2007-2008 Letter of Recommendation Thread

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DrMidlife said:
In under two weeks, I found a mentor, I shadowed him for 3 days, and he put a letter in the mail. It can be done.

http://www.osteopathic.org/YOM/Mentor_main.htm
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I had a terrible experience with this program. You're better off looking in a phone book and doing cold calls.
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Many schools will "budge" on this issue. For those in states that traditionally don't have DOs or sparse populations of DOs, many schools will say that an MD letter is fine. However, you need to confirm this with admissions before you decide to just get an MD letter. Like Texas said, being in NYC (and a medic?) you should be able to find a DO fairly easily considering the tristate area (NJ, NY, PA) is "full" of them. As a medic I'm sure you end up in the ER quite frequently. You should see a lot of DOs in ERs across NYC.
 
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Hey, I was wondering the same thing (finding a D.O). I am also located in NY, and although there are alot of DO's tracking one down willing to let you shadow is hard. Thanks to one of the OP websites, hopefully I will. I was going crazy about finding a D.O for a letter and experience.
 
ahaydt said:
Many schools will "budge" on this issue. For those in states that traditionally don't have DOs or sparse populations of DOs, many schools will say that an MD letter is fine. However, you need to confirm this with admissions before you decide to just get an MD letter. Like Texas said, being in NYC (and a medic?) you should be able to find a DO fairly easily considering the tristate area (NJ, NY, PA) is "full" of them. As a medic I'm sure you end up in the ER quite frequently. You should see a lot of DOs in ERs across NYC.
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While many DO schools accept an MD letter in lieu of DO, the ones that want DO letters only will take NO exceptions.
 
I went door to door to seven Osteopathic practices dropping off my resume. Only one of them ever got back to me but he let me job shadow for two and half weeks and wants to me to drop by whenever I want to shadow even more.
I am a little upset that none of the other D.O.'s ever got back to me, kind of discouraging that they didn't seem to have any interest in helping someone else become a D.O. But its possible that their front desk people just junked it because a couple times I was told that their practices were far too busy.

One though was pretty bad because they gave me a run around with their HR dept. I called and they transferred me multiple times to the same people and they wouldn't tell me who I needed to talk to.

Overall for finding a D.O. to shadow, email you local osteopathic medical association, they might have a list that tells you which D.O's are willing to have shadows. That's what I did after my first 6 attempts failed. And the first one I tried from the list is the one who let me shadow.:thumbup:
 
megboo said:
I had a terrible experience with this program. You're better off looking in a phone book and doing cold calls.
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From reading their web page, it seems like an admirable service. What issues did you have with them?
 
I have had a really hard time finding doctors (DO's specifically) that will let me shadow them. I contacted every Do in a 60 mile radius and one finally let me shadow him for a brief time. I moved to a different state to try the pool of DOs here and I keep hearing that "it's against HIPPA regulations and some joint accredidation" thing. If it is a requirement to shadow a Dr., then why are there so many rules prohibiting us to shadow them. It's been frustrating to say the least, but I've gotten very good at the run around game from HR depts. in hospitals and physician offices. Never give up... just keep trying!! As Kaplan says..."You will be a GREAT Dr." :)
 
The Nigal said:
From reading their web page, it seems like an admirable service. What issues did you have with them?
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that after filling out the form and requested a mentor, no one responded after 6 months. I finally sent a letter to the director of the program about my concerns. She apologized and then finally someone got in touch with me, but I had gone out and found someone to shadow on my own.
 
I also found it pretty pathetic that of the 25+ DOs in my area, including my own physician, none would let me shadow them. Some claimed "we just don't do that anymore" and some said "get back to me after November and maybe we can work sthg out". Obviously, Nov. was a little late for me, esp. since I was applying to schools that required a DO letter.

I ended up using my connection through the hospital my mom works at. The ER doc there is a DO, and my mom (an MD) let his wife (a PA) shadow her when she was a student, so my mom called in her favor for me. He was really nice and wrote a good letter, but it sucked that I had to resort to that to get to shadow a DO. The whole process of finding someone took about 6 months from start to finish and I ended up going 370 miles downstate to get it done.

:thumbdown: to DOs in my area for that. Not the best way to "further" the profession, IMO.

