Letters of Interest? Huh?

[Lacipart]

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Be proactive if you still haven't received an interview. Send them a Letter of Interest. Come on guys if you want to get in, then do something about it

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I'm confused, what's the deal with these letters of interest? I mean, I kinda get the point. But seems to me that its obvious you're interested if you applied, and sending them more stuff would just bog down their staff.

I can see the point of a letter of intent after you interview somewhere "wow, amazing place, I absolutely love what I saw that day and I would be honored to attend".

But a letter of interest before you get interviewed? What does one expect?


*flash to the admissions mail room of PRESTIGIOUS MEDICAL SCHOOL*

*enter MAILMAN, he carries one white LETTER and places it on the desk*

Admissions Worker 1: "What is this? A letter from someone? Oh boy, what could it be?!"
Admissions Worker 1: "Hmm, its a letter from Bob Smith. He says he wants to come here!"
Admissions Worker 2: "No way, Bob Smith!? I was looking at his app yesterday, i didn't think he deserved an interview."
Admissions Worker 1: "Well, he says he wants to come"
Admissions Worker 2: "Wow, I can't believe it. Well, heck, lets invite him to interview! He clearly is a qualified candidate."
Admissions Worker 1: "Sweet, I'll get the Dean"



In all seriousness, whats the protocol for these letters? I haven't heard about them besides for a few SDN'ers mentioning how they sent them out in the last few weeks.

 

[Sammich117]

I sent FSU a letter of interest, got an interview invite the next day, and got accepted today. I don't know if it had anything to do with anything, but it sure can't hurt. I feel like it shows actual interest rather than just clicking a box to add them to your application.

 

[Alwaysbehopeful]

Yeah I don't know if I should send any. It seems pointless...

I think most people send them as a desperate move and also to only 1-2 programs that they are really interested in.

 

[Lacipart]

I sent FSU a letter of interest, got an interview invite the next day, and got accepted today. I don't know if it had anything to do with anything, but it sure can't hurt. I feel like it shows actual interest rather than just clicking a box to add them to your application.

Wow, grats on the acceptance.

I figure its worth a shot to send one or two. I mean, might as well right?
Is there any template you guys followed or anything? I wouldn't even know where to start.

I got "Dear Admissions Commitee, I'm really interested in your school....".

But, yea. How long should these things be? I can't imagine more than 1 paragraph?

 

[Alwaysbehopeful]

I sent FSU a letter of interest, got an interview invite the next day, and got accepted today. I don't know if it had anything to do with anything, but it sure can't hurt. I feel like it shows actual interest rather than just clicking a box to add them to your application.

How do you know your letter of interest did anything for you? Maybe the invite was on the way already....

I think the next day should hint that your letter probably didn't matter. I mean we all know medical schools don't function on a daily time scale, more like weekly.

 

[JonathanMD]

😕
I'm confused, what's the deal with these letters of interest? I mean, I kinda get the point. But seems to me that its obvious you're interested if you applied, and sending them more stuff would just bog down their staff.

I can see the point of a letter of intent after you interview somewhere "wow, amazing place, I absolutely love what I saw that day and I would be honored to attend".

But a letter of interest before you get interviewed? What does one expect?


*flash to the admissions mail room of PRESTIGIOUS MEDICAL SCHOOL*

*enter MAILMAN, he carries one white LETTER and places it on the desk*

Admissions Worker 1: "What is this? A letter from someone? Oh boy, what could it be?!"
Admissions Worker 1: "Hmm, its a letter from Bob Smith. He says he wants to come here!"
Admissions Worker 2: "No way, Bob Smith!? I was looking at his app yesterday, i didn't think he deserved an interview."
Admissions Worker 1: "Well, he says he wants to come"
Admissions Worker 2: "Wow, I can't believe it. Well, heck, lets invite him to interview! He clearly is a qualified candidate."
Admissions Worker 1: "Sweet, I'll get the Dean"



In all seriousness, whats the protocol for these letters? I haven't heard about them besides for a few SDN'ers mentioning how they sent them out in the last few weeks.

I don't know the context in which the original quote is from but:

"Letter of Interest" is also known as, "Letter of Intent", "Letter of Intention", "Statement of Intent", "Statement of Intention", "Statement of Interest", "Goals Statement", "Personal Statement", "Personal Narrative" or "Application Essay".

Maybe they meant send another Personal Statement.

 

[Lacipart]

How do you know your letter of interest did anything for you? Maybe the invite was on the way already....

I think the next day should hint that your letter probably didn't matter. I mean we all know medical schools don't function on a daily time scale, more like weekly.

I also think it would be hilarious if I send a school a letter of interest and then during the 3 days it takes for the mail to get there I get an email that I am rejected. That would be kinda awkward for them 🙄

 

[Sammich117]

How do you know your letter of interest did anything for you? Maybe the invite was on the way already....

I think the next day should hint that your letter probably didn't matter. I mean we all know medical schools don't function on a daily time scale, more like weekly.

That's why I said I'm not sure if it did anything. But I did get an e-mail back saying she would check with the dean and get back to me, and the next thing she sent me was an invite... Like I said, who knows if it made a difference, but I really don't see how it can hurt. If it is a school you're incredibly interested in, it's probably good to let them know that, especially if there wasn't a way to on the secondary.

Just my opinion. I'm sure there are tons of people who think they're pointless. It would be interesting to hear an adcom's opinion.

 

[GoSpursGo]

It seems like certain schools see LOIs differently. At some, maybe most, they probably don't matter at all. However, at least a few seem to put at least some nonzero amount of importance on them. For example, I've heard that Wake's waitlist letter seems to strongly imply that they place a strong emphasis on accepting students who show a clear interest in attending. Elsewhere, I heard at my Baylor interview last year that they welcomed any additional letters, even just something saying "how much you love Baylor"; I wrote one after my interview and am attending now. I've even heard one person's story on here about how stubbornly writing multiple letters of interest got them UNREJECTED at a UC, a late-season interview, and ultimately an acceptance; afterward, the dean said that the applicant's "perseverance" was what ultimately swayed their decision to accept. When deciding from amongst

Now of course, all of this is anecdotal, and I firmly do believe that >90% of LOIs ultimately serve no purpose. Clearly, getting unrejected for an LOI is a one-in-a-million miracle and you shouldn't bank on it. But if you really, really like a school or get really desperate, it can't hurt you.

BTW, I personally think an LOI is a lot stronger post-interview rather than pre-interview, and it's better if you can make it a combined LOI/update letter.