Letters of recommendation specific to each school?

[Veera]

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I've begun to look at some MPH applications, and have noticed that many of the schools (such as Harvard, Hopkins, Yale, Minnesota, Michigan, GW) have recommendation forms with a few specific questions for recommenders to answer -- such as applicants' percentile ranking in lots of different areas (intellectual capability, promise as a public health professional, yada yada).

Do any of you who have applied and/or discussed the process with others have insight into how important it is to have each form specifically filled out, versus having a more general recommendation sent instead (one that does address public health-related experience, skills, etc., but not direct answers to the specific questions)? I'm sure it is preferable to have the aqctual form filled out -- but how is it looked at if it is not?

I think that my application otherwise is pretty strong, in case this makes a difference in schools' weight on/preference re: recommendations. One of the three letters could easily be specifically filled out by my current employer. But contacting professors from ~1.5 yrs ago to fill out many many forms -- when I already have very strong recommendations from them on file -- is really not exciting.

Thanks for any insights!
-Veera

 

[namazu]

Several of the forms I looked at had a clause in the fine print suggesting that referees could attach a letter in lieu of filling out the ranking tables/specific questions. This varies from school to school, so it would probably be best to check your forms and/or contact someone in the admissions offices at each school if you're still concerned. In any case, even if your referees are planning to attach letters, the forms specific to each school must usually accompany them. Usually this means, at minimum, you have to fill out your personal info on the form, sign the waiver of right to access if desired, and your recommender has to fill out his or her contact information.

FWIW, when I applied this past season I had been out of college for about 2 years. I had to apply to about 10 programs due to family/geographic flexibility considerations, which felt like a whole lot of imposition on my letter writers... After I sent off the forms, I didn't see them again, so I'm not sure, but I think my recommenders mostly used templates they'd written, modified slightly to reflect each school's name and the program to which I was applying. After e-mailing them to make sure they were willing and able to write strong letters for me, I sent my former professors a table showing the school names, degree program, and deadlines, as well as pre-addresed stamped envelopes and a current CV to make it very easy for them, and I think they appreciated this. (Some schools had the option of online recomendations, but at least one of my letter writers - and I - found it easier to deal with paper instead.)

Anyway, I've strayed from your original question, but I think if you send the forms to your letter writers, they'll figure out what to do, whether that means attaching a pre-written letter or actually filling out the forms. Good luck!

 

[namazu]

Ah, I think maybe I misunderstood your original post. Do you have letters on file with a letter service? (So they could send out your letters for you without you having to contact the original writers at all?) In that case, I'd contact the school to check that it would be OK for you to have the letters sent directly from the letter service, with or without the relevant forms. Also make sure that letters from 1.5 years ago are "current" enough for the school (probably not a problem). It probably wouldn't hurt to inform the profs who wrote your letters initially that you're applying to programs and planning to use their letters again.

 

[Veera]

Yes - I have the letters on file already. I think I can even send in the forms for each school to the credentials service -- and have the letters attached to the forms before I send them in.

The issue I want to find out about is if/how much of a disadvantage people think it is (from their applying, or own research) to have the letters sent without having the specific questions filled out on each form (such as "rate the applicant's intellectual ability", etc.) -- although I do have a feeling that the letters are strong enough and indicate more generally where I rank compared to other students.

Thanks!

 

[namazu]

I don't think you'd be at a disadvantage at all, unless you are unhappy with your test scores or GPA and are counting on the letter to explicitly state that you are Professor X's #1 student in the past 25 years, or something. (In which case, Professor X has probably stated this in the letter anyway.) There are probably many others who will use credentials services and/or whose letter writers will prefer to attach letters than to fill out the schools' forms, so my guess is that schools won't care. As I mentioned, I applied to about 10 schools, and think my letter writers just attached their letters. I had no problems. Good luck!

 

[calcio20]

Yeah.. How on earth do you ask a prof. to write multiple req.'s? Do you ask the professor to write 10 different letters (even if they were form)? Anybody have more suggestions?