Are non-committee letters necessary?

[lblock209]

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Excluding a letter from a doctor you've worked/volunteered with, will sending only a committee letter from your school and nothing else put you at a disadvantage or be a red flag? I know what the schools say on their website (1 committee letter OR 3-4 individual letters, 2 science/1 non science etc) but I've been hearing that it's an "unofficial" requirement to have more letters.

Any input appreciated.

 

[CodeBlu]

Excluding a letter from a doctor you've worked/volunteered with, will sending only a committee letter from your school and nothing else put you at a disadvantage or be a red flag? I know what the schools say on their website (1 committee letter OR 3-4 individual letters, 2 science/1 non science etc) but I've been hearing that it's an "unofficial" requirement to have more letters.

Any input appreciated.

Unofficial requirements? That's sort of back alley mysterious and stupidly unfair. Don't you think so?

I didn't submit any doctor reference letters. Why? Because the docs I shadowed etc, didn't know me half as well as my professors and my boss. It's advantageous to your application to have your letters be strong and well written, and most definitely not GENERIC.

I have gotten 2 interviews thus far without a letter from an MD.

Now for DO... some schools require a DO letter. But in general, without a packet... the requirements at most schools are... One letter from a non-science prof, and 2 letters from science profs.

 

[AvidAvatar]

My personal opinion is that it is not a requirement - top secret or otherwise. As CodeBlu said - STRONG letters are more important. Some schools do have requirements, or suggest extra letters. Just do what they tell you.

 

[dippindots]

It might be different at other schools, but my committee "letter" is a packet containing 4-5 letters from professors/doctors/mentors/etc., plus a sort of "cover letter" that the committee writes which summarizes the themes of the application and the other LORs. So it is not disadvantage to send the committee letter, as it is in addition to a regular set of letters.

 

[235009]

It might be different at other schools, but my committee "letter" is a packet containing 4-5 letters from professors/doctors/mentors/etc., plus a sort of "cover letter" that the committee writes which summarizes the themes of the application and the other LORs. So it is not disadvantage to send the committee letter, as it is in addition to a regular set of letters.

correct answer

also according to LizzyM a LOR from a doctor you shadowed is the most overrated thing in any application and is almost always completely useless

 

[music2doc]

correct answer

also according to LizzyM a LOR from a doctor you shadowed is the most overrated thing in any application and is almost always completely useless

While I agree with this, I would think a doc you've worked for would carry some weight, correct? I have been including letters from two docs (one of which is a prominent doc on my unit; the other is the medical director of the clinic where I volunteer as a tech).

 

[NickNaylor]

Our committee letter didn't include other letters, so if that's the case I definitely wouldn't rely on just the committee letter as the sole source of evaluation. I included two other letters in addition to the committee letter.

 

[235009]

While I agree with this, I would think a doc you've worked for would carry some weight, correct? I have been including letters from two docs (one of which is a prominent doc on my unit; the other is the medical director of the clinic where I volunteer as a tech).

if you worked with/for a doctor then fine. but if you just shadowed then it's useless. in your case i'd be concerned that the medical director doesn't know you well (if at all) and therefore you'd be better off getting a strong letter from your direct supervisor instead (possibly cosigned by the medical director)

 

[music2doc]

if you worked with/for a doctor then fine. but if you just shadowed then it's useless. in your case i'd be concerned that the medical director doesn't know you well (if at all) and therefore you'd be better off getting a strong letter from your direct supervisor instead (possibly cosigned by the medical director)

Cool, thanks. I had one of my direct supervising RNs write the first draft. She then gave it to him and he made edits and signed it, so I think it will be specific. He actually knows me decently as I have worked with him a fair amount, but I do think the RNs know me better, since we work more closely together.

 

[lblock209]

Unofficial requirements? That's sort of back alley mysterious and stupidly unfair. Don't you think so?

I didn't submit any doctor reference letters. Why? Because the docs I shadowed etc, didn't know me half as well as my professors and my boss. It's advantageous to your application to have your letters be strong and well written, and most definitely not GENERIC.

I have gotten 2 interviews thus far without a letter from an MD.

Now for DO... some schools require a DO letter. But in general, without a packet... the requirements at most schools are... One letter from a non-science prof, and 2 letters from science profs.

Our committee letter didn't include other letters, so if that's the case I definitely wouldn't rely on just the committee letter as the sole source of evaluation. I included two other letters in addition to the committee letter.

So which is it? Is a strong committee LOR enough or do you need other letters from professors who know you well? (forget I even mentioned the doctors)

 

[LizzyM]

Typically, LORs from professors and others are submitted to the committee and these LORs are submitted to adcoms as attachments to the committee letter or quoted in part, or in full, in the committee letter.

I know that this is how it is done at Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Emory, Hopkins, NYU and Yale.

 

[afreaknamedpete]

Our committee letter didn't include other letters, so if that's the case I definitely wouldn't rely on just the committee letter as the sole source of evaluation. I included two other letters in addition to the committee letter.

Second this. Know what policy your own school uses, if they use a letter packet then great. If not, send in your own extra letters. Either way, you're probably gonna have to get at least some professor letters.

 

[NickNaylor]

So which is it? Is a strong committee LOR enough or do you need other letters from professors who know you well? (forget I even mentioned the doctors)

As with everything else in this process, go with your gut and do what you think is best. I don't think relying solely on a committee letter that will likely read like a form letter is a good idea. That said, you might have unusual circumstances that could make the letter quite strong (e.g., you know the person writing the letter well). I would include at least one or two extra letters from people that know you well in order to add depth to the committee letter if your committee doesn't include other letters with its evaluation.

 

[gettheleadout]

So which is it? Is a strong committee LOR enough or do you need other letters from professors who know you well? (forget I even mentioned the doctors)

I think the idea here is if the committee "letter" or packet is going to include or contain information from LOR's from other sources such as professors or supervisors, then it alone is sufficient. If not, and it's just a single letter written by the committee without input from other sources, one should include additional letters.

 

[BA11]

Definitely do individual letters along with the committee letter. In all likelyhood, your school's advisory committee does not know you well enough to write a letter that goes any depper than your academic and extracurricular accomplishments. That is important, but you also need people who know you and what you're all about. Medical schools have accepted a lot of lesser statistical applicants because they were deemed upstanding individuals who would represent the profession well.

 

[raltima07]

I included a research letter as well as a dr. letter to my app to make it more complete; I have no idea what the committee letter included, so i wanted to cover my bases

 

[gettheleadout]

I included a research letter as well as a dr. letter to my app to make it more complete; I have no idea what the committee letter included, so i wanted to cover my bases

Could you not have asked the committee what they include?

 

[raltima07]

Could you not have asked the committee what they include?

Well, I know what was included (they include excerpts of the LOR from professors), but I don't know if it was strong or such. That's what I meant by that