A question about asking a DPM for a LOR

[J29622]

I am seriously considering podiatry as a career. I understand that all but a couple of the schools require a DPM LOR, and I have a few questions.

Roughly how long after shadowing should one ask for a letter? I am going out of the country to work in a couple of weeks and have shadowed a couple of DPMs so far.

The first DPM let me shadow and told me to contact him to set up another shadowing appointment. I did just that and never got a call back from him or the office.

The second DPM I have shadowed for a day and plan on shadowing again next week. I am considering asking him for a letter of recommendation, but I'm not sure if he'd write me a good one. He has a very intense personality (ex-military) and criticized my CV, which he thought didn't have enough listed on it. He also didn't like the button up shirt I was wearing (slightly large due to me losing about 35 pounds in the last couple of months and apparently wrinkled, though I ironed it the night before). He did say that he is extremely particular about attire though due to his military training with a smile. I thanked him for his feedback, and he offered to let me come back without me asking him. I am taking him up on this offer, but I am not too confident about asking him for an LOR.

I am shadowing another DPM tomorrow, probably for a half day, and I am not sure if asking him after a short time is a good idea.

I think my stats are probably good enough to be admitted (3.2 GPA with a 29 MCAT), and I am hoping to get this LOR before leaving the country. Would asking a podiatrist after 5-10 hours of shadowing be too soon? If I hypothetically could not get a LOR, would I still be able to be admitted? I will have logged at least 25 hours of DPM shadowing before I apply. I have also shadowed a DO surgeon for about 16 hours and I am very interested in performing surgery.

Thanks for any help.

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[HappyLuckySmile]

I think you should shadow the person for at least a month.
This allows the physician to get to know you better.
It'll be kinda weird to ask on the first day. Sorta give off this hidden agenda kind of vibe

 

[torontopharm]

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[J29622]

The podiatrist was a good guy and probably gave me one of my better DPM shadowing experiences. I even got to watch a surgery!

He more or less offered to write me a LOR, so that worked out quite well!

 

[brittany24]

I am seriously considering podiatry as a career. I understand that all but a couple of the schools require a DPM LOR, and I have a few questions.

Roughly how long after shadowing should one ask for a letter? I am going out of the country to work in a couple of weeks and have shadowed a couple of DPMs so far.

The first DPM let me shadow and told me to contact him to set up another shadowing appointment. I did just that and never got a call back from him or the office.

The second DPM I have shadowed for a day and plan on shadowing again next week. I am considering asking him for a letter of recommendation, but I'm not sure if he'd write me a good one. He has a very intense personality (ex-military) and criticized my CV, which he thought didn't have enough listed on it. He also didn't like the button up shirt I was wearing (slightly large due to me losing about 35 pounds in the last couple of months and apparently wrinkled, though I ironed it the night before). He did say that he is extremely particular about attire though due to his military training with a smile. I thanked him for his feedback, and he offered to let me come back without me asking him. I am taking him up on this offer, but I am not too confident about asking him for an LOR.

I am shadowing another DPM tomorrow, probably for a half day, and I am not sure if asking him after a short time is a good idea.

I think my stats are probably good enough to be admitted (3.2 GPA with a 29 MCAT), and I am hoping to get this LOR before leaving the country. Would asking a podiatrist after 5-10 hours of shadowing be too soon? If I hypothetically could not get a LOR, would I still be able to be admitted? I will have logged at least 25 hours of DPM shadowing before I apply. I have also shadowed a DO surgeon for about 16 hours and I am very interested in performing surgery.

Thanks for any help.

It's funny you mention going out of the country. At the time I was deciding to do podiatry I was part-way through a contract overseas in Asia teaching English. The most time off I could get off was one week, so I flew home for a whirlwind trip (only 6 days!) to shadow podiatrists with the WHOLE purpose of the trip to get me that coveted LOR. And yes - you do need this LOR from a pod to be considered by schools. Without it your application does not have weight and looks like you threw it together out of convenience.

Here's some suggestions for what I would do if I were in your shoes.
1. Contact the first DPM. Call, email, call again and leave a voicemail. If you shadowed somewhat recently the DPM will remember you and hopefully will help you out. He/she is very busy and maybe forgot to get back to you. Try again

2. The second DPM is an even better opportunity. He gave you some specific tips to improve! He is trying to help you out. I would probably feel intimidated as well, but I think you can really earn some points with this guy. First, buy a new fitted shirt. Even an inexpensive one. (Try Khols/Target). Also, congrats on the weight loss! A new shirt will improve your confidence further and help you look the part of a serious prospective medical student. Second, upgrade your CV/resume and ask him for additional feedback. Google "resume power words" and read some articles on the Forbes website for improving your CV. This will show him that you are serious about improvement, and if he writes you a LOR, I think he would indicate that you are motivated and a quick learner.

3. For the third DPM, (you would have already shadowed at this point) I would ask anyway. You want to have as many options as possible, since this is a necessary portion of your pod application. If you have a better feeling about DPM #1 or #2, use them since they would know you better.

In those 6 days I shadowed, I spent 2 days with one (amazing!) DPM, and a half day with another (also awesome!) DPM. I asked both of them for a LOR. The first one said of course, no problem. The second one said, ask the first, since you spent more time with him, but if he says no I'll write it. I flew back to Asia to resume working, and wrote my whole personal statement on the plane back. I was stoked