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Hi all!
I am struggling to decide the best course of action for my second 'science' letter, and would value opinions on which option would be the best out of the following. I am applying for Fall 2016 entry into MD/PhD programs in Epidemiology/public health (depending on the school). My first letter will be coming from my upper div Organic Chemistry II professor, and will undoubtedly be very strong -- I finished first in the class out of ~ 60 students, at an Ivy League school. Beyond that, I have a great relationship with my professor and have kept in touch with him since finishing his class (i.e. I know him well and it will be more personal than "She was the top student in my class").
The second letter, however, is giving me a bit of trouble because I don't know many of my other science professors that well, something which I really regret. I am left with the following options (if this matters, my science GPA is 4.0, so the grade I got in the class won't matter with respect to differentiating between them):
1) Organic Chemistry II LAB Professor: Lab courses and lecture courses are completely separate at my school. My course professor (a PhD) knows me well, and I often went in early to work on the lab. My TA also knows me well. I did very well in the class, and it was very recent (last semester) so I will be fresh in my professor's mind. Downsides are that it is a lab course not a lecture course, and that my first letter is also organic chemistry. However, I am applying to MD/PhD programs, so maybe this is OK?
2) Epidemiology TA/Professor cosign: I took a graduate level course in epidemiology at my school's public health school (we can cross-list, so it counted towards my undergraduate degree). My problem with this is that I am not sure that epidemiology will count as a science at all schools, even though I am applying for an epidemiology PhD program. Additionally I didn't know the professor, so my TA would likely have to write the letter with my professor cosigning (however I knew my TA really well -- she was a second-year MPH student).
3) Freshman Advanced Bio professor: I also worked in this professor's lab for a year and a half. I know this sounds most appealing, but even though I worked in his lab I don't think his letter would be as strong/personal as, say, my organic chem lab professor's letter. He was pretty hands-off. Plus, it was four years ago, so I doubt he remembers me that much. I transferred schools after my sophomore year, which is why I am no longer working in his lab.
My pre-med advisor has told me to go with whoever would write me the 'strongest' letter. If I had to pick one of these for the 'strongest' letter, it would be option 1. She says that the fact that the letter would be from a lab course professor and in the same field as my first letter doesn't matter, and also says that the Epi class would could as a science. But I wanted to get other opinions.
Any help/advice much appreciated!
I am struggling to decide the best course of action for my second 'science' letter, and would value opinions on which option would be the best out of the following. I am applying for Fall 2016 entry into MD/PhD programs in Epidemiology/public health (depending on the school). My first letter will be coming from my upper div Organic Chemistry II professor, and will undoubtedly be very strong -- I finished first in the class out of ~ 60 students, at an Ivy League school. Beyond that, I have a great relationship with my professor and have kept in touch with him since finishing his class (i.e. I know him well and it will be more personal than "She was the top student in my class").
The second letter, however, is giving me a bit of trouble because I don't know many of my other science professors that well, something which I really regret. I am left with the following options (if this matters, my science GPA is 4.0, so the grade I got in the class won't matter with respect to differentiating between them):
1) Organic Chemistry II LAB Professor: Lab courses and lecture courses are completely separate at my school. My course professor (a PhD) knows me well, and I often went in early to work on the lab. My TA also knows me well. I did very well in the class, and it was very recent (last semester) so I will be fresh in my professor's mind. Downsides are that it is a lab course not a lecture course, and that my first letter is also organic chemistry. However, I am applying to MD/PhD programs, so maybe this is OK?
2) Epidemiology TA/Professor cosign: I took a graduate level course in epidemiology at my school's public health school (we can cross-list, so it counted towards my undergraduate degree). My problem with this is that I am not sure that epidemiology will count as a science at all schools, even though I am applying for an epidemiology PhD program. Additionally I didn't know the professor, so my TA would likely have to write the letter with my professor cosigning (however I knew my TA really well -- she was a second-year MPH student).
3) Freshman Advanced Bio professor: I also worked in this professor's lab for a year and a half. I know this sounds most appealing, but even though I worked in his lab I don't think his letter would be as strong/personal as, say, my organic chem lab professor's letter. He was pretty hands-off. Plus, it was four years ago, so I doubt he remembers me that much. I transferred schools after my sophomore year, which is why I am no longer working in his lab.
My pre-med advisor has told me to go with whoever would write me the 'strongest' letter. If I had to pick one of these for the 'strongest' letter, it would be option 1. She says that the fact that the letter would be from a lab course professor and in the same field as my first letter doesn't matter, and also says that the Epi class would could as a science. But I wanted to get other opinions.
Any help/advice much appreciated!