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Posted Aug 19, 2016 11:57

Hello,

I would like some suggestions on who I should ask to provide my letters of recommendation.

I am a freelancer / serial entrepreneur who hasn't had a supervisor for the bulk of my career. That makes it hard to choose recommenders for my MBA applications.

I could ask a supervisor I had at university, that's not a problem. But for the other 2 I don't know. I had a job for a year when I first graduated, and I had a supervisor, but it wasn't a job that I liked so I don't know what good that would do.

The other options would be clients, and people with whom I've worked on projects. They would have good things to say about me but nothing like what a "supervisor" would say.

Please help... Not sure what I can do now.
Hello,

I would like some suggestions on who I should ask to provide my letters of recommendation.

I am a freelancer / serial entrepreneur who hasn't had a supervisor for the bulk of my career. That makes it hard to choose recommenders for my MBA applications.

I could ask a supervisor I had at university, that's not a problem. But for the other 2 I don't know. I had a job for a year when I first graduated, and I had a supervisor, but it wasn't a job that I liked so I don't know what good that would do.

The other options would be clients, and people with whom I've worked on projects. They would have good things to say about me but nothing like what a "supervisor" would say.

Please help... Not sure what I can do now.
quote

Posted Aug 22, 2016 13:49

You can definitely ask clients, especially those who can speak to your experiences as they apply to an MBA program: managing teams, analysis, etc. You can also ask people with whom you work. Or, if you volunteer anywhere, or do pro bono work, or something like that - you can ask your supervisor in that capacity.

The thing is that no one recommender will be perfect. You should put together three who can speak competently to various parts of your skill set, and your capacity to do a program like an MBA. That might be an old school supervisor, plus a client and a coworker, or another combination.
You can definitely ask clients, especially those who can speak to your experiences as they apply to an MBA program: managing teams, analysis, etc. You can also ask people with whom you work. Or, if you volunteer anywhere, or do pro bono work, or something like that - you can ask your supervisor in that capacity.

The thing is that no one recommender will be perfect. You should put together three who can speak competently to various parts of your skill set, and your capacity to do a program like an MBA. That might be an old school supervisor, plus a client and a coworker, or another combination.
quote

Posted Aug 25, 2016 12:01

This is really helpful, thanks. What about for schools that specifically ask for recommendations from supervisors?
This is really helpful, thanks. What about for schools that specifically ask for recommendations from supervisors?
quote

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