Is an LOR from a DO appropriate when applying to MD schools?

[irecompliedthecode]

I've shadowed a DO physician for quite some time, and have developed a good connection with him. He offered to write a letter of recommendation for me, which I agreed because I was going to ask him for one anyway. However, while I am applying to multiple DO schools in addition to MD schools, my stats kinda warrant my application to be MD school heavy. Assuming the content of the letter is well written, will MD school adcoms look negatively upon a DO written letter?

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[WedgeDawg]

How would you imagine this letter helps your application? What will adcoms get out of it that would work in your favor?

 

[gyngyn]

Physician letters (of either type) add little to an MD application.

 

[irecompliedthecode]

How would you imagine this letter helps your application? What will adcoms get out of it that would work in your favor?

I would assume that someone that has gone through the process of becoming a medical professional (and thus has the ethos to talk about it) assessing my prospect as a medical student would be a good thing. My shadowing is relatively extensive, and this physician and I know each other on a personal level. I have interacted with patients (verbally, not medically) in his practice, and his letter is more of a "this guy can interact well, is cognizant of the medical environment and thus knows what he's getting into, I think he has good personal attributes of a physician-coming from another physician". My other LORs are research and academically heavy. I have 4 publications and many conference posters, so I didn't want to have medical school faculty think I'm a research heavy person that doesn't know if the medical profession is right for them, and would be better off in graduate school. Thus, why I've been shadowing and doing a lot of clinical volunteering. I wanted a letter of recommendation to represent some clinical environment experience.

 

[mimelim]

I would assume that someone that has gone through the process of becoming a medical professional (and thus has the ethos to talk about it) assessing my prospect as a medical student would be a good thing. My shadowing is relatively extensive, and this physician and I know each other on a personal level. I have interacted with patients (verbally, not medically) in his practice, and his letter is more of a "this guy can interact well, is cognizant of the medical environment and thus knows what he's getting into, I think he has good personal attributes of a physician-coming from another physician". My other LORs are research and academically heavy. I have 4 publications and many conference posters, so I didn't want to have medical school faculty think I'm a research heavy person that doesn't know if the medical profession is right for them, and would be better off in graduate school. Thus, why I've been shadowing and doing a lot of clinical volunteering. I wanted a letter of recommendation to represent some clinical environment experience.

LOR from PIs and research people can and SHOULD highlight things other than that you are a good researcher. They should be geared toward you getting into medical school, not graduate school.

Letters from people you shadow are fluff. Pure and simple. It won't outright hurt you because you will likely have other strong letters, but it's inclusion comes off as strange. You produced nothing of substance in front of this person. You were simply non-pathological, which is how these letters always come across. The take home when we read them is, "Okay, so he is a nice guy, so what?"

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/letters-of-recommendation.985472/

 

[irecompliedthecode]

LOR from PIs and research people can and SHOULD highlight things other than that you are a good researcher. They should be geared toward you getting into medical school, not graduate school.

Letters from people you shadow are fluff. Pure and simple. It won't outright hurt you because you will likely have other strong letters, but it's inclusion comes off as strange. You produced nothing of substance in front of this person. You were simply non-pathological, which is how these letters always come across. The take home when we read them is, "Okay, so he is a nice guy, so what?"

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/letters-of-recommendation.985472/

LOR from PIs and research people can and SHOULD highlight things other than that you are a good researcher. They should be geared toward you getting into medical school, not graduate school.

Letters from people you shadow are fluff. Pure and simple. It won't outright hurt you because you will likely have other strong letters, but it's inclusion comes off as strange. You produced nothing of substance in front of this person. You were simply non-pathological, which is how these letters always come across. The take home when we read them is, "Okay, so he is a nice guy, so what?"

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/letters-of-recommendation.985472/

I was wondering if you would know then why do DO schools place an emphasis on acquiring a letter from a DO?

Thank you.

 

[The Milkman]

I had a DO that I shadowed multiple times and also volunteered with write me a letter for my MD application this year. I can't say that it hurt at all, as I got 11 interviews and so far 4 acceptances, and none of my interviewers brought it up. As long as you have other good letters from supervisors/professors, I don't believe that there is any problem with a DO (aka doctor) writing you a letter for MD schools (aka doctor schools).

 

[Glandzburg]

I had a DO that I shadowed multiple times and also volunteered with write me a letter for my MD application this year. I can't say that it hurt at all, as I got 11 interviews and so far 4 acceptances, and none of my interviewers brought it up. As long as you have other good letters from supervisors/professors, I don't believe that there is any problem with a DO (aka doctor) writing you a letter for MD schools (aka doctor schools).

