Is job title of referee relevant?

[Ethan Lim]

Hi, I was wondering if you guys could give me some advice.

So I'm currently halfway through a 6 month IB intern at a regional office for a BB. Since I will be getting 2 recs from my Undergrad professors, I thought it would be good to get one from my internship. Since I am an intern, I work closely with an Associate and I feel that he would be able to able to write the most detailed and accurate recommendation letter, but I am not sure if this is a wise idea when I could just ask a VP or and MD that I also work with.

I am curious if the job title has a significant impact on the credentials of a recommendation.
1. Associate - Would be able to write a very honest & detailed letter.
2. VP or MD - Worked with them but not as much as the Associate.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

 

[moretodo]

White the position of the referer does matter, I think the letter content takes precedence as per most adcoms out there. So, I'd go with 1.

 

[C S]

Just to be a bit of a devil's advocate (but for a good reason), why do you assume an "honest and detailed" letter is best? Many a person has asked for a recommendation letter from a well-meaning mentor, only to find out later it was detrimental to their application.

You'd be surprised how much a discerning manager can tell about you just from seeing the quality of your work and the feedback from your immediate supervisor. And someone that has a lot of experience managing people, like an MD, will also have a good eye at selecting the right qualities to talk about and emphasize in a recommendation.

 

[Ethan Lim]

Thanks for your views.
@Ken Abbott, could you kindly provide your insight on this? It would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[IntoDarkness]

just tell ur md to do it, a blue label will do the trick even if u screwed up

 

[Ken Abbott]

You can use the associate recommendation in addition to, but not in place of one from someone more senior.

 

[GoIllini]

1.) You have to get someone who knows you and likes you and can attest to your quantitative insight.
2.) After satisfying (1), go as high up the food chain as possible.

What do I mean by (2)?

Ideally, you want to find someone who has hired from this MFE program, or hires from MFE programs like this, or might hire out of the program. Why is that?

1.) They're clearly credentialed at evaluating your quantitative skill.

2.) A reference from a guy who hires from your program and is seen as offering somewhat desirable jobs to is a strong signal you'll get hired somewhere upon graduation. Men don't marry women *primarily* for looks and women don't marry men *primarily* for money, but to say that it doesn't rank at least #5 for both parties in at least *most* cases is a lie. So it is with employability and grad schools.

3.) PhDs and publications simply add to a referrer's credentials. It's easier to get into a Finance PhD program if your referrer was published in the Journal of Finance. Same with an MFE program- if they've heard of your referrer, and know he's a smart cookie, you're more likely to get in.

If you can't get someone who fits this criteria (admittedly this is a bit of an ideal), get as close as you can, so long as they meet the requirements in (1). All else being equal, an MD will be better than a VP, who will be better than an associate. But for instance, if the MD is the CIO and a Columbia MBA/ Accounting undergrad, you may be better off going with the VP who has an MS in Computer Science.