Very worried about LORs

[orthomyxo]

One of the things I'm most worried about is being able to satisfy the LOR requirements for med schools. I graduated in 2013 and did not really get to know my professors. Right now, I only have 1 letter from an upper-level biology professor who I took 2 classes with during my senior year. It's a strong letter, but I imagine it might be considered too old, especially when I apply 1-2 years from now.

I know that at least some medical schools have less strict LOR requirements for non-trads. I do work with a number of physicians as a scribe/medical assistant and will likely be able to get a letter from one of them, but beyond that I'm not sure. Maybe one from a PI, but not sure how strong it would be. What did you guys do for LORs?

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[beeboops]

Have you kept in touch with your undergrad bio prof at all? It may be worth reconnecting with them and keeping in touch with them over the next 1-2 years so you can ask for an update to their LOR when you're ready to apply.

Another option would be to take some upper level courses at a university if you have the drive/funds/time and get tight with those professors.

Finally, you could get an LOR from a volunteer supervisor if you're volunteering anywhere.

In my experience (I also graduated back in 2013), schools are more understanding about the difficulty of getting faculty letters for non-trads and are open to accepting different letter writers than those listed on their websites. I feel that I've had the most luck with mid to lower tier MD schools in this regard. If in doubt, email the school's admissions office and ask.

Keep in mind though that the most important thing would be to have at least 1-2 letters that can attest to your academic ability and letters from employers/supervisors don't always capture that.

 

[orthomyxo]

Have you kept in touch with your undergrad bio prof at all? It may be worth reconnecting with them and keeping in touch with them over the next 1-2 years so you can ask for an update to their LOR when you're ready to apply.

Another option would be to take some upper level courses at a university if you have the drive/funds/time and get tight with those professors.

Finally, you could get an LOR from a volunteer supervisor if you're volunteering anywhere.

In my experience (I also graduated back in 2013), schools are more understanding about the difficulty of getting faculty letters for non-trads and are open to accepting different letter writers than those listed on their websites. I feel that I've had the most luck with mid to lower tier MD schools in this regard. If in doubt, email the school's admissions office and ask.

Keep in mind though that the most important thing would be to have at least 1-2 letters that can attest to your academic ability and letters from employers/supervisors don't always capture that.

I have not kept in touch with him, but I do believe he would be willing to update the current LOR once I’m ready. He is also now the pre-health adviser so I was planning to ask him if there was any possibility of getting a committee letter. I was also considering taking 1 or 2 classes but this isn’t ideal due to cost and scheduling conflicts.

 

[beeboops]

I have not kept in touch with him, but I do believe he would be willing to update the current LOR once I’m ready. He is also now the pre-health adviser so I was planning to ask him if there was any possibility of getting a committee letter. I was also considering taking 1 or 2 classes but this isn’t ideal due to cost and scheduling conflicts.

Totally understand about the cost and scheduling conflicts thing. In that case, I would definitely follow up with your bio prof a little bit before you're ready to apply, let him know what's up, and provide him with an updated CV/resume and a rough draft of your personal statement so he can update the letter (as an aside, it's helpful to do this for all your letter writers).

So long as you have 4-5 strong letters that are able to attest to your academic ability, your professionalism, and your motivation for medicine, I think you'll be okay. Contact schools and ask them if they make any concessions for non-trads that have been out of school for awhile and aren't planning on taking any classes.

Best of luck!

 

[Talkbirthytome]

Taking another course or two (there's bound to be a science course you haven't taken yet) can be a really good way to meet this requirement for all schools. If you get a recent LOR and update your old one, you widen your application pool.

I'm non-trad and have been out of school for a bit but was able to get a LOR from my biology professor from 7 years ago. It helped that I stood out to him back then. If you frequented office hours or connected with an old professor and they're still teaching, it may be worth it to jog their memory and ask for a LOR.

I'm currently taking courses and getting to know these professors. I think it helps when you're older because you can connect with them via discussions about life experiences.

Some schools have let me use my current manager in place of one science faculty LOR as well. This is sometimes addressed in the school's FAQs.

When the cycle slows down, you could also email the schools you're looking at if you can't find the info on their site.

 

[orthomyxo]

Taking another course or two (there's bound to be a science course you haven't taken yet) can be a really good way to meet this requirement for all schools. If you get a recent LOR and update your old one, you widen your application pool.

I'm non-trad and have been out of school for a bit but was able to get a LOR from my biology professor from 7 years ago. It helped that I stood out to him back then. If you frequented office hours or connected with an old professor and they're still teaching, it may be worth it to jog their memory and ask for a LOR.

I'm currently taking courses and getting to know these professors. I think it helps when you're older because you can connect with them via discussions about life experiences.

Some schools have let me use my current manager in place of one science faculty LOR as well. This is sometimes addressed in the school's FAQs.

When the cycle slows down, you could also email the schools you're looking at if you can't find the info on their site.

Sadly I never went to office hours which I'm obviously kicking myself for now. Never thought I'd need all these letters! I do have the one letter from the biology professor but I think my only option to get another faculty letter would be to take classes. Not ideal due to cost and my limited availability though. I am actually trying to enroll in an upper-level bio class for the spring semester but it's full at the moment.

 

[Talkbirthytome]

Sadly I never went to office hours which I'm obviously kicking myself for now. Never thought I'd need all these letters! I do have the one letter from the biology professor but I think my only option to get another faculty letter would be to take classes. Not ideal due to cost and my limited availability though. I am actually trying to enroll in an upper-level bio class for the spring semester but it's full at the moment.

Totally understandable. I run a hospital service and am currently taking courses full-time as well + an additional intensive course for work. Time crunch!

Once you are considered a returning student, registering for classes will come early. Many folks drop in certain courses too so stay on the waitlist! I've had professors agree to over admit if you show up to the first class.