Cover letter for letter of recommendation

[sparksfly21]

Hi,

I have asked the doctor I shadowed for the last several months for a letter of recommendation and he was more than willing to write one for me however, he asked me to send him a cover letter so he can write the letter. I had thought he would specifically ask for a personal statement but that wasn't the case. Now I am a little unsure as to what I should include, any thoughts? Any input would be much appreciated!

Also, if any one has some spare time and can read my personal statement to give me input I will GREATLY appreciate it. I am applying this cycle and am still struggling with the ps and putting all my thoughts together.

Thanks!

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[EyesOfTheWorld]

What I did for all my letter writers no matter what they asked for, based on advice I've seen around SDN, was prepare a "LOR request packet" that contained a cover letter, a resume and a rough draft of my Personal Statement. You don't have to do this, but I think it looks like you've put a lot of time into providing your writer with everything they could need and I'm sure some writers appreciate that since they have to take time out of their schedules (which are usually very busy) to write a letter for you.

If you're just doing a cover letter, here's how I structured mine.
First paragraph: state that you're writing to request a LOR for your [insert application cycle here] medical school application, indicate that you think your LOR writer will help to strengthen your application due to [insert brief mention of experience with writer here], and finally include a rough (or specific) deadline for when you'd like your letter to be in.

Second paragraph: write about why you're applying to med school, what skills you think qualify you, etc. In this paragraph I also explained the rest of my packet and said that I had included the information to give the writer a better sense of my motivations and experiences that have led me to pursue medicine.

Third paragraph: This should vary by writer, but in my third paragraphs I always thanked my letter writers for their impact on my academic and personal development. I briefly explained the impact they had on my time in Uni. I think this is important to let the letter writer know why you chose them, and also to give them a little insight into how you perceived your interactions so they can see what you really gained from it.

Finally, A short (1-2) sentences thanking them again for their time and letting them know they can contact you with any questions.

I haven't gotten any feedback on my LOR's yet, but my packets certainly seemed professional and added a lot of information my LOR might not have known about me. This isn't so they can include that in their letter, of course, since they should only write about what they have gleaned from working with you but it fleshes you out as more than just another premed and differentiates you.

Good luck! 👍