I got a recommendation letter from a teacher that taught me an AP course in both 10th and 11th grade, and from one that taught me an AP course in 10th grade. However, I just read that schools seem to prefer letters from junior year. The problem is that, with the exception of the one teacher I got from 10-11th grade, none of my other junior teachers personally knew a lot about me or ever had any real conversations with me. The 10th grade teacher had a very discussion-based class and I would go into his room every morning with my friends to talk with him (and still do), so I feel that he knows me better than most of my junior teachers did.
That being said, is it a bad idea to have him write a rec letter for me?
While it’s true in some cases schools would rather see recommendations from more recent teachers, they’d also rather see a strong recommendation over a potentially weaker one. I had both a tenth and and eleventh grade teacher write me recommendation letters – they both knew me extraordinarily well and presumably wrote the best letters I could get. If the recommendation is truly stellar, I can’t see the year you had the teacher being that big of an issue, especially if he mentions your ongoing student-teacher relationship within his letter.
My letters haven’t impacted me negatively in any way. If you think you’ll benefit from it, then definitely go for it. Also remember to consider the schools you’re applying to, though. Are you applying to upper tier schools? State schools? Something in between? That could influence your decision.
Good luck!
Use the 10th grade teacher – it is fine. My D used one 10th grade teacher and it was no issue. The most important thing is that the LOR is from someone who knows you well.
