Letters of reference

[Ausrural]

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What type of things do they ideally like to see in your letters of reference? how close do the people writing them need to be to you? And do letters from actual veterinarians carry more weight? For example, someone like me who has tons of animal experience but limited actual clinic experience. I can get letters from all my previous employers and mentors, but when it comes to letters from actual vets I can only think of two. One from a colleague who is a vet and we work together on diagnosis and treatment whenever the research colony has health issues. The other has seen me in action in the cattle industry but I haven't actually shadowed either of them. Will letters from them be good, bad or negligible. Will my application be worthless without any letters from actual vets? Sorry if there is already a thread covering this. Cant use the search function from my phone

 

[thearsonist]

They want to see how other people perceive you. You will not get to see the letters, but that's not something to worry about since you asked him/her to write one, you wouldn't get someone who hates you to write an LOR. The letters should only support your application, not detract from it. (i'm sure your references have written LOR's before, so it shouldn't be anything new to them) Just make sure you choose the right people.

continuing on....
The two vets you listed above should be fine. as long as you have worked with them, then it's sufficient (though I think some schools require a certain amount of time of interaction with them??? i could be wrong).

best of luck!

 

[EllieGirl89]

Who your letters come from is actually based on what school you are applying to. Some schools want 2 from veterinarians and one from somebody else, some schools want 1 from a veterinarian, 1 from a professor, and 1 from somebody else, etc. Ohio State is an example of a school that wants 2 from veterinarians and 1 from anybody else. Ohio State also explicity specifies that you do not have to have worked under a veterinarian who is writing you an LOR. Of course, they will be able to write you a stronger LOR if you have worked with them and they know more about you, but that's up to you. The vets that are writing my LORs haven't known me too terribly long-one for a year and one for a few months-but I've worked with them extensively this summer so they both have a pretty good idea of who I am and what kind of candidate I am. The other person I chose was the stable manager at a horse farm where I worked for about a year. She really liked me and I know will write me a very positive letter.

So choose your references wisely and based upon the school's requirements. Instead of asking if they will write you a letter of recommendation, ask it in a way that 1.) specifies that you want a GOOD letter of recmommendation, because vet schools have gotten letters saying "oh dear Lord don't let this person into vet school" and 2.) lets them have an "out" so you don't put them on the spot of having to tell you they can't honestly write you a positive letter. A good way to ask is to say "I was wondering if you feel like you know me well enough to write me a positive letter of recommendation for vet school." That way you've specified that you want it to be positive and you've given them an out if they don't want to-they can just say "You know, I don't think I know you well enough..." blah blah blah.

Good luck!

 

[Ausrural]

Thanks =) since i'm applying in australia (should have mentioned that sorry) the application process is a little different and who the letters should be from is not specified. Also I have to collect the letters myself so yes I will see them =) my references have asked what type of things they should include ... Any tips?

 

[thearsonist]

oops, perhaps it would have been wise to look at your location. my apologies.

The letters should focus on you.
work ethic, determination, amiability, and most importantly - why they would recommend you as a qualified candidate for vet school (hence "recommendation")

make sure every single letter you receive is STRONG!
adcoms may read all, or only one of them. if you submit one that's "alright" or one that might not be as strong as the others, it could possibly hurt your chances.

 

[Ausrural]

Fantastic thats exactly what I needed. So very helpful! =) thanks a bunch

 

[rileyroo]

It is required to have at least two letters from veterinarians and a third can be a non vet (professor or advisor preferably).

this actually isn't true...only one school that i know of for sure (Ohio State) requires two LORs from veterinarians. there might be more than that, but the majority of the US schools don't require 2 LORs from veterinarians.

just wanted to clarify that for people applying this year that may see this and freak out that only one of their LORs is from a veterinarian.

 

[thearsonist]

this actually isn't true...only one school that i know of for sure (Ohio State) requires two LORs from veterinarians. there might be more than that, but the majority of the US schools don't require 2 LORs from veterinarians.

just wanted to clarify that for people applying this year that may see this and freak out that only one of their LORs is from a veterinarian.

post edited.

sorry if it seemed like I was calling out specifications. I just remember OSU and NCS being pretty specific about their LORs, besides a total of 3.