Mentioning family member illness in LOI

[jen.m.24]

Hello! I am currently waitlisted at my top choice and want to submit an LOI to the school (note: they are receptive to, and even encourage, update/interest letters). In the letter, I want to talk about my reasons for wanting to attend the school. Location is one major feature that attracts me to the school, and I mentioned this in my pre-interview LOCI, but I only justified it by saying that the school would allow me to be close to my family/support system. The other reason why I want to be close to home is because my father was recently diagnosed with a pretty serious medical condition. I'd feel a lot better knowing that I'd only have to hop on a one-hour train ride to get back home if anything happened to him.

Here's my question: Should I mention this in my LOI? I initially refrained from mentioning it because I wanted to be private about my family life. However, a current medical student encouraged me to make my LOI as genuine as possible, so I want to be completely honest about my motivations. If yes, should I be specific about the condition? I want to be honest but I also don't want anyone to think that I'm using his condition for pity points.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

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[Mr.Smile12]

Read

From Waitlist to Offer: Inside an Admissions Committee - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

At this point, it probably wouldn't hurt you. They know you are nearby so they can understand your reasoning. However your place on the waitlist may be set. Keep it brief.

The adcom may debate whether starting school would be on your best interests given the news. What if you accepted but had to defer? What if you started but had to take a LOA? In the end, we want to make sure you stay on your timeline and graduate. Any delays could put more pressure on your bank account.

 

[jen.m.24]

Read

From Waitlist to Offer: Inside an Admissions Committee - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

At this point, it probably wouldn't hurt you. They know you are nearby so they can understand your reasoning. However your place on the waitlist may be set. Keep it brief.

The adcom may debate whether starting school would be on your best interests given the news. What if you accepted but had to defer? What if you started but had to take a LOA? In the end, we want to make sure you stay on your timeline and graduate. Any delays could put more pressure on your bank account.

Thank you for the insight! I didn't even consider that adcoms may view major family illnesses negatively, so that's very helpful to know. I guess that also answers the second part of my question about naming the condition; I'm assuming it'd be better to be vague about his condition to decrease any worries about it becoming a huge issue in the future?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Thank you for the insight! I didn't even consider that adcoms may view major family illnesses negatively, so that's very helpful to know. I guess that also answers the second part of my question about naming the condition; I'm assuming it'd be better to be vague about his condition to decrease any worries about it becoming a huge issue in the future?

I would avoid disclosing family illnesses in any written communication. As the experts mention, we usually take Letters of Intent with a grain of salt as we find so many LOI senders renege when we finally put an offer in front of them. Your situation is not that, but LOIs are "lies" by habit. You are working against that history by sending an LOI and giving details.

I suggest scheduling a meeting with the director of admissions to discuss your situation and options. We don't know your parent's health, and it shouldn't be our business. However, only you know about what the treatment plan requires. We also know you can't possibly know how you would react if your parent's health becomes more critical. Many undergrads' academic performance suffer when a parent gets severely ill, and chances are you would also be susceptible. The more you know about whether you need to be with your parents, the easier the conversation.

All the director of admissions can do is bring it up to the committee leadership. The faculty have seen similar situations, and depending on how they have gone, I'm sure we have seen our share of students failing out to having to take an LOA.

As noted in the article, your geographic proximity should be obvious to signal your interest in attending the medical school.

I also presume you have no offers on the table.

The admissions committee is in charge of making sure all seats are filled. We don't want to be scrambling to fill seats at the last minute (even if we do anyway).

 

[jen.m.24]

I would avoid disclosing family illnesses in any written communication. As the experts mention, we usually take Letters of Intent with a grain of salt as we find so many LOI senders renege when we finally put an offer in front of them. Your situation is not that, but LOIs are "lies" by habit. You are working against that history by sending an LOI and giving details.

I suggest scheduling a meeting with the director of admissions to discuss your situation and options. We don't know your parent's health, and it shouldn't be our business. However, only you know about what the treatment plan requires. We also know you can't possibly know how you would react if your parent's health becomes more critical. Many undergrads' academic performance suffer when a parent gets severely ill, and chances are you would also be susceptible. The more you know about whether you need to be with your parents, the easier the conversation.

All the director of admissions can do is bring it up to the committee leadership. The faculty have seen similar situations, and depending on how they have gone, I'm sure we have seen our share of students failing out to having to take an LOA.

As noted in the article, your geographic proximity should be obvious to signal your interest in attending the medical school.

I also presume you have no offers on the table.

The admissions committee is in charge of making sure all seats are filled. We don't want to be scrambling to fill seats at the last minute (even if we do anyway).

Got it, that makes a lot of sense. I'll refrain from mentioning it then as I think it has the potential to do more harm than good based on everything you've said. Thanks a lot for your help!