Letter of Intent: personal reasons?

[medworm]

I'm planning to write a letter of intent to my top choice. Besides telling that school what attributes make it so appealing to me, can and should I also mention my personal reasons (like family and location) as well? The reason I ask is that, similar to a job search, I have personal reasons for wanting to attend one school over another. If I were the interviewer for a job, and my candidate tells me he wants to work for me b/c the company is godly great ... that just seems kinda baloney. However, if he also tells me some personal reasons, like a shorter commute and good hours, then it makes sense. Anyone? Thanks.

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[bootz]

I'm planning to write a letter of intent to my top choice. Besides telling that school what attributes make it so appealing to me, can and should I also mention my personal reasons (like family and location) as well? The reason I ask is that, similar to a job search, I have personal reasons for wanting to attend one school over another. If I were the interviewer for a job, and my candidate tells me he wants to work for me b/c the company is godly great ... that just seems kinda baloney. However, if he also tells me some personal reasons, like a shorter commute and good hours, then it makes sense. Anyone? Thanks.

Here's my take on the situation. I recently helped in the interviewing process for a GI fellowship. One of the questions asked by the interviewers was: Why our program? The people that answered b/c of location (e.g. proximity to family, etc.) were rated lower because their answer demonstrated their attachment to the area and not the program. I don't know how adcoms process LOIs, it might be very different from from school to school, but it might be better to mention aspects of the school that match your interests besides its location and convenience to you. Good luck!

 

[Brainsucker]

I'm with the OP. I'd guess that med schools would treat things differently than fellowships. Of course, if you do have something compelling to say about academic aspects of the school, you certainly should emphasize that.

 

[Saluki]

In my Duke interview, I mentioned that one of the reasons I was attracted to the school was the part of country it was located in (I'm from the South) but then went on to say the particular parts of the program that had attracted me from there. I don't know yet whether that was a good move, since they're non-rolling. I vote for mentioning those things, but not letting it be the major focus...

 

[riceman04]

I'm planning to write a letter of intent to my top choice. Besides telling that school what attributes make it so appealing to me, can and should I also mention my personal reasons (like family and location) as well? The reason I ask is that, similar to a job search, I have personal reasons for wanting to attend one school over another. If I were the interviewer for a job, and my candidate tells me he wants to work for me b/c the company is godly great ... that just seems kinda baloney. However, if he also tells me some personal reasons, like a shorter commute and good hours, then it makes sense. Anyone? Thanks.

No...that's too soft and pink

 

[Rocket3004]

Is it common to write a Letter of Intent before you apply to a school? Does it really make a difference?

 

[medworm]

Is it common to write a Letter of Intent before you apply to a school? Does it really make a difference?

Err... I think the letter of intent is for reaffirm your interest AFTER you've interviewed, that you will withdrawn all other acceptances if your first choice accepts you. From other posts, it looks like that once a school have made a decision on you, they can retrieve a list of the other schools (their competition) that have accepted you. Maybe it's to help them gauge the likelihood of you accepting their offer. I dunno.

Thanks for all the input. I think I'll concentrate on the school's attributes and how we're a good fit for each other, and then briefly mention that the location is desirable as well.

Good luck everyone!

 

[big_smiles]

Location and family are important too. It will ultimately sway your decisions of where to attend, so why not include it? Doesn't seem like it can cause any harm.

 

[spaceman_spiff]

I agree with big smiles. If med schools can use that sort of thing in their brochure (such as "located in beautiful sunny Southern California") then you should be able to use it as part of your reasons for wanting to go there.