Not to mention, I work collaboratively with some of these docs as I see some of their patients for speech therapy and they still wouldn't give me the time of day. :thumbdown:
 
Hi All,

Is anyone else having troubles with the school's receiving letters of recommendation or your supplemental applications. Whether it be a long time in between when the letter was sent to when it was received, or the school not receiving them at all. Also, how often are people checking on the status of their applications?

I'm not sure if I have developed OCD from this whole experience, but it seems that as each day goes by and the school hasn't received my letters of rec, updated my file, or whatever other problem has arrived, I become more and more worried/scared. Someone please help calm me down!

Thanks!
 
Yes, I have experienced this issue before. I would contact the people who sent your letters and ensure that they have indeed sent them. Also, I would try contacting the schools once a day to curb your nervousness. Maybe around 4:00 PM EST? That would allow for the daily mail to arrive and be processed. ^.^ Good luck!
 
DCOM didn't receive my letters.. so i resent them on their advice.. i checked after about 3 weeks of not hearing.. PCOM hasn't recieved anything yet.. its been 2 weeks (said to call back in 1 week)..
 
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LuckBALady said:
I have had a really hard time finding doctors (DO's specifically) that will let me shadow them. I contacted every Do in a 60 mile radius and one finally let me shadow him for a brief time. I moved to a different state to try the pool of DOs here and I keep hearing that "it's against HIPPA regulations and some joint accredidation" thing. If it is a requirement to shadow a Dr., then why are there so many rules prohibiting us to shadow them. It's been frustrating to say the least, but I've gotten very good at the run around game from HR depts. in hospitals and physician offices. Never give up... just keep trying!! As Kaplan says..."You will be a GREAT Dr." :)
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That's the biggest load of BS ever.

I've shadowed DO's in private clinics and work with 4 in the ER. My ER has 4/5 of the doc's are DO's and ALL of them are more than accomodating in allowing me observe/participate in various procedures. Are you volunteering anywhere? ER's are a great place for DO's as a lot of them go into Emergency Medicine. Good luck
 
ThisIsYourLife said:
DCOM didn't receive my letters.. so i resent them on their advice.. i checked after about 3 weeks of not hearing.. PCOM hasn't recieved anything yet.. its been 2 weeks (said to call back in 1 week)..
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PCOM didn't get my letter from my Dean from Undergrad, but I called and they resent it and also had them fax over a copy as well. They're just painfully slow.

as far as not hearing, you're in the midst of the storm now, all the MD kids that haven't heard anything are going DO. So what can you expect?
 
I took a more novel approach. I found out the movers and shakers in osteopathy in my region. Specifically, county and state organizations. From those, the first doctor I contacted told me that I can start coming in the following week. The only thing was that they gave preference to medical students.

I am very happy with shadowing. He will go out of his way to teach me few things, let me look at diagnosis results, and introduce to many patients.

The funny thing is when he starts talking to drug reps. He will pick apart every statistics they throw at him.

Most of all, I was happy that all of his patients welcomed me. Ofcourse, they were used to this because many med students are doing preceptorship with him.


So, I got lucky.

In all: Find the state's osteopathic association to see if any of them practice in your area. those doctors will more likely to say yes. My doctor stays up-to current on all the happening and serves as a board examiner. I will go two more times before asking him. But, I will continue to shadow him.
 
Copied from PCOM-GA's website:

"Applicants are required to submit a letter of recommendation from the premedical committee or premedical advisor of the undergraduate college that grants or will grant a bachelor's degree, regardless of your academic major, course of study or graduation. If that is not possible, a letter from your academic advisor or Dean of the same institution may substitute. Another letter of recommendation, preferably from an osteopathic physician, is suggested but is not required."

Does this mean PCOM-GA isn't asking for LOR's from specific professors?
 
Lots of schools let you use pre-med committees instead of individual letters. However, most will let you use individual letters instead of a committee, if you so choose. PCOM requires the committe/advisor/dean letter only for the purpose of stating that you completed you bachelor's degree successfully.
 
I agree with what is said above. I would suggest you call the school to find out if you can deviate from the rules if it is not possible for you to handle it the way they want.
 
are there any schools that will accept non-science recommendations? I'm having a REALLY tough time getting my science recs completed, but I already have two great recs from dpt heads in my major (economics) at my university, and I can also get a pre-med committee letter. should I sent a personal letter to each school explaining how deadline is coming up and if i can just submit non-science recs, or would that be stupid?

thanks!
 
