letters of recommendation for grad school

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I'm thinking about taking night classes towards a Master's of Social Work, while keeping my current full-time job. I finished my BA back in 2005 and have been working at the same human services agency for the majority of the time since I graduated. Most schools I've looked at require two or three letters of recommendation from former professors and/or employers.

I don't know that I could get recommendations from professors, even though I graduated with high honors, since I doubt most of them would even remember me at this point. (Actually, I ran into my old academic advisor last Friday at the grocery store and I'm pretty sure she had absolutely no idea who I was.)

I'm pretty sure my supervisors at work would be willing to write recommendations for me and my work experience is relevant to the course of study, so that would be the more logical choice. The thing is, though, that I'd rather not 'advertise' that I'm going back to school because there have been lay-offs where I work recently and I'm concerned that going back to school might be viewed as me having one foot out the door and make me the next choice for someone to lay-off.

What would you guys suggest?

Aside from that one academic advisor, have you tried contacting your former professors? If you still have some of the work you did in their classes that could help to refresh their memories. I would think that the most important is just finding people who can write good letters, so if your former professors can't remember you well enough to write convincing letters then it might be best not to rely on them. Still, it might help to contact them and see. Having recommenders who have known you more recently would also be important though.

I have the same problem. I did really well in my last degree 4.0 in major area and 3.82 overall, BUT...... I don't think my professors ever got to know me on a personal level and that is probably my fault. The "game" expects us all to socially play. I am also more private than normal and don't opening up to be easy. Revealing all my personal non-academic life details (which must be sometimes necessary) is not an easy thing for me to do.

Contact those ex-profs and give yourself and them plenty of time to talk--That is if they allow you that time to take.


Good luck!

You can e-mail your professors and ask if they'd be willing to write a letter for you. If you have any other employers other than your current one, you can ask them also. When I applied I actually asked one professor who I'm sure had no clue who I was lol, but he was more than happy to do it and it was apparently good enough to get me in. If they don't remember you they still have records of how you did in their class that they can look up. It's much better to have someone who knows you personally though since the letter will have more personal details about you and also typically be written better.