LOR from a biology professor...will this work??

[fayew]

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[lgwdnbdgr]

I used my PI and her husband for two of my letters, even though I've never taken a class with either of them. No school seemed to have a problem with that.

 

[vishrava]

I used my PI and her husband for two of my letters, even though I've never taken a class with either of them. No school seemed to have a problem with that.

Just from personal experience, UCSF is kind of a pain when it comes to LOR, as they ask for letters from teachers that taught you 'science' courses. I had to go to three different professors before UCSF would accept my 'science course' recommendation (as apparently Marine SCIENCE and Environmental SCIENCE aren't science courses anymore). But that's just old gripes coming back. Otherwise yes, I agree most schools won't be too picky.

 

[lgwdnbdgr]

Just from personal experience, UCSF is kind of a pain when it comes to LOR, as they ask for letters from teachers that taught you 'science' courses. I had to go to three different professors before UCSF would accept my 'science course' recommendation (as apparently Marine SCIENCE and Environmental SCIENCE aren't science courses anymore). But that's just old gripes coming back. Otherwise yes, I agree most schools won't be too picky.

Yikes! Did they give the rationale for that?

 

[dmd2011]

Hi everyone!

It seems like that time of year again - mass panic and the massive amounts of questions! I felt like adding in to the mix as well 😉

So, I noticed that a few schools ask for a letter specifically from a biology professor. Now, I am a Biochem major (through the Chem department), and the last time I took a Bio class seems like ages ago, and I definitely don't feel comfortable asking for a letter from a teacher whose class I took so long ago, and who probably doesn't know me since class sizes were huge.

However, I do have one professor, who does know me, I did very well in his class, and is willing to write me a letter. He happens to have a joint appointments in Chemistry AND biology. Since these schools don't specifically ask for letters for a biology course per se, would a letter from biology faculty meet this requirement?

Thanks ahead of time, just wanted to throw it out to see what you guys thought or had experienced with before making scary phone calls.

i think that letter will meet the requirement.

 

[pmantz]

I just did my orgo and biochem profs. Plus the lib arts.

 

[reapply2007]

My experience is that LORs are pretty much pro forma. Schools don't pay a lot of attention to them unless you bring them up. However, the stronger the LOR, the better because you never really know what adcoms pick up on when they skim a pile of 2K+ LORs. Mostly I get the impression that the first glance the LORs get results in a checklist being accomodated. Bio? Check. Chem? Check. Dentist? Check. If at some point down the line you need more/different, this is likely to happen after the interview.