- Joined
- Oct 12, 2000
- Messages
- 416
- Reaction score
- 2
Hi all
I have 2 LORs (which is the minimum I need for my 1st choice program - which is also where I am doing my rotations and where I worked 2 years before going to medical school). Now, I know I should have at least 1 more, and I would LIKE to have at least one more. My dilemma is this - the 2 docs I've spent most of my time with - both officially scheduled rotations and peripherally when dealing with these docs and their patients when I have been on other services - are a vascular surgeon and an internal medicine doc.
The thought of asking either of these two for a letter makes me nauseated. They are both so extremely busy, that I can't imagine asking them to put one more thing on their plates. Not to mention I know for a fact the IM guy has at least 4-5 to write as it is, and the vascular guy is at the hospital no less than 100 hours/week.
Am I thinking about this incorrectly? Should I not worry about this and go ahead and ask anyway? I read on the other thread that an IM letter won't mean as much - and that's fine - I can ask the surgeon, but the IM guy really did get a good idea of how I will be as a resident. Not that I would ask the IM guy before the surgeon - but in addition to. The other two letters I have are from an OB (who didn't hesitate to call me in every night for two weeks to 1st assist on sections) and our chief surgery resident who is now an attending (who wrote an awesome 2-page letter).
I guess it goes without saying that the docs who see you the most when you are on their service are the busiest ones...so, it's kind of a catch-22.
Any suggestions?
I have 2 LORs (which is the minimum I need for my 1st choice program - which is also where I am doing my rotations and where I worked 2 years before going to medical school). Now, I know I should have at least 1 more, and I would LIKE to have at least one more. My dilemma is this - the 2 docs I've spent most of my time with - both officially scheduled rotations and peripherally when dealing with these docs and their patients when I have been on other services - are a vascular surgeon and an internal medicine doc.
The thought of asking either of these two for a letter makes me nauseated. They are both so extremely busy, that I can't imagine asking them to put one more thing on their plates. Not to mention I know for a fact the IM guy has at least 4-5 to write as it is, and the vascular guy is at the hospital no less than 100 hours/week.
Am I thinking about this incorrectly? Should I not worry about this and go ahead and ask anyway? I read on the other thread that an IM letter won't mean as much - and that's fine - I can ask the surgeon, but the IM guy really did get a good idea of how I will be as a resident. Not that I would ask the IM guy before the surgeon - but in addition to. The other two letters I have are from an OB (who didn't hesitate to call me in every night for two weeks to 1st assist on sections) and our chief surgery resident who is now an attending (who wrote an awesome 2-page letter).
I guess it goes without saying that the docs who see you the most when you are on their service are the busiest ones...so, it's kind of a catch-22.
Any suggestions?
