Asking a rec from a prof I don't know well

ab2013
Wed, 14 Nov 2012 13:16:25 +0000

Actually, right now I think I will ask the prof I did research with first year and the one I’m with now (been with him since beginning of junior year), and my program advisor who also taught me in a class, though I didn’t do too well in his class. It’s been suggested to me that I can ask managers from previous internships (have had 2 by now), but it sounds like grad schools prefer LORs from people in academia. I’m just worried that the LOR from first year is a bit too old or outdated because I’ve learned alot more in my field and my interests have changed since then, which is why I sort of want to get a generic LOR in a class I excelled in, because that class is very recent (last semester) and I want to highlight the fact that my grades are trending upwards (rebounding from a relatively disastrous fourth semester at a 3.0 that semester to a 3.6 last semester).

How do I get feedback on my SOP? Is it a good idea to ask my undergrad advisors (who are also professors who teach and do research but are not on the grad admissions committee)?