No LOR from a science professor

[iforget2]

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Throughout college I made the mistake of hardly ever going to office hours to get to know my science professors. I'm applying this cycle to just Texas schools which don't technically require a LOR from a science professor, but I know it's best to have at least one from them. If I only had 2 strong letters- one from a liberal arts professor and one from the head of my volunteer program would this be enough? Or should I still reach out and try to get one from a science professor?

 

[Azete]

Many schools require two letters from science professors. From a purely speculative point of view, I would think a stellar LOR from one science professor paired with a so-so letter from the other science teacher would generally be OK. After all, professors are busy and it's difficult to get to know a lot of them -- especially for non-science majors.

Having one so-so letter and no second letter would not be good. In your position my advice would probably be to take a summer class and become an epic brown noser for 4-6 weeks, even though Texas schools don't technically require one.

 

[cactus8910]

https://www.tmdsas.com/medical/application-instructions.html#eval_letters
This is in bold, which makes me think it is a strong recommendation:
It is recommended that your evaluators be current/former professors that can speak to your academic ability in the sciences.

Do what you can to get a letter from a science professor. Did you take any relatively small classes? Have any labs where the professor was involved? Hopefully there's someone who remembers you well enough to write something.

Edit: Be sure to double-check specific school requirements, as they may ask for more than the TMDSAS baseline.

 

[Lawpy]

If Texas schools don't require a science LOR, you are fine without having one. Better to have no science LOR that isn't required rather than having a lukewarm letter from someone who hardly knows you. Of course, it's recommended to get a science LOR to all schools, but you dug yourself in a hole.

 

[PlaqueBuster]

Lets assume what you say is true OP, then are you only applying to the Texas medical schools? What if you don't get in because you failed to get a science LOR? sounds like a pretty silly reason to me. And if you knew you wanted to go into medicine why would you not be proactive about it earlier? I recommend you ask someone and if they cannot write you a good LOR then wait a year and apply until you have a complete application. LOR are important

 

[lifetothefullest]

Since medicine is pretty contingent on science ability/reasoning, I would say a science LOR is given pretty heavy weight. Even if it's not required, I would wonder how you'd be compared to one applicant who has a science LOR attesting to his/her reasoning/analytical abilities - do you think you're putting yourself at a disadvantage?