MikeMD said:
are there any schools that will accept non-science recommendations? I'm having a REALLY tough time getting my science recs completed, but I already have two great recs from dpt heads in my major (economics) at my university, and I can also get a pre-med committee letter. should I sent a personal letter to each school explaining how deadline is coming up and if i can just submit non-science recs, or would that be stupid?

thanks!
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They require science letters. As far as I know this is a pretty firm rule. You know from the beginning that it will be expected of you so they expect you to be able to fulfill the requirement. Some schools want a non-science letter, but only in addition to two science letters. But, the good news is a pre professional committee letter can be used instead. In fact, many schools prefer them. But they take a lot of time to get usually.
 
aliDO said:
They require science letters. As far as I know this is a pretty firm rule. You know from the beginning that it will be expected of you so they expect you to be able to fulfill the requirement. Some schools want a non-science letter, but only in addition to two science letters. But, the good news is a pre professional committee letter can be used instead. In fact, many schools prefer them. But they take a lot of time to get usually.
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At my school, the pre-professional letter as far as I understand is a compilation of your other letters or recommendation. My advisor told me he'd have it written within a few days of receiving my science recs. Can he just write it using the three non-science recs I have (including a DO) and submit that? I applied very late and yes, knew i needed the science recs, so asked the profs as quickly as I could. However, they are taking FOREVER and some have simply given me the cold shoulder a month later. I'm at a loss as to how they can do something like this, especially after I'm paying $40k a year for undergrad at a rather prestigious school, and I did well in the classes.... :(
 
MikeMD said:
At my school, the pre-professional letter as far as I understand is a compilation of your other letters or recommendation. My advisor told me he'd have it written within a few days of receiving my science recs. Can he just write it using the three non-science recs I have (including a DO) and submit that? I applied very late and yes, knew i needed the science recs, so asked the profs as quickly as I could. However, they are taking FOREVER and some have simply given me the cold shoulder a month later. I'm at a loss as to how they can do something like this, especially after I'm paying $40k a year for undergrad at a rather prestigious school, and I did well in the classes.... :(
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that sucks your teachers are doing that. I really don't know the answer about the committee using non-science letters. You'd have to ask them and the specific schools you are applying to.
 
has anybody called PCOM to find out what to do if you dont have a premed committee at your school?
i dont have one...all i can get are individual letters.
PM when someone finds out!
 
I need to know this too. My school doesn't have a premed committee, and I am sure that the Dean doesn't know me that well to write only me a LOR.
 
aliDO said:
that sucks your teachers are doing that. I really don't know the answer about the committee using non-science letters. You'd have to ask them and the specific schools you are applying to.
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do you think it would make me look bad if I email the schools individually asking if they will take non-science letters + premed letter instead of the science recs?
 
ok last question. Talked to my advisor and he said he could write the committee letter w/o the science recs if I absolutely needed to. I have 2 non-science recs from dpt. heads in my major (good recs) + a good DO rec. Do you think that this is a good idea or should I keep pushing for atleast 1 science rec, which could take a few weeks and cause me to be complete end of jan or even into feb?? seems too late....


thanks so much
 
Hi guys,

I've been complete (LORS, transcripts, etc) since October/November. But my DO is mailing me my LOR THIS WEEK. i hope. I know, I know.

He emailed me a copy (because I had to write most of it myself) but it doesn't have a sig., obviously.


How bad would it look to just print it out and send it? They could look him up, its not like I wrote it myself.

Has anyone done this?
 
Wait, you wrote most of it yourself but it's not like you wrote it yourself? :confused: I think it would seem very fishy if you send a printed copy of the e-mail especially without a signature. Is it on letterhead even?
 
I would not do this.
 
I think you should definitely just wait for him to send the official copy. Like EEL08 said, if it's not on official letterhead and there is no signature, most schools will not accept it anyway. Hang in there, he'll send it soon! :luck:
 
Schools will not accept anything that comes from you WRT LOR's. The letter MUST come from the professor (ie letterhead, return address, etc.). Don't even bother wasting your time sending in a printed email...
 
Would it look bad if I got a LOR from a PA? I worked with one last summer and would it look bad if I got a LOR from her?
 
peterDO said:
Would it look bad if I got a LOR from a PA? I worked with one last summer and would it look bad if I got a LOR from her?
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I think that would be fine as long as you are not substituting it for your Doctor LOR. It is fine as a personal LOR or one that shows clinical experience.
 
