LOR question!!!

[halakkala]

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Hey guys,

Here are the people that I am going to be asking for a letter:

1. research PI
2. post-doc at the same research lab
3. a campus club director at the university
4. non-science instructor
5. a volunteer coordinator.

Q1: is it okay if I ask a PI and a post-doc for a letter? I am worried because the post-doc works in the same lab as the PI (actually not in the same lab, be we have a collaboration...) But the post-doc knows me very well and will write me a great LOR

Q2: if I decide to send the first 4 people (PI, post-doc, club director, english instructor), all of them will be from a university and not from the community... is that ok?

Q3: the non-science instructor does not have a ph.D and he only has a masters degree. I also took a course once with him. Is this a good idea to ask him for a letter? He knows me pretty well, but not sure if it will be a super stellar letter.

Q4: the volunteer coordinator will be on a maternity leave at the end of March and she is due in early May. I want to get a letter from her within the next 2 weeks; however, I dont think AMCAS will be open at that time. Should I get interfolio and do it that way? I don't think she will be able to write a letter after March... (i personally dont know much about interfolio btw...)

Thanks everyone for all of your help! Your help is greatly appreciated!

 

[funklab]

Does your school do a committee letter?

My school has you send three letters from full professors who had you for a "grade-able experience" (so research counts if they gave you a grade for it) and two of them have to be science profs. Then my school writes a committee letter. I think it looks fairly bad if your school has a committee letter and you dont get one.


Anyway, other than that, my premed advisor, who seems to know what she is doing, says that letters from grad students, or people in the community are generally frowned upon. And you definitely want to get at least one letter from an MD.

It might be helpful to browse through the websites of the schools that you are looking at. Many of them list exactly what they want in LORs

 

[halakkala]

Thanks funklab,

So I am a Canadian, and we dont have committee letters.

Do some schools specifically require letters from an MD? I personally don't know any MDs because shadowing is illegal in Canada I believe (although I did shadow a doctor, but he doesn't know me well enough)\

Also, the english instructor actually taught the entire course and he is affiliated with the university. Is it still considered 'bad' even if the person taught the course?

What about the post-doc - PI issue? I think both of them can write amazing letters

Thanks.

Does your school do a committee letter?

My school has you send three letters from full professors who had you for a "grade-able experience" (so research counts if they gave you a grade for it) and two of them have to be science profs. Then my school writes a committee letter. I think it looks fairly bad if your school has a committee letter and you dont get one.


Anyway, other than that, my premed advisor, who seems to know what she is doing, says that letters from grad students, or people in the community are generally frowned upon. And you definitely want to get at least one letter from an MD.

It might be helpful to browse through the websites of the schools that you are looking at. Many of them list exactly what they want in LORs

 

[halakkala]

any other ideas?