Date on LOR Matter?

[Dr Gerrard]

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I am going to begin applying this following summer.

I am studying abroad in the Spring.

I want all of my LOR to be in before I leave to make sure I can get them out to the schools as soon as necessary.

Can I get all of my LOR writers to go ahead and send them into my premed advisor now?

This would mean the letters would be almost a year early, and the date on them would probably be November 2009, when I would be applying next year.

 

[jr doctor in sd]

Hey,

I have a family member on a med school admissions board. I asked him the very same question and he said IN HIS OPINION (so not sure how much you want to take his advice) that the more recent the rec letters are, the better. I.e. if you apply senior year it'd be great to have a letter from the end of your junior year-->senior year, your freshman math teacher wouldnt matter (and besides rec letters from later are from upper division courses so they probably look better anyways).

This is because you can change alot during your four+ years at college (at least I know im 100% different now as a senior vs my freshman year)

 

[ShinyDome19]

Iv been kinda curious about this too seeing that I have been out of school now for a year and a half. I got all my letters of rec from my graduate committee during August 2007... My pre-med advisor told me that they were out of date now when I asked her to send them, but I think its pointless to go back and ask those same professors to write me a whole new letter for medical school which will pretty much say the same thing they wrote last time, but just have a new date on it...so I submitted my old letters anyhow. I still got interview offers from schools, and no one has said a thing during the one interview I have had so far. So, I would say your probably okay.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

Hey,

I have a family member on a med school admissions board. I asked him the very same question and he said IN HIS OPINION (so not sure how much you want to take his advice) that the more recent the rec letters are, the better. I.e. if you apply senior year it'd be great to have a letter from the end of your junior year-->senior year, your freshman math teacher wouldnt matter (and besides rec letters from later are from upper division courses so they probably look better anyways).

This is because you can change alot during your four+ years at college (at least I know im 100% different now as a senior vs my freshman year)

See, I still interact with all of these people now, but I would not be able to ask them for one at the end of my Junior year, because I would be abroad. Maybe I will just hold off until the end of the month or so though..