Max #'s of LOR's

[flysupertomcat]

Is there a maximum # of LOR's you can submit with your application to OCS? If you get turned down and want to resubmit, do you also have to resubmit the LOR's? (If there's a post like this already, could someone link me to it?). Thanks

 

[kanakAttack]

My OSO told me min LORs is 3, max is 5 but you really want to have 5 if you can. If you resubmit I imagine that you can resubmit the same LORs but from what it sounds like from other posts to resubmit your package you need to have some changes/additions so this is one area where you can do that (add more LORs if you didn't have 5 or get new ones).

 

[wink]

My OSO told me min LORs is 3, max is 5 but you really want to have 5 if you can. If you resubmit I imagine that you can resubmit the same LORs but from what it sounds like from other posts to resubmit your package you need to have some changes/additions so this is one area where you can do that (add more LORs if you didn't have 5 or get new ones).

This is pretty good advise. I'm not so sure about goaling yourself for 5 LORs though. If you go over three at least two of them better be real good. The board is very busy and they are not interested in reading 5 LORs from your neighbors, in laws, or frat brothers. Three real good solid ones will suffice. Don't feel like you are short changing yourself. You have a couple more good ones, then fine.

 

[gtg941f]

I got ~8/9 LOR because I co-op and have had lots of employers, but I suspect that my Chief just picked out the best 3 to 5

 

[Jameski]

Hey fly,

I was kinda wondering the same thing when I first applied but was told three really good ones would go farther than five or six regular ones. Needless to say, I submitted one from a two star admiral (NA), my Congressman, and a Commander, who is an NFO and a good friend. Should hear back this week on whether those three worked or not!

 

[kanakAttack]

This is pretty good advise. I'm not so sure about goaling yourself for 5 LORs though. If you go over three at least two of them better be real good. The board is very busy and they are not interested in reading 5 LORs from your neighbors, in laws, or frat brothers. Three real good solid ones will suffice. Don't feel like you are short changing yourself. You have a couple more good ones, then fine.

Wink,

Thanks for the extra info. I've been waiting for over a month for my dean to get me an LOR she promised but she is super busy and I also never had much interaction with her so I'm a bit skeptical about the quality of the letter I'll receive. I've got 4 solid LORs without her so as soon as everything else is ready to go do you think I should just submit? Sorry if this is a threadjack.

 

[flysupertomcat]

Yeah I was just curious because I think I can get 7-8 really solid LOR's and then one from a Senator I interned for so as long as that's ok, I'd try and submit them all

 

[gtg941f]

Yeah I was just curious because I think I can get 7-8 really solid LOR's and then one from a Senator I interned for so as long as that's ok, I'd try and submit them all

If the senator doesn't personally know you, it's likely you'll receive my better LOR from people that are close to you/care about your future.

 

[flysupertomcat]

yeah, but I got nothing out of the internship aside from college credit so it'd be nice to get that letter for working so hard at that internship. Like I said, I think I can get 7-8 good and personal LORs, but I'd also like to include that one from the Senator.

 

[BigRed389]

yeah, but I got nothing out of the internship aside from college credit so it'd be nice to get that letter for working so hard at that internship. Like I said, I think I can get 7-8 good and personal LORs, but I'd also like to include that one from the Senator.

I don't know how this would be considered ethics-wise but you can always get your boss to write it and the Senator to sign off on it...it's what my boss at the Congressman's office did back during college apps.

She was his Chief of Staff so she signed off on a lot of documents anyway after giving him the gist of things.

 

[flysupertomcat]

I don't know how this would be considered ethics-wise but you can always get your boss to write it and the Senator to sign off on it...it's what my boss at the Congressman's office did back during college apps.

She was his Chief of Staff so she signed off on a lot of documents anyway after giving him the gist of things.

technically, that's how the operation works. I worked in the correspondence office for my Senator on Capitol Hill and 90%+ of the responses are put together by the correspondence staff (literally hundreds of pieces of mail/e-mails come into the office every week, there's no way the Senator would be able to respond personally although there are certain pieces of mail that do make it to the Senator.) So most recommendations will be written by the staff on behalf of the Senator, and signed by a machine that duplicates the Senators signature with a pen. If you think about it, it is pretty impersonal but hopefully the board doesn't know that.

 

[wink]

Wink,

Thanks for the extra info. I've been waiting for over a month for my dean to get me an LOR she promised but she is super busy and I also never had much interaction with her so I'm a bit skeptical about the quality of the letter I'll receive. I've got 4 solid LORs without her so as soon as everything else is ready to go do you think I should just submit? Sorry if this is a threadjack.

Send in the 4 you have and get on with it. Never hold up an app. Spots go fast. If the program closes out the day before your app gets in because you waited for a LOR you will feel stupid.

 

[aerospec]

I believe I sent in 7-8 LORs. I would just make sure that each letter is a good one, quality over quantity for sure. My LOR's were all good but my recruiter and I did order them from "best" to worst on the app. There's probably a good chance that the board didn't read all of them, but I don't think it would hurt to have more than 3-5 as long as they are solid. If the board is having a hard time deciding between you and the next guy, the LOR's and your personal essay might just be what helps in their decision and seals the deal.