LORs (subtitled: I am a tool.)

[deschutes]

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I have 4 letters, all from pathologists.

I've yet to come across a program that requires more than 3.

I know to go with the person who knows you best, but all these people know me fairly well.

Aside from random selection, what are my options?

(I know it probably doesn't really matter in the final accounting - I'm looking for an opinion from an external source to help me stop spinning my wheels!!)

 

[b&ierstiefel]

I have 4 letters, all from pathologists.

I've yet to come across a program that requires more than 3.

I know to go with the person who knows you best, but all these people know me fairly well.

Aside from random selection, what are my options?

(I know it probably doesn't really matter in the final accounting - I'm looking for an opinion from an external source to help me stop spinning my wheels!!)

Option #1 = Don't be a tool 😀 .

Seriously though, I think you can have up to 4 letters for ERAS.

 

[yaah]

I think it depends on the program. Some don't want any more than 3 (PLUS your dean's letter). So, it is 4 if you count the deans letter. Make sure you ask. As for which one to discard when you are applying, well, I can't tell you that unless I see them. You can send different letters to different programs though if you want.

 

[stormjen]

You can have someone in the dean's office look them over and suggest to you which ones to use. That way you get around the waiver to not look at them.

 

[deschutes]

I like that. It borders on the devious.

Gosh I've made Post #101. Since the 24th of July!
This can't be normal. I should cut back.

In honour of the occasion, I'm going to bed... NOW. *crawls* 😴

 

[yaah]

I like that. It borders on the devious.

Gosh I've made Post #101. Since the 24th of July!
This can't be normal. I should cut back.

In honour of the occasion, I'm going to bed... NOW. *crawls* 😴

It says you are averaging 5.56 posts per day. That isn't that many.

101 is a great number. It has character. You aren't sure whether it refers to "One hundred and one" or it is supposed to mean something in the code of BINARY NUMBERS.

Man: 1000 1 010 101 0001 1101.
His Wife: 1101 100 111 1010111 1?
Man: 111 101 10 01!

I have no idea what I just typed, but that is what a terrible joke would look like in binary.

 

[bente]

It says you are averaging 5.56 posts per day. That isn't that many.

That's an impressive rate to me! I suck, mine is about .24/day. I need to step it up!
Anyone interested in ghostwriting threads for me?

 

[b&ierstiefel]

That's an impressive rate to me! I suck, mine is about .24/day. I need to step it up!
Anyone interested in ghostwriting threads for me?

Hey man you're getting up there...your posts/day just jumped to 0.25! 🙂

 

[b&ierstiefel]

I think it depends on the program. Some don't want any more than 3 (PLUS your dean's letter). So, it is 4 if you count the deans letter. Make sure you ask. As for which one to discard when you are applying, well, I can't tell you that unless I see them. You can send different letters to different programs though if you want.

So are you saying that those programs that want 3 will penalize you for sending 4? Great...now I gotta re-look at those program websites to look for exact criteria. Oh well, that's what call nights are for 🙂

 

[deschutes]

So are you saying that those programs that want 3 will penalize you for sending 4? Great...now I gotta re-look at those program websites to look for exact criteria.

Well, I don't know if "penalize" isn't too strong a word, but I've heard that it's sorta the same principle underlying the request for a "one-page personal statement".

Frieda has "#LORs required" for most programs - the magic number, if you can rely on it, seems to be 3.

I'll probably go for 3. Just to get around the "you're in med school, can't you count??" screen, if there's any.

It says you are averaging 5.56 posts per day. That isn't that many.

Awrite tuff guy, let's see YOU get it up!!

Actually I can't make up my mind whether you are being encouraging or sarcastic. 😉

But I agree that "101" has character. "110 Dalmatians" just isn't the same.

 

[yaah]

Awrite tuff guy, let's see YOU get it up!!

Actually I can't make up my mind whether you are being encouraging or sarcastic. 😉

Encouraging! I just posted like 6 this morning and it isn't even 8:30. Besides, Andy is at 11.25/day this morning. We bow to him. He is our post master.

Actually mine would be higher but occasionally I go back and delete useless stuff I posted once in the lounge or something. Don't usually delete any path posts though, because I know people like to look through the archives, which I heartily encourage.

 

[deschutes]

And we are still leading the opthalmo's by >300 posts!!

Ophthalmology 729 4,630
Pathology 696 4,965

 

[b&ierstiefel]

And we are still leading the opthalmo's by >300 posts!!

