Are you using your undergrad health career service for recommendation letter?

[MedPhys2MD]

I realize that a lot of medical schools require applicants to use their school's health career service (if available) for recommendation letter, but also realize that they will accept individual letters if you have a valid reason. I believe being of of undergrad for many years would be a valid reason.

So my question to all is this, what are your plans for recommendation letters? Use your undergrad service even though you've been out of school for a while? Or have letters sent directly to the school via interfolio or otherwise?

I'm trying to decide what to do now...

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[NuttyEngDude]

I used individual letters because I did not intend to be enrolled very long and the school's health career service seemed a hassle.

 

[monkeyfeet]

I used individual letters too. I graduated over a decade ago and don't live anywhere near my undergrad institution, so getting a committee letter seemed pretty unreasonable. I took some of my pre-reqs more recently at community college, and got individual letters from my CC instructors for schools that were strict on requiring a certain number of academic recommendations. Most of the schools I contacted were pretty flexible about letting me sub letters from recent employment for some of the academic ones, though.

 

[MedPhys2MD]

Thanks for your replies... I was leaning towards using my undergrad service but even they said it would hold less weight since I graduated a while ago - but said they would still do it. I'm just worried about academic letters being that my recent coursework is all going to be done online.

Anyone ever used an online instructor whose class you did well in for a recommendation?

 

[rfvbnmju]

I was only out of undergraduate for 3 years and still use individual letters from professors at my undergraduate.
You should be fine.

Sent from my phone.

 

[MedPhys2MD]

Are your letters from undergrad professors dated back when you were enrolled in school? Or did to get recent letters written from professors that remembered you?

I have letters dated 6-7 years ago from old professors that wrote for my applicant to medical school a number of years ago... Don't know if schools would be interested in seeing those along with letters written now

 

[MedWonk]

I used my post-bacc health careers service, but there were others in the same post-bacc who got a committee letter through their undergrad institution's pre-med advisor. I think it's possible (they all got into med school), but you need to maintain constant contact with that advisor and keep them up to date with what you're doing on your path to applying to med school.

 

[SN12357]

I realize that a lot of medical schools require applicants to use their school's health career service (if available) for recommendation letter, but also realize that they will accept individual letters if you have a valid reason. I believe being of of undergrad for many years would be a valid reason.

So my question to all is this, what are your plans for recommendation letters? Use your undergrad service even though you've been out of school for a while? Or have letters sent directly to the school via interfolio or otherwise?

I'm trying to decide what to do now...

I would use the undergrad service if they are good at their job, and ditch them if they aren't. One benefit to being out of school is that either choice is legitimate for you and you won't be questioned in the same way a trad undergrad might be if they don't use their committee letter.

I used my post-bacc's committee letter and was very happy with everything they did. Having a committee letter does make things simpler in a number of ways (don't have to worry about individual school's preferences/requirements when it comes to letters). My undergrad's pre-med advising program does not have as good a rep. I would probably not have chosen to use them given the choice.