LOR from private practice doc

[faith100]

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I'm a third-year student interested in family medicine - currently rotating with a family med doc in private practice that gives me a fair amount of responsibility and autonomy in regards to seeing patients on my own, performing history and physicals, writing notes etc. I will only have one more family medicine rotation, starting about 2 months before residency applications are due on Sept 1st. I would like to ask for a letter of recommendation from this doc, but is it frowned upon since he is in private practice vs. academic? Or is it more important that it's a family doc writing the letter, since this is my preferred choice for residency?

Thanks!

 

[koan]

Definitely ask for a letter, it sounds like it would be a good one and you can decide next summer whether or not to use it for ERAS when you have more LORs. This is something I didn't figure out until later in third year -- ask every attending you get along with well and spend a good amount of time with for a letter.

 

[hallowmann]

Get any LOR you think will be good. You can always decide later if you need to actually use it. Having too many strong LORs is a much better situation than not having enough.

 

[itallbelongstoyou]

Letters from attendings that will write something meaningful and who actually got to know you make a huge difference. These letters often come from community attendings vs. academic attendings just based on the nature of the rotation set up. If you're going for a super academic residency I'd definitely not use it as the only letter and plan to get a more academic setting letter but this letter sounds like it will definitely help you also as I'm sure it will say specific good things about you.

 

[SLC]

I'm applying FM this season, just wrapped up interviews a few weeks ago. I had 3 letters that I used from Private Practice docs; 1 FM, 1 OB, and one Surgeon.

On my interviews I got countless comments on how strong my letters were; some said they felt my letters were among the strongest they'd ever read.

So my take is that of you feel the letter will be a great one, by all means ask for it and don't be afraid to submit it. I can vouch for the fact that in FM it can work well.

 

[faith100]

Thanks everyone! I asked for the letter!!