Ophthalmology 729 4,630
Pathology 696 4,965

I totally noticed that. we've left those opticians/1800contacts peeps in the dust. And that's right yaah, I said it again...peeps.

I wish all you peeps a good day! Call was awesome. I had only 1 admission the whole night and she's gonna leave tomorrow (on my day off!).

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Encouraging! I just posted like 6 this morning and it isn't even 8:30. Besides, Andy is at 11.25/day this morning. We bow to him. He is our post master.

Nope...bow down to the assbag who came up with the idea of making medical students do subinternships.

Seriously, reading posts and posting on this forum is very therapeutic. You peeps are all awesome and get me through the doldrums of each and every excruciating moment of clinical medicine.

Even during rounds, I will go to the computer and check out posts and it will cheer me up.

Rounds lasted for 4 hours today. I was tempted to choke on the cookie I bought this morning.

 

[deschutes]

You guys add a whole new dimension to the phrase "social network" - and I mean that in the best of all possible ways 😛

~
I bow to Andy, Post-Master Extraordinaire. How do you get to a computer during a 4-hour-long round to read posts!??

 

[b&ierstiefel]

You guys add a whole new dimension to the phrase "social network" - and I mean that in the best of all possible ways 😛

~
I bow to Andy, Post-Master Extraordinaire. How do you get to a computer during a 4-hour-long round to read posts!??

There are computers along the walls of the patient hallways. Sometimes when we want to look to see if AM labs are up, it allows us to quickly look things up during rounds.

Of course, when my attending's pager goes off, and he has to run off to answer the page, I walk away to look at AM labs too. But see, that only takes a few seconds. I spend the rest of the 1-2 minutes surfing the net (i.e., looking at SDN). 🙂

 

[deschutes]

There are computers along the walls of the patient hallways. Sometimes when we want to look to see if AM labs are up, it allows us to quickly look things up during rounds.

Is that TDS too?

Of course, when my attending's pager goes off, and he has to run off to answer the page, I walk away to look at AM labs too. But see, that only takes a few seconds. I spend the rest of the 1-2 minutes surfing the net (i.e., looking at SDN). 🙂

I'd have the resident on my back in no time. I just have that sort of face.

Today though, I got to clinic at 0830. Attending said, "There's a new patient coming in at 9, so why don't you wait and see her?"

Breakfast Email rounds!! 👍

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Is that TDS too?

I'd have the resident on my back in no time. I just have that sort of face.

Today though, I got to clinic at 0830. Attending said, "There's a new patient coming in at 9, so why don't you wait and see her?"

Breakfast Email rounds!! 👍

Sorry, I don't know what "TDS" is. It's probably something really obvious but I'm hungover now cuz I forgot to drink water this morning before crashing.

 

[deschutes]

Sorry, I don't know what "TDS" is. It's probably something really obvious but I'm hungover now cuz I forgot to drink water this morning before crashing.

Ha! It was the tequila, wasn't it.

I don't know what TDS stands for either 😉 It's the system we have to track orders/labs/patient info etc. on the computers here. Text-based, white-and-red-on-black, subdirectory upon subdirectory......

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Ha! It was the tequila, wasn't it.

I don't know what TDS stands for either 😉 It's the system we have to track orders/labs/patient info etc. on the computers here. Text-based, white-and-red-on-black, subdirectory upon subdirectory......

Andy says no to tequila now.
What did me in was the constant drinking from 6 pm to 2 am. If I had a shot of tequila, I would probably be still bedridden.
I feel like I have a fatty liver. It is very angry with my conduct last evening.

Anyways, our computer system is not called TDS. I think at different hospitals the software is called different things. For example, at U of Michigan hospitals, it's called Careweb. At the VA hospital, it's called CPRS. At Oakwood hospital, it's called LastWord. Etc. Etc.

Anyways, I got another night of drinks ahead of me tonight. BUt I gotta take it easy since I'm on call tomorrow 🙁

 

[deschutes]

A quick update...

If like me you don't have the option of getting someone at your Dean's office to help you pick the better 3 of 4 letters, this was what I was told today:

Submit three, making sure that the most vital one or two are in that trio. Then wait until the program has downloaded your application before submitting the 4th.​

This is because if you submit 4, the program may think you can't read and randomly pick one to discard. You really don't want your best letter to be the trashed one.

A general surgery resident gave me this tip; I don't mean to imply that things are necessarily the same way for path, but it sounds like a sensible way to go about things to me.