LoR situation, need advice!

[Clair de Lune]

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Maybe someone can help me with this. I asked my profs for my LoR's over a month ago, so far 3/4 have already submitted them, and they've been uploaded to programs. Should I just tell the other letter writer to forget about it? The letter writer does know me personally both in and outside of school, and is a pathologist at my home university. I think the letter would be good. However, I have 3 other letters which are probably pretty strong. Also, if I did unassign this letter writer to the programs would they know I had done that? Then they might suspect I unassigned the letter for a reason (i.e. I thought it might be a bad letter). OK what should I do people?? 😕

 

[yaah]

Did you already send a "thank you again for agreeing to write my letter of reference. I have now finished and submitted my application and am looking forward to the interview season" note to the writer? It's a nice not-so-subtle but subtle enough way to prod them.

 

[deschutes]

I don't think you can assign a letter that's not there, so that shouldn't be an issue. The programs won't even see it.

I ran into a similar situation with a letter. Since I had enough for ERAS, I just never bugged the writer about it after the initial request - they presumably conveniently forgot.

 

[Clair de Lune]

Yaah, I did send an email today under the guise of I needed to provide some new information I did not have at the time I asked her to do a letter (I actually asked her 2 weeks before I asked the others!). Maybe she'll get the hint. If not, I'm unassigning the letter so I don't have to worry about it anymore.

 

[deschutes]

Oh I remember now what you're referring to... you have to put in the names of your referees on the system. Silly me.

At any rate it seems like you have things under control!

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Clair, I was in your shoes a year ago. I had 2 letters from pathologists and 3 from internal medicine. One of the IM attendings never wrote the letter but I had assigned the letter to some programs.

I ended up unassigning the letter and nobody ever made a deal out of it. If you don't like pestering people and the letter isn't coming in, you can unassign it and I think you'll be fine.

But given that this letter writer knows you personally and is a pathologist, I would try to get that letter in. Just email the attending and say, "Thank you for agreeing to write the letter. I have submitted my application in the beginning of September and was wondering if you could send your letter to the ERAS coordinator at this address..."