No letter from MD or DO?

[DonnyDutch]

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Hi everyone, As I put my packet together to apply next year, I realized that I have NO letters of rec from either a MD or DO, will this hurt my application? All of my other LORs are very strong. Is it highly preferred to have a letter from a doctor?

Thanks in advance!

 

[TriagePreMed]

Yes, it will hurt you. Go shadow and get 1 or 2. Some schools actually require them.

 

[DonnyDutch]

Thanks Triage, I have done plenty of shadowing, my issue is that all of my other LORs are highly personal and specific, whereas the letters I would get from the docs would be generic.

 

[Barcu]

Hi everyone, As I put my packet together to apply next year, I realized that I have NO letters of rec from either a MD or DO, will this hurt my application? All of my other LORs are very strong. Is it highly preferred to have a letter from a doctor?

Thanks in advance!

I didn't have a letter from an MD, and I have a few acceptances (I only applied MD).

Some DO schools require a DO letter. So, if you are looking at that route or may possible apply DO, I would recommend getting a DO letter just in case.

If you are only doing MD, I don't think it's that big of a problem to not have an MD or DO letter.

Hopefully an adcom can shed more light on this. This is only from my personal experience.

 

[DonnyDutch]

Thanks Barcu! Catalystik what do you think?

 

[Catalystik]

It's more unusual for an AMCAS school to request an physician letter. With the DO schools, you just need to know which is which: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=10677&d=1217108730

Unless you are applying only to those DO schools that don't require or recommend one, having a letter on tap is a good idea.

 

[DonnyDutch]

It's more unusual for an AMCAS school to request an physician letter. With the DO schools, you just need to know which is which: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=10677&d=1217108730

Unless you are applying only to those DO schools that don't require or recommend one, having a letter on tap is a good idea.

As always, Thank Cat!

 

[moneymill4569]

For what it's worth, I hold numerous MD acceptances and did not acquire an MD LOR.

 

[Nymphicus]

Sorry if this has been brought up before, but for allopathic schools, is there any weight placed on whether the letter is from a MD or DO? (Similar to how some DO schools prefer DO letters).

 

[Catalystik]

Sorry if this has been brought up before, but for allopathic schools, is there any weight placed on whether the letter is from a MD or DO? (Similar to how some DO schools prefer DO letters).

No, they don't differentiate between them.

 

[Jstone123]

get letter of rec. period. i found it very difficult to find shadowing opportunities in hospitals because many don't allow shadowers and if so theres a bunch of paperwork and procedural things to go through. find a family friend who is a doctor. find a local, privately owned practice. shadow them as much as you could. i shadowed a cardiologist for 100 hours, got a great letter or rec, and talked about my experiences with her during each interview. shadowing is an easy thing to do and you can learn a lot of interesting things, and get a very needed letter. md or do doesn't matter. i shadowed and md family doctor and a do electrophysiologist, so focus more on getting recs from doctors with various specialties and dont worry about where they went to med school

 

[nicolemeooow]

I personally don't have any letters from physicians and I am doing just fine. In fact most of the people I know who have gotten into med schools (MD) don't have letters from physicians. A professor/mentor/supervisor obviously spends more time with you and knows you better than a doctor you shadowed(considering the limited opportunities of physician shadowing). It's not so much about who wrote the letter. It's more about the quality. Of course if the doctor knows you well and can write you a very strong letter go ahead and ask for one. If all he/she can put down is "so and so is hard-working" then, well, I don't think the letter would help a lot.

 

[vandyam]

.

 

[Catalystik]

When I submit my application will the school that requires a DO LOR still look at my MD LOR as something worth considering?

Some schools are rigid about the type and number of LORs they want to see or will have a rule about no supplemental submissions. For all other schools, I'd send both.