Reference letter, personal vs prestigious? I am currently seeking reference letters from professors for my masters application.  It struck me that the professors that I'm close with, who know me on a more personal level (through projects, work, etc.) are not as academically renowned as some other professors who may only know me as one of the many students who got an A in their course.

I would like to know how their reference letters fare when used to apply for masters in prestigious universities.  Is a more personal reference letter better, or a letter written by a more well known professor?
A letter should highlight your skills, which usually only come out when working closely with somebody. Getting a letter from a renowned professor saying that you were sitting in his lecture is no more useful than listing this course on your CV. Hence, go for the "personal" (I guess it is work-oriented, rather than saying "Woofas is a nice chap who always entertains at our pub quiz night") letter, and highlight the course with the awesome professor elsewhere.