Tl;dr I'm 30 and graduated 9 years ago, I am applying for a Master's, but a reference is required.

I am a US cit applying to a UK uni (ARU) for an MSc. I have been out of school since the middle of the Obama admin, and wasnt particularly active or friendly with any professors. Went to class, and did my work but that was about it. As such, almost a decade later, need a reference.

One stipulation is that it must be from a "real" email account (not a yahoo/gmail/etc) which limits my options. In general, will a professional reference work from a coworker or supervisor as long as it demonstrates knowledge and capacity in the field, or do they generally only accept from other educators. Ive been working in the field (software) for about three years and just want to take the next step and get a formal education in it, since I'm self-taught, and ARU offers a nice conversion program.

Thank you.

ARU = Anglia Ruskin University