Hi all;
I intend to apply to apply to certain identified LLM Programmes in 2006 to be considered for admission in 2007-2008 ... (... I kno I am jumping the gun a little, but whats the harm in starting early)
I kno most of u guys are waiting with baited breadth for 2006-07 llm progs'. results & hv already applied.
I needed clarity on 2 points from some helpful soul who has already been thru this rigmarole of the "application" process:
1) How "old" can the letters of recommendation be - i.e., if I send in my apps by mid nov 2006, can the reco letter be dated in May/June? - basically what is the ideal "age" for a reco - shld it be spanking new or 4-5 months gap be OK? The thing is I am working indl & will hv to go back to college to get the reco... ergo the Question.
2) Specifically with re to Northwestern Univ. the LLM-Kellog Prog. in Law & Business- is the one expected letter of reco mandatorily to come from the side of an employer (& not a prof)... thats what the instructions to the application form seem to suggest. Can i still get it from a prof...
Those who are in the know, please shed some light on the above matters... Would be eternally grateful! Thanks.

well reco's need not be 'new' or nything and for a lot of people in your situation it often is not possible as well (coz eithr all th good prof.s have left th univ. or u cant go back to univ. for some reason or whatever)..in ny case a reco lettr frm a prof. can only certify your 'worthiness' for th program relating to how you wer in college and not aftr tht,,so often many students take reco's frm profs. at th time of leavin th coll with th intention of using thez letters few yrs latr wen they r applyin for llm programs..so ther is no real ideal age for reco's,,the main requirement is that the recommender should know you well enough to be in a position to write a LOR for you..
as regards NW program,,i would suggest tht u submit 2 letters 1 by a prof and 1 by employr (as i think both are very useful in their own areas) even though only 1 letter is required,,but still whether it is 'mandatory' or not and all i think the NW only can best answer that,,so contact thm without hesitation..

Hello, i've recently been honored with a NW admission letter for the 2006 LL.M. program. They require 1 letter of recommendation and at least one year of work experience. I submitted three letters of reference from University Professors who knew me well. I also added in the recommendation forms quantitatively assessing an applicant's skills.

Hey thanks for the help & Congratulations... so basically an employer's reco is not necessarily required & univ professors will do ... that should be fine... cant think of my boss giving me one!

I cant understand this tho: "...also added in the recommendation forms quantitatively assessing an applicant's skills." Also, I hope u are talking in the context of the LLM/Kellog prog leading up to an LLM degree + cert in Business Admin (from Kellog) coz thats the one I am interested in.
Thanks a ton!

When i wrote down that "also added in the recommendation forms quantitatively assessing an applicant's skills." i meant that you are advised to include in your envelopes the recommendation forms available at the Northwestern Admissions webpage. They're not strictly needed though, but they'll probably improve your application profile. It seems to me that "Northwestern University's admissions instructions" slipped from "the recommendation forms sub-heading" that applicants can submit letters of reference from University Professors as well. I think so 'cause at the beginning of the application instructions there's a brief outline of the materials required to complete an application and this outline clearly indicates that recommendation letters could well be made up by University Professors as well as from current Employers. It's up to you to decide which one to forward. I guess that Employers letters increase your prospects of admissions, though i didn't send them any, i didn't know at that time. I candidly wish you the best luck you could have on your application to Northwestern University School of Law for the LLM/Kellog Program.

Hey thanks a lot for the Reply... The very best of luck for yr other admission apps :)