Hi, I want to get a letter of REC from a OD, however, I submit my application in late June (Need Spring Quarter Grades).

However, this Summer I plan to shadow an OD, can I still submit my letters of recommendation from an OD around late August and early September?

Note: I have 3-4 other letters of recommendations ready for Allopathic and Cari. schools.
 
You should probably know an OD is an optometrist. I'm not sure how that would help you unless you're planning to go into ophthamology.

You probably mean DO, which is an osteopathic doctor. You can submit LORs anytime, but realize your file may not be complete at those places which require a DO LOR until they receive it.
 
Gresh said:
Hi, I want to get a letter of REC from a OD, however, I submit my application in late June (Need Spring Quarter Grades).

However, this Summer I plan to shadow an OD, can I still submit my letters of recommendation from an OD around late August and early September?

Note: I have 3-4 other letters of recommendations ready for Allopathic and Cari. schools.
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If you don't know the difference between DO and OD you might want to do some research before you apply DO.
 
I just want to know what the schools mean when they will only accept LOR directly from the recommenders. who else would be sending them? are my recs supposed to submit email and phone info? do they need to call up each school after they submit my letter? I thought they could fill out the letter, seal it and give it to me to drop in a mailbox. is that some violation?
 
Are there any restrictions? Can a friend or partner write it?

Also, is there a specific format that letter writers are supposed to follow?

Ypo. said:
Hi Ethan, I just met with the admissions director at MSUCOM yesterday and I can say that absolutely-they want a letter of rec from someone who knows you well. It can be your next door neighbor. They are really interested in your personal life (I'm not kidding-she asked me about my boyfriend and listened with great interest to aspects of my life not related to medicine for about half an hour, till finally I felt like I had been talking way too much "well, thanks for meeting with me"). Don't get a letter from someone with an impressive title unless they can write a really sincere, heartfelt letter of recommendation. She said the interview would be pretty much like my meeting with her was.
MSUCOM is one school-you can feel assured- that really wants to know who you are, and they understand its hard to develop an indepth relationship with someone you've shadowed a few times, thats why they don't care if its from a DO.

I was lucky, my volunteer supervisor wrote me one of those great letters-the thing made me blush! They want specific examples of the five things they ask the writer to comment on (and I told my supervisor this)-examples of communication skills, maturity, understanding of osteopathic tenets, I forget the other ones. I didn't decide till recently to apply DO, so I had to write a little paragraph for my supervisor letting her know what I had done to research osteopathic medicine-so that she could honestly say she knows what my understanding of it is.

Well, hope that helps-don't be impersonal with this school at all, feel free to be yourself (what a nice, relieving feeling)!
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I have a burning Q for you. My chem prof wrote me a great LOR 2 years ago. I am reapplying summer 2008 and he has since retired (June 2007, he is like 83ys old) from the University. If he writes me a letter on his old letterhead will that be ok? Will med schools call up my school and get freaked out he is no longer teaching. Do schools care if he is only a prof. emeritus now? I have a great relationship with this guy and he wrote a spectacular letter. thanks for the help.
 
matlabsux said:
I have a burning Q for you. My chem prof wrote me a great LOR 2 years ago. I am reapplying summer 2008 and he has since retired (June 2007, he is like 83ys old) from the University. If he writes me a letter on his old letterhead will that be ok? Will med schools call up my school and get freaked out he is no longer teaching. Do schools care if he is only a prof. emeritus now? I have a great relationship with this guy and he wrote a spectacular letter. thanks for the help.
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Dude, you posted this in 3 different threads? Calm down and BTW you can't cross post. I answered you in one of the other threads. :thumbup:
 
dude, what do you troll this site 24/7? i apologize for the faux pas. i was not aware "cross posting" was taboo. consider me warned
 
ryserr21 said:
for realz yo....how can someone so show much hostility towards a cow that looks so happy?
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I know especially towards PRIONS... Did you mmmooooooootice how she handled it? She would be a great Mmmmooooooooood
hehehe
 
OCHO said:
I know especially towards PRIONS... Did you mmmooooooootice how she handled it? She would be a great Mmmmooooooooood
hehehe
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clever. :hardy:
 
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