<p>I'm just wondering if a rec from a top-notch politician would not seem arrogant in one's application.</p>
<p>I don't want to seem like I'm showing off or anything. This person knows me and my achievements well and I imagine a rec from a person of such caliber is only a positive.</p>
<p>Anyone have any tentative ideas about how colleges look at such things?</p>
<p>I don't see why not. If this politician knows you well, go for it. Applying to colleges is, in truth, a big brag-fest, esp for Ivy League colleges.</p>
<p>When I was at BU, they said they didn't care so much.</p>
<p>They usually just assume that the person only barely knows you. I would only do it unless the person is one of your closest family friends who not just knows you, but knows you amazingly well.</p>
<p>Networking in the work world is vital and politicans are pros at this. Every good business person knows exactly who their friends are and where they can be of service (and where they can't). Based on that, I'd ask my politican friend what they think. If they think it will help you, then do it. If they sound "less than encouraging", drop the idea.</p>
<p>i think u should do it. i mean, if the person knows u really well and can write an amazzzzzing rec, then i dont see why not.</p>
<p>recs are supposed to be from mentors/teachers who have a close connection to you. it can be from a simple math teacher, or it can be the president. lol</p>
<p>just go for it. ull have more than 1 too. so if u feel weird having one from such a high politician, you have others that still work too.</p>
<p>Just don't expect a rec letter from a politician to score extra points for you, just because it's from a politician. It carries no more weight than a letter from clergy, your family doctor or someone else in your community.</p>
<p>You would probably do better with a rec from someone you performed community service for.</p>
<p>And remember, a rec letter from Hillary Clinton probably will not help you if the adcom reading it is politically conservative ... if you get my drift!</p>
<p>lol gsp has got a good point . . . you don't know the political standing of the person reading it!</p>
<p>Depends, I doubt Berkeley will seriously hound an applicant with a letter by a liberal politician.</p>
<p>My point is that adcoms can bleeding-heart liberal or stanchly conservative, even at Berkeley. Adcoms are human beings with many ideological viewpoints, who may not always be 100% objective in their review of apps.</p>
<p>And I'm not just thinking about politicians either. How far do you think that a rec letter from Larry Ellison would go with Harvard adcoms right now? </p>
<p>Here in San Jose, the mayor has been indicted by the county grand jury. I sure don't think that a rec letter from him would help any student right now, not even at Berkeley or San Jose State.</p>
<p>These are extreme examples. An applicant has to consider if a politician or other "celebrity" will help or hurt the applicant. They can bring unnecessary baggage to the application review.</p>
<p>Most politicians won't, but some could!</p>
<p>Sure, go ahead. But just a word of caution. Somebody tried to do the same thing and got 2 recommendation from Tom DeLay and Newt Gingrich and applied to Texas A&M. Texas rejected him citing that he fabricated the recommendation letters. However, he repealed and was succesfully admitted to the school.</p>
<p>Politicans (particularly "top-notch" ones ;)) generally don't write their own letters. If, in this case, the politician himself/herself is going to be writing the letter and he or she does in fact know you personally, then I'd say it probably couldn't hurt you. A teacher's opinion of you and a politicians opinion of you are equally credible to a college.</p>