school full time leave me with little time to pursue any volunteer work. Do you think that I should stick with this professor and hope for the best? Or am I setting myself for rejection? </p>
<p>I do work at a non profit and my work involves a fair amount of writing- but only from a technical standpoint. I used to be part of a blog consortium when I was living in the Middle East but seeing as it was an Arabic blog and the logistics involved with getting a recommendation only make this more challenging. :(</p>
<p>Sheelo81, your situation isn't ideal, but I don't think you should feel hopeless.</p>
<p>First of all, what are your other options for academic recommenders? Do you have any? What about other professors in this program?</p>
<p>Second of all, is the professor you mentioned a tenured faculty member at the well-ranked Boston institution that hosts your program?</p>
<p>Third, what is the "rest of the material" that your professor mentions? Do you think you could have given him the impression that you expected him to address some aspect of your academic career or performance that took place outside his class? That might explain the word "brief."</p>
<p>Update: This professor decided not to go through witht he process- instead, he will be sending me the letter and it is up to me to "do what I wanted with it"- how cruel... especially after hitting it off with him in class. </p>
<p>Good point Loft629- I am actually at Northeastern, which is a good school. I am considering approaching my work supervisor at this stage- though I am scared to given that I havent told anyone about my intentions to leave. This is the third professor to turn me down already and I am running out of options. </p>
<p>I was going to send him an information packet containing among other things- my statement of purpose, Resume, Final paper for the class and a small blurb on each of the programs I was applying to. I guess he got turned off by having to go through each school's log in system to submit the LOR. </p>
<p>At this stage, I am also distantly considering waiting for one more year and focusing on building relationships with my professors- though I would LOVE to start next fall. </p>
<p>Though I may come off as discombobulated- any advice would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Hmmm. Sheelo81, your work supervisor might be a good option, but it still doesn't solve the problem of who will be writing your <em>academic</em> recommendation(s). </p>
<p>Knowing very little about your situation, it sounds to me as if you might be glad in the long run if you took another year to apply. Painful as it might be in the short run, it could have a major payoff.</p>