Letter of Rec Questions

[pappy846]

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Hey everyone...

I understand that the primary app doesn't ask for rec letters and that usually secondaries ask for them...but......

I will be in Peru for awhile and I would like to get my letter writers to send out letters before I get secondaries just to make sure that they don't hold anything up in the process....

Now, my question is...are there special forms that letter writers fill out that are unique to the school or do they just send letters in their own format to the school and all is good?

Any advice will be appreciated!

-Pat

 

[Spankete87]

Most schools (or at least the ones I applied to) have some sort of form of their own that they provide you with in the secondary, but i don't think they care if you actually use it or not. Personally, I didn't use a single form that I got from any of the schools. Just make sure your letter writers include pertinent info about your work ethic, dedication to the field, how you did in class (if you took a class with them), how you were to work with (if you worked with them), team player, etc in the letter. Have the writers send their letter to something like interfolio or if your undergrad has a career service center sometimes they will have a reference letter system that you could use as well. Good luck!

 

[NewNick]

I don't know where you will keep your LORs. My school has a place to keep the LORs, so when I asked, they gave me the form for professors to fill out. Most of it is just checking the boxes. Then the professor attached the letter with that form to send back to the office. I used Interfolio to keep LORs from the physicians. I think they don't have a form (don't remember exactly). They just asked the professor to attach the letter and send back to them.

The benefit is you can request those agents to send LORs to schools online.

To answer your question, you can do it generically as long as the agent is approved by the med schools. You don't want your professors/physicians fill out too many forms for many schools. 🙂

I hope this will help.

 

[Corrupt200]

I don't know where you will keep your LORs. My school has a place to keep the LORs, so when I asked, they gave me the form for professors to fill out. Most of it is just checking the boxes. Then the professor attached the letter with that form to send back to the office. I used Interfolio to keep LORs from the physicians. I think they don't have a form (don't remember exactly). They just asked the professor to attach the letter and send back to them.

The benefit is you can request those agents to send LORs to schools online.

To answer your question, you can do it generically as long as the agent is approved by the med schools. You don't want your professors/physicians fill out too many forms for many schools. 🙂

I hope this will help.

I would used interfolio or another reference letter service. You never know what will happen. I can give you a example in which I was affected. I asked one of my orgo prof to write a letter for me, and I asked him to put one in Interfolio. Retrospectively I think it was worth it, because he died in a car accident last February.