non-science LOR

[WongoBongo]

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[Astarael]

hello SDN,

i took a course called biomedical ethics and am asking the prof to write me a letter of rec. my question is whether or not this counts as a non-science LOR. the course had many humanities students in it and there were no science pre-requisites. though we briefly discussed stem cells, the majority of the course was on history and application of ethical constructs.
log

the course is under the biology department and she is a clinical assistant professor for the medical school, but her phd is in ethics

am i good to count this as a nonscience LOR at all schools?

thx

Bioethics is generally going to be considered a non-science letter. I also have a letter from a professor of bioethics, and I've had no problems submitting it as a non-science letter. I can't say that this is true at every single school in the country though, so you may want to contact them directly. A short email would suffice, but I don't think it is really necessary.

 

[WongoBongo]

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[WongoBongo]

any more thoughts on this?

Catalysik or LizzyM to the rescuee?

 

[LizzyM]

I don't know if schools will tell you automatically if your file is incomplete or if they will inform you by phone if you call.

I'd generally look at 2 things in determining is a letter was science or non-science: 1)how does the professor know the student and 2) what is the professor's department.

Generally, professors know students through courses or labs. If the course is classified as BCPM or the professor knows the student through interactions in a lab, then it is a science lab (ok, so psychology labs are labs but not BCPM- that can go either way but I'd say science given the context).

If a faculty member is a member of the Bio, Chem, Physics, Math or similar science department, then the letter is a science letter. (eg. Assistant Professor of Biology) Non-science letters come from faculty members in the English Department, Philososophy, Foreign Languages, Music, Journalism, Art, Theater, Law, etc. The social scineces are a bit of a toss up but I'd call them non-science because generally the "science letters" are expected to come from the natural sciences.

Almost everyone I know who teaches biomedical ethics is in the philosophy department.... Having a letter from a Professor of Philosophy is a slam-dunk non-science letter.

 

[WongoBongo]

Hi LizzyM,

I appreciate your response. The professor USED to be at my school and was a lecturer for the biology department. she has now changed schools and is a clinical assistant prof of biomedical ethics for the medical school there. Her PhD is in philosophy and the nature of the course was purely nonscience for me - no lab, no science at all. We even did a special project together that evaluated the development of biomedical ethics principles with respect to social, political, and philosophical developments through history. I've already asked her for a letter and she said she'd write me a great one. Would it help if I asked her to stress the class was a "humanities" one and that her PhD is in philosophy? I'm really screwed for another nonsci letter otherwise...


Thanks!

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM,

I appreciate your response. The professor USED to be at my school and was a lecturer for the biology department. she has now changed schools and is a clinical assistant prof of biomedical ethics for the medical school there. Her PhD is in philosophy and the nature of the course was purely nonscience for me - no lab, no science at all. We even did a special project together that evaluated the development of biomedical ethics principles with respect to social, political, and philosophical developments through history. I've already asked her for a letter and she said she'd write me a great one. Would it help if I asked her to stress the class was a "humanities" one and that her PhD is in philosophy? I'm really screwed for another nonsci letter otherwise...


Thanks!

It sounds like you've prepped her well. Many faculty will describe the course, what is covered, how students are evaluated and I have no doubt that a professor with a doctorate in philosophy will make it clear that she was not teaching "science".

 

[lieut premed]

hello SDN,

i took a course called biomedical ethics and am asking the prof to write me a letter of rec. my question is whether or not this counts as a non-science LOR. the course had many humanities students in it and there were no science pre-requisites. though we briefly discussed stem cells, the majority of the course was on history and application of ethical constructs.
log

the course is under the biology department and she is a clinical assistant professor for the medical school, but her phd is in ethics

am i good to count this as a nonscience LOR at all schools?

thx

naw bro try a real major like anthro or english... good luck, letters are due soon!

 

[MCAT guy]

Took bioethics. Boosted my BCPM GPA... done and done.