Assigning LORs to Schools

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ChillDawg

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What's the best way to assign extra letters of rec to schools? Say a school has the usual minimum of 2 science profs and 1 non-science,but allow up to 5 or so, should we first assign the three they're asking for, and then, maybe at a later date, assign some extra ones from volunteering? OR is it okay to assign all 5?

My concern is that applicants have no control over which letters adcoms actually read, and I'm worried that they might just read the first 3 that come in, and then sorta ignore the rest.
@Goro, @gyngyn, @LizzyM, can anyone weigh in here?

Is it possible that having more than 3 letters can 'drown out' the main 3? Let's assume that all the letters are strong.
 
Under no circumstance should you send more than the requested number of letters.
It shows a lack of attention to detail, inability to follow instructions or snowflake status.

Send up to the minimum in any way consistent with parameters requested.

If you feel compelled to send more than the minimum, they had better be worth the time spent to read them.
 
@gyngyn, I made the grave mistake of assigning all my letters to all of my schools, thinking that I could later select which of these letters I wanted to be read during the secondary application. For these schools, am I out of luck?
It certainly won't help.
Schools that limit LOR's do so for a reason.
 
Under no circumstance should you send more than the requested number of letters.
It shows a lack of attention to detail, inability to follow instructions or snowflake status.

Send up to the minimum in any way consistent with parameters requested.

If you feel compelled to send more than the minimum, they had better be worth the time spent to read them.

This is where I'm getting confused; you say don't send over the minimum, but then say its okay if they're exceptional.
What about if schools have a minimum of 3, but takes up to 5? Don't they expect many applicants to send all 5?
Are there certain nuances to be aware of, such as if they sound like they're okay with sending more than 3 on their website? If so, which schools have a 'cap' at 3?

I get that some schools just want 3, but some say 3, and then say that letters from volunteer coordinators, research, etc are welcome.
If we just stuck to the 3 letters, what's happening to all the PI letters applicants are getting? (2 science profs + 1 non-science prof leaves no room for any other letters)

Do you see where the potential ambiguity lies, my good sir?
 
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