I'm an August MCATer, and I've gotten a handful of secondaries now, but am wondering about the letters of recommendation. Getting the premed committee at my school together is like herding cats, and we weren't able to work our schedules out for a meeting until Nov. 8. Should I send the secondaries in before my meeting with them and just wait on their submission of the letter, or should I wait and submit them closer to the same time? Any advice would be appreciated.
I was in a similar situation: I had a bunch of secondaries, but was still waiting on 2 people to write me letters. I went ahead and sent in my secondaries. Schools will hold them until they receive your letters. I actually just had mine sent out last week, and I've already sent in 17 secondaries. In your case, though, I'd be a little more careful. Some schools have Dec. 1 deadlines for the submission of some materials, though I think at most schools you have until Jan 1 to get your letters in. Another thing to think about: If you send in secondaries early and/or as you get them, you won't be stuck having to come up with a mass of money all at once to pay for them, though if you only have a few, that won't be as big a problem as it was for me. Bottom line: Watch the deadlines. As far as I can tell, there's nothing wrong with sending in your secondaries and then your letters as soon as you can.