It may not have hurt you, but it very likely didn't help you. OP would benefit the most from strong letters that will strengthen his application. Not to mention Gyngyn is an adcom member:

Physician letters (of either type) add little to an MD application.

 

[The Milkman]

It may not have hurt you, but it very likely didn't help you. OP would benefit the most from strong letters that will strengthen his application. Not to mention Gyngyn is an adcom member:

I agree that he/she should first focus on getting letters from others who can vouch more strongly for them. I also agree that letters from physicians that one solely knows through brief shadowing aren't very beneficial, if at all. I was mostly just answering the OP's question if adcoms would look negatively at a DO LOR, in which I don't think they would.

 

[kspremed123]

So if these physician LORs are so pointless, why do so many schools require them in order to apply?

 

[gyngyn]

So if these physician LORs are so pointless, why do so many schools require them in order to apply?

It is uncommon for MD schools to request them. A few ask for a "clinical letter" (AZ).
It is quite common for DO schools to request them.

 

[ananasmed]

I was wondering if you would know then why do DO schools place an emphasis on acquiring a letter from a DO?

Thank you.

DO schools seem to use this letter as sort of a confirmation/proof of exposure to osteopathic medicine. As far as I can gather, the content of the letter is less important than simply having one for DO admissions (as long as it is positive/neutral, and not negative, of course) - the DO schools also want to see strong letters from science professors/PIs/the usual.

 

[Omppu27]

DO schools seem to use this letter as sort of a confirmation/proof of exposure to osteopathic medicine. As far as I can gather, the content of the letter is less important than simply having one for DO admissions (as long as it is positive/neutral, and not negative, of course) - the DO schools also want to see strong letters from science professors/PIs/the usual.

You would think that just having the shadowing experience would be enough... For that reason I don't really see the point. If anything, it prevents some perfectly qualified students from applying to their schools.

 

[ananasmed]

You would think that just having the shadowing experience would be enough... For that reason I don't really see the point. If anything, it prevents some perfectly qualified students from applying to their schools.

I agree, perhaps they see it as a way to retain their "tradition." At least schools that hard-and-fast require a DO letter are in the minority.

 

[mimelim]

I was wondering if you would know then why do DO schools place an emphasis on acquiring a letter from a DO?

Thank you.

I have no problem in answering to this, I have no idea. I am not a DO grad. I have never served on a DO admissions committee. I don't see a particular reason to have it other than tradition, but given that I have no experience with it, I have no idea.

I had a DO that I shadowed multiple times and also volunteered with write me a letter for my MD application this year. I can't say that it hurt at all, as I got 11 interviews and so far 4 acceptances, and none of my interviewers brought it up. As long as you have other good letters from supervisors/professors, I don't believe that there is any problem with a DO (aka doctor) writing you a letter for MD schools (aka doctor schools).

This seems to come up quite frequently. Does a weak letter sink an application? No, of course you can get into medical school with a weak letter of recommendation. The point is that it doesn't help and is essentially a waste of space. You gain nothing by including it and there is always a small, but very real risk of the letter rubbing someone the wrong way (or heaven forbid, it could actually be a bad letter). Just because you are getting interviews/acceptances doesn't mean that it didn't hurt you. It may not have, but I've seen ill advised letters torpedo applicants inadvertently and leaves you wondering, "Why would they include this letter? They had to have known that this was a bad idea."

 

[The Milkman]

I think this thread has turned into a debate over including letters written by doctors, rather than answering the question of adcoms looking negatively at a letter written by and osteopathic physician for an allopathic school. In the end, I don't think it matters who writes your letters (as long as you fulfill any requirements by each school) as long as they know you well enough to honestly speak as to why you would succeed as a med student and future doctor. It shouldn't matter if they are a PhD, MD, DO, PA, MPH, RN, PT, etc.

 

[gyngyn]

I think this thread has turned into a debate over including letters written by doctors, rather than answering the question of adcoms looking negatively at a letter written by and osteopathic physician for an allopathic school. In the end, I don't think it matters who writes your letters (as long as you fulfill any requirements by each school) as long as they know you well enough to honestly speak as to why you would succeed as a med student and future doctor. It shouldn't matter if they are a PhD, MD, DO, PA, MPH, RN, PT, etc.

We all agree that substantive letters are better. "Shadowing" letters almost by definition, cannot be substantive. Unless required by the school (usually DO) or the undergrad commitee they are not recommended.