Harvard rec letter

[WUgrl]

I was looking at Harvard's secondary, and they say want at least 2 rec letters from science professors, and one from a non-science prof. I have 4 strong letters, 2 from science professors and 2 from research supervisors, but I don't have a non-science letter. How important do you think this is to the adcom? Will something like this significantly decrease my chances or be cause for an automatic rejection?

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[Dr.LeoSpaceman]

I was looking at Harvard's secondary, and they say want at least 2 rec letters from science professors, and one from a non-science prof. I have 4 strong letters, 2 from science professors and 2 from research supervisors, but I don't have a non-science letter. How important do you think this is to the adcom? Will something like this significantly decrease my chances or be cause for an automatic rejection?

I don't think anyone is going to be able to answer this for sure. It may not be immediate rejection, but it also may not be the ideal situation. Your best bet is to call/email the office and see what they say.

 

[IndyZX]

I won't have a non-science letter, either. If it is a huge problem, then maybe I'll get one from a professor in the fall. Otherwise, whatever...

 

[jlee9531]

it is a requirement, so i figure they would notice this.
they prolly want to see if you are well rounded and thus make a good effort in a non science class.

as a rule of thumb most kids out there should aim for about 5 LORs.
3 from sci professors
1 from non science
1 from EC activity.

if you have these then you should be able to meet any med school's LOR requirement.

 

[DrThom]

As far as I know almost all medical schools require a non-science recommendation...

 

[purple_rainbow]

As far as I know almost all medical schools require a non-science recommendation...

yeah, that's what i'm told too. maybe it's not too late to still ask for one. Either way, i would still apply. G'luck!

 

[inshanesworld]

Well, the did go to the trouble to ask for it........... 🙄

And if there is anything I know from admissions committees it is that they are never looking for MORE stuff to read if they can help it. If it was not important believe me they would not do it.

 

[IndyZX]

I haven't seen another school that I am applying to that specifically mentions a non-science letter, other than Harvard. That's why I never went through the trouble of getting one.

All I have are 2 science letters, 1 from my PI, and 1 from my volunteer work. I would imagine that would cover my bases at most of the schools. Maybe the fact that my PI teaches in the psychology department will allow that letter to count... who knows.


-- By the way, another SDNer, Anka (who got into Harvard), didn't have letters from all her PIs, a requirement at Harvard. They didn't seem to mind.

 

[IndyZX]

I just checked all the websites of the schools that I am applying to, and found out that only Harvard specified a NS letter requirement. However, I was not able to find sufficient information for Duke, UChicago, and Michigan.

 

[adamj61]

First of all, every school likes to see this. Second, if they ask for it, they mean it. Same when they ask for only 3, and say they will reject the others. Following directions is a good skill to have right? I know for sure they will reject your app. 2 science and 2 research letters sounds like a science dork that isn't very well rounded. This probably isn't the case. Then again it is like sense of humor, everyone says they have one, but not everyone can have it...so get that letter! I didnt know my prof very well, but she liked my writing and I told her how much it would help....good luck

 

[Pinkertinkle]

Can you link the harvard website's LOR reqs page?

 

[apar01]

Can you link the harvard website's LOR reqs page?

http://www.hms.harvard.edu/admissions/html/faqs.html

 

[DrThom]

I just checked all the websites of the schools that I am applying to, and found out that only Harvard specified a NS letter requirement. However, I was not able to find sufficient information for Duke, UChicago, and Michigan.

This is from UMich's website...

Letters of recommendation are a significant part of your application, and you should spend some effort on this. Things to consider include, 1) how well the faculty member knows you; 2) the rank of the faculty member; 3) the course taken. We require three letters and prefer one from a science faculty member, one from a non-science faculty member, and one from another recommender of your choice. Letters from friends of the family, no matter how important or well known they might be, carry less weight than you might think! You may send additional letters if you want. Your recommenders should be individuals who can assess your personal qualities (such as work ethic, reliability, communication skills, leadership, compassion, and so on).

If fact...it goes on to say...

We prefer that you provide the non-science faculty letter as requested, however we recognize that in some cases such as the applicant who has been out of school for a number of years, getting such a letter may not be feasible. A substitution may be requested from the Admissions Office for any particular type of recommendation letter.

So UMich does PREFER a nonscience...

Here's the link:

http://www.med.umich.edu/medschool/admissions/faq.html#lor

 

[StanfordGirl]

Hi,
I don't think they are firm about this requirement at all. I applied MSTP (really don't know if that makes a difference--supposedly Harvard has separate admissions meetings for MD & MSTP) and submitted 4 letters from science profs and one from a research supervisor. The adcom didn't seem to care that I didn't have a non-science letter (and this never came up in any of my interviews at any school).

I wouldn't worry about it at all. If you didn't have a science letter, that would be a concern, but I think adcoms are more than happy to see multiple science letters (esp if they are strong).

Best of luck!!

 

[IndyZX]

This is from UMich's website...

Letters of recommendation are a significant part of your application, and you should spend some effort on this. Things to consider include, 1) how well the faculty member knows you; 2) the rank of the faculty member; 3) the course taken. We require three letters and prefer one from a science faculty member, one from a non-science faculty member, and one from another recommender of your choice. Letters from friends of the family, no matter how important or well known they might be, carry less weight than you might think! You may send additional letters if you want. Your recommenders should be individuals who can assess your personal qualities (such as work ethic, reliability, communication skills, leadership, compassion, and so on).

If fact...it goes on to say...

We prefer that you provide the non-science faculty letter as requested, however we recognize that in some cases such as the applicant who has been out of school for a number of years, getting such a letter may not be feasible. A substitution may be requested from the Admissions Office for any particular type of recommendation letter.

So UMich does PREFER a nonscience...

Here's the link:

http://www.med.umich.edu/medschool/admissions/faq.html#lor

thanks for the help!👍

 

[nina512]

As a non-trad applicant, it's been too long for me to ask for a LOR from a non-sci prof from undergrad. I went ahead and emailed the schools that asked for one (like Drexel and Temple) and they said they would take a letter from my boss as a substitute. They just wanted me to include my reasons for not having a non-sci letter.

It doesn't hurt to ask...it seems that most schools are flexible except for two LORs from science profs.