Committee Recommendations?

[erinbeth]

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I graduated college in 2006 (double major psychology and biology), and have been working in the mental health field since then. In the past year I have been preparing to apply June 2013. My alma mater will be writing my committee letter. The committee will include the head of the health sciences program, a faculty of his choosing and one of my choosing. I received my master's degree in social work at a different university in the area, and he said that if I wanted to I could choose a faculty from that program, he would just have to approve it first. I am torn between asking a psychology professor I had in undergrad (took two of her classes and worked as a research assistant in her lab) and a professor and my academic advisor from my graduate program. Does anybody out there have any insight to help with this decision? Thanks everybody!

 

[akinetopsia]

I thought that typically with committee letters (typically, not always), you submit your letters of recommendation to your undergrad's pre-health advisor, who compiles the letters and writes a composite letter based on those and any of the other requirements for a committee letter they may have (at my school, this was two interviews with different committee members, plus a bunch of short essays done online).

So I would just get the letters that you can and submit all of them, then thank the letter writers with a small but thoughtful gift.

 

[erinbeth]

That is helpful, but I actually have to choose somebody to be on my committee. I am torn about whether to ask a professor from my undergrad alma mater (the school which is writing the letter) or from my graduate program.

 

[akinetopsia]

That is helpful, but I actually have to choose somebody to be on my committee. I am torn about whether to ask a professor from my undergrad alma mater (the school which is writing the letter) or from my graduate program.

In that case, who do you feel would be the stronger advocate for you? Who knows you, your motivation, your capabilities, and fit for medicine better, your undergrad professor or your grad advisor?