DO or MD letter of rec?

[question8]

I'm planning to apply this cycle to DO schools exclusively and have already secured a DO letter of rec from shadowing. However, I've been scribing with an MD for almost a year now who knows me in a greater and much longer capacity so they could very likely write me a stronger letter. Will it make a difference/is it worth it to ask the MD for a LOR for the schools that don't specify they want a DO letter? Thanks!

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[Dr Meow]

Yeah you can add more letters than required. And if he knows you better and can give you a great letter, definitely add him for sure.
My only physician LOR was a MD.....for DO.

 

[deleted1129181]

The DO letter is just a way of making sure you know what a DO is and are serious about attending a DO school.

If I recall correctly, AACOMAS doesn't allow you to select specific letters for specific schools, unlike AMCAS, correct? If a schools specifies they don't want more than an X number of letters, don't break that rule.

 

[Goro]

Having an MD letter will not hurt you.. Having a d o letter always helps

 

[PapaGuava]

Always good to have both, especially if the letter writer can you write you a strong LOR.

 

[TragicalDrFaust]

I would include both. The letter from someone who knows you well is important and the DO letter is an advantage. As a side note, anecdotally, I got better results from schools where I talked about shadowing a DO and what that physician did that was inspiring to me, as well as in line with the DO philosophy.

 

[DOcSto]

I'm 4/6 on DO IIs this cycle with only an MD LoR. I think my app is very geared toward DO though and I referenced working with DOs in my secondaries as well. N=1.