How to get letters of recommendations?

[terra1556]

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[inwantstobeadoctor]

One thing that really helped me to develop relationships with my professors was asking questions, even if I understood a concept and just wanted to reiterate the information. I slowly started doing that in class, but if that's not feasible for you since your class sizes are so large, you can definitely stop by their offices to ask questions. I personally found that harder to do (introvert haha) but it was worth it since I found a couple of my professors were lot more open to conversation and "friendlier" in their office. As far as the teacher you're TAing for, they should still be able to write you a letter about you being a TA and what that entails or at least "cosign" a letter that you maybe have written yourself? Not sure how some teachers feel about that but I've had some instruct me to do that since they were so busy and they went back and edited it to add their own thoughts. I also provided them my CV/resume to go off of just in case. Hopefully that helps to generate some ideas! Good luck friend.

 

[SooConfused]

@inwantstobeadoctor has laid it out nicely, so you don't need to stress about it too much. You are not the first person in your situation at your school to apply to med school. The TA letter might not work, since a lot of schools want an evaluation of you as a science student, not a TA where the professor is unable to form an opinion of you as a student.

Professors understand the game. Your letters won't be as good as if you did research with the writer, or took multiple small honors seminars in upper level hard science classes, and that's fine. Most people won't have that. As long as your letters don't suck, they'll be like most other people's, and they won't tip the scale for you one way or the other.

If you want more, you have a year to put yourself in a position to get more personal letters by taking smaller, in-person classes, and then distinguishing yourself in them. Otherwise, you're not really as worried about this as you might think you are, and you'll work with what you have, like everyone else.

 

[Goro]

Currently going into my junior year. Everything is going smoothly in terms of me being able to apply in the next cycle without taking a gap year but I am very worried about getting recommendations. I’ve taken 0 science classes with under 250 people and half of them have been online. The ones I’m taking this coming semester are also very large. I see some med schools require 2 science recommendations from faculty that have taught you but I don’t know how I am supposed to get quality interactions with professors? I am TAing a class but I have never been a student of the professor. I feel like recommendations aren’t talked about as often as other parts but it seems extremely difficult to me. How important are quality recommendations?

Ask professors that you have a good rapport with "Dr X, do you know me well enough to write me a good letter for my app to medical school?"

 

[a_distant_dream]

I was in the same boat last year! I went from 0 professors-who-taught-me letters to 1 non-science letter and 3 science letters. Here's some ideas:

• Character is most important. I've seen students do unapologetically unsafe things in orgo lab and STILL ask the prof for a recommendation. Don't do that. I was also getting along great with one of my profs until he refused to excuse students with COVID-19 from exams. We had a great relationship prior to that point, but I decided not to ask because of the ensuing departmental fallout from that incident. If you can take the time to demonstrate character and engagement - expressing gratitude appropriately, coming to talks they give, strongly recommending them for awards / tenure, helping other students in permitted ways - it's a big plus in my experience.
• You need to stand out in the class. This is easier said than done, but I got an A- in my non-science class and it's been radio silence for schools I sent that letter to. On the other hand, I was batting 30-50 points above average in another class and I made sure to dedicate a lot of time to keeping it that way, even if an A was already guaranteed. Becoming a TA / doing research with the prof in the future is also a boost!
• Ask at the right time. You don't want to ask too early because then they might not know you well enough to confidently say yes. At the same time, you don't want to ask months after the class because they probably won't remember you as well. Try to not bother them over breaks either. I've found the week before finals to be a good time.
• If they agree, give them the appropriate materials. I'm talking LOR requirements, LOR guidelines, a brief outline of your experiences with them, your personal statement, your resume or CV, and your transcript. Every reminder should be framed as a good-faith offer to make the process go smoothly for them. Set an appropriate deadline; give them a least a month of forewarning and make sure to put it at least 2 weeks before the actual deadline so you can give them an "extension".
• Make sure your letters are consistent and complementary! For example, my volunteer supervisor asked me whether she should talk about my academic qualifications. We discussed it a bit and concluded that the other letters would cover it appropriately; she could focus more on my volunteer work. Similarly, my biochemistry professor asked whether she should talk about my suitability for research, so I made sure to mention the rec letter I was getting from my PI.

Best of luck to you!

 

[DOCOC15]

In addition to other people's great advice, remember this- writing letters is a standard part of the job for professors. Even if you don't know them well, you don't need to be nervous about asking as many get dozens of requests each semester, often from students they don't know well. The worst thing that'll happen is they say "no," which is not common.