Waiting on Letter of Recommendation - will harm my chances?

[co659]

Hello everyone !

Just a little background...
- took the December LSAT and submitted my applications mid/late-December
- reached out to my recommenders in August to confirm they can write me a recommendation
- 1 of the 2 recommenders submitted my letter before Thanksgiving

But I made the mistake of giving my professors a deadline to submit my LORs three weeks prior to my applications' deadlines, so I am a little nervous now after reading some articles that state this may be too late in the game. Especially since I have been in contact with them and it seems that they are sticking with the original deadline.

Thus, I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with this or if they know if law schools actually start looking at applications in lieu of one recommendation missing?

Thanks!

[Dave Killoran]

Hello everyone !

Just a little background...
- took the December LSAT and submitted my applications mid/late-December
- reached out to my recommenders in August to confirm they can write me a recommendation
- 1 of the 2 recommenders submitted my letter before Thanksgiving

But I made the mistake of giving my professors a deadline to submit my LORs three weeks prior to my applications' deadlines, so I am a little nervous now after reading some articles that state this may be too late in the game. Especially since I have been in contact with them and it seems that they are sticking with the original deadline.

Thus, I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with this or if they know if law schools actually start looking at applications in lieu of one recommendation missing?

Thanks!

Hi Co,

Hmm, as long as the profs hit the deadline, you'll be fine since that gets your app completed prior to the deadline. If they miss the deadline, that's a problem (and this si why everyone says to make a super early deadline for LORs).

The law school won't even look or think about your app until it's all there. The system is set so no app is reviewed until it is complete, mainly because some students never complete theirs apps, and thus by waiting until all pieces are present the law school avoids a possible waste of time and resources. So, I'm terribly sorry to say that no school will look at anything until your app goes complete.

Does that at least help explain what's occurring?