Definition
The Letter of Recommendation or LOR is a document that provides the admission officers with a comprehensive insight into your suitable candidature, for admission into the concerned University. It aims to provide a favourable picture of your experiences, achievements, contributions, and skills communicated by the recommender.
Types of LORs
Letters of Recommendation can be broadly classified into two categories based on the nature of the recommender:
1. Academic LOR
An academic LOR is a letter of recommendation provided by a faculty member of your current or previous educational institution. The Letter of Recommendation (LOR) Format from Faculty often varies in content and requires the professor to highlight the applicant’s accomplishments as a student of the course.
2. Professional LOR
Most of the MBA Colleges Abroad have pre-defined work experience requirements. Accordingly, they request a Professional Letter of Recommendation from an immediate supervisor. The Professional Letter of Recommendation (LOR) Format from a Supervisor varies from an Academic LOR in terms of some specific content that focuses on the applicant’s ability to work within a team, the exposure to the domain as well as his/her leadership abilities, all necessary to the MBA course applied for.
Why do they need them?
Any student going to study abroad requires an academic letter of recommendation. Irrespective of the course and country, every student requires at least three letters of recommendation from either their college or professional background.
For UG students, LORs can be taken from teachers, professors, school counsellors or the school principal.
For MS students, college professors, internship supervisors, or the team lead/ manager from the company they have worked in, can issue recommendation letters.
For MBA students, LORs should be purely professional, especially, if they have experience of three years or more. For MBA and PhD aspirants who have recently graduated from college, they can ask for recommendation letters from their college professors, supervisors, or project guides.