Hi guys! So i’m a community college student majoring psychology, and planning to transfer in Spring 2016. Currently i’m taking a summer class in NYU as a visiting student, which is also my dream school, taking a statistics course which is from the psychology department. So I remember my professor introduced himself in the first day of the class, he mentioned that he is doing his final year of doctoral program in NYU. I have worked as hard as possible in the class, and sometimes made some stupid mistakes on tests but I did attend every single class, hand in every homework, ask questions after class if I don’t get it, but he does recognize everyone in the class, because it’s a pretty small class, like 2x people.
But i’m not good enough to get an A, the worst might be a B+ or B. I know there is a possible that he might not help me write it, because it’s just a six week class, and not the best student. Do you think asking a recommendation from him would help me to transfer into NYU in the future? I’m too nervous to ask him whether he would help me write also. I hope I could hear some opinion from you guys! Thank you!
Your HS LORs > than this grad student who normally doesn’t teach HS students (nor has much of a long teaching career, likely). Remember, it’s not WHO writes your LOR – it’s how well he/she knows YOU and your interaction amongst students. Your HS teachers see you and know your context. That’s why they’re valuable. This one-time instructor, teaching for the fees, isn’t going to be able to share much context about you. IMHO
@T26E4 Thank you for your opinion! Just want to clarify that i’m a community college student, so I think there is some differences between HS and CC i guess? (I didn’t attend HS in the US ) Yes, things you have said do make sense to me, so I think it is better to find someone else to write me a recommendation letter.
Depends. You could if you wanted to, but keep in mind that it would not be as valuable as it would appear.
Like what T26E4 said, colleges tend to want HS teacher (and a guidance counselor) letters of recommendation because they know your performance as a student best. I recall listening to an admissions officer specifically pointing out this, and stating something along the lines of “We want LoR from your teachers, and not from the most famous person you know.”
but I did attend every single class, hand in every homework, ask questions after class if I don’t get it, but he does recognize everyone in the class, because it’s a pretty small class, like 2x people.