*~*~*~*Official Letters of Recommendation Questions Thread 2013-2014*~*~*~*

[anguisette]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

When do letters need to be submitted by for optimal timing? Or when do I need to tell my letter writers they are due by? Thanks

Schools don't need your letters until you submit your secondary application. That's when you're marked "complete." I used Interfolio, so the transfer to AMCAS only took a day or two, but I asked my letter writers to submit by the first AMCAS data submission date. This year, that's June 28.

 

[osprey099]

Hey so I have a problem here.

My only non-science teacher this semester declined to write me a LOR. I have 2 science LORs, 2 volunteer supervisor LORs, and a LOR from my academic advisor who didn't teach any of my classes. Will it hinder me in any way that I don't have a non-science LOR? And could my academic advisor's LOR fulfill that purpose even though she didn't teach any of my classes? She is a professor here.

 

[StraightShooter]

I've got a letter writer lined up, I won't be in touch with him after this year, so I am wondering if I should just use interfolio and save it in there?

Also I'd be taking a resume and transcripts to him in order to give him a better overall idea, good idea?

 

[480225]

Let's say you're reapplying in 2014 and one of your letter writers passed away. Is it still okay to use that letter?

 

[Like]

I've been out of school for a year now and all my recommendation letters are dated from my junior year in college. Right now I'm doing research at a university hospital and became pretty close with the research manager. Should I ask her for a letter, as well as my PI?
She told me she'd write me one if I wanted and knows everything that I did for my PI. Hmm..she also writes all the letters for the post-bac students who intern there. 😎

 

[shinytofu]

I have a question on what is considered a "science" letter. I am currently taking a Brain Disorders class that falls under the Biology section/abbreviated as a bio class for AMCAS, but the course is taught by a faculty from the cognitive psychology department.

When admissions from medical schools say they want a "science" letter, does that refer to the course or the faculty?

 

[MadRadLad]

I have a question on what is considered a "science" letter. I am currently taking a Brain Disorders class that falls under the Biology section/abbreviated as a bio class for AMCAS, but the course is taught by a faculty from the cognitive psychology department.

When admissions from medical schools say they want a "science" letter, does that refer to the course or the faculty?

I'm pretty sure it's course content. I just called MSU College of Human Medicine today and asked about a similar class (Brain and Behavior - essentially a behavioral neuroscience course) and they said it would count as science.

However, other schools may be more strict so call them and ask.

 

[str8cashhomie]

Does anyone know if the pre-med committee/advisor LOR from PCOM can be substituted for anything else like a science prof who taught you?

 

[Sunr1se]

Hi folks,
In my CV/Resume, should I add in a side job/hobby that is a pretty decent part of my life? I'm a part time disk jockey (DJ) and I've played in venues and private events, to the point that it is a decent source of income for me. I also really love music and music production. However, I am freelance mostly/self-employed. The reason I'm asking this in the LOR thread is that my recommenders have asked for a CV, and I'm preparing to send them one. However, I don't know whether I should leave this out or not. I guess that it's something somewhat unexpected (I'm female, Bio major, etc.) and I don't know whether some of my recommenders would be surprised/taken aback. I'm not sure. 😕

 

[anguisette]

Hi folks,
In my CV/Resume, should I add in a side job/hobby that is a pretty decent part of my life? I'm a part time disk jockey (DJ) and I've played in venues and private events, to the point that it is a decent source of income for me. I also really love music and music production. However, I am freelance mostly/self-employed. The reason I'm asking this in the LOR thread is that my recommenders have asked for a CV, and I'm preparing to send them one. However, I don't know whether I should leave this out or not. I guess that it's something somewhat unexpected (I'm South Asian, female, etc.) and I don't know whether some of my recommenders would be surprised/taken aback. I'm not sure. 😕

I put in hobbies and extracurriculars on my CV to give to my recommenders. I think more information is always better. At least one of my writers mentioned my non-academic interests.

 

[SonofaBevo]

Are pure math professors considered non-science for recommendations? I only ask because they count all math classes towards our science gpa as far as I know (unfortunately for me), even though math isn't actually a science.

 

[Like]

bump

 

[Guero]

bump

A letter from your PI carries far more weight than and is preferable to a letter from your RM. Is your PI unavailable to update the date? Mine printed out and signed a new one with an updated date when I reapplied...

 

[johnnydoesdat]

Anyone know if LORs from a counselor are looked down upon? One of my friends told me that and he didn't have a source, he just said that he had heard it. Any thoughts? I'd have that, plus 2 LORs from science prof, 2 nonscience profs, and my PI

 

[premed2000]

Can someone tell me if this counts as a science letter?

I took a freshman seminar course more than three years ago. The professor that taught it is a professor from my undergrad med school in biochemistry. Since then, I have been working in his lab + co-authored in three papers. In many ways, he knows me so much better than my actually science professors, and there is no doubt that he can assess my ability in science better than professors who have taught me in a science course. He's seen me transform as a freshman to now a sophomore, and he knows my academic abilities (GPA+MCAT).

People always say to go with someone who know them best when it comes to LOR. And I think this is one of those things in the gray area. I asked him if he thinks his letter counts as a science letter, and he said he thinks so because med schools want people who can assess my scientific ability. He was on the admissions comittee at my undergrad med school for over 20 years, but he's been off for a couple of years now so I don't know how updated he is.

But what do you guys think?

 

[Sunr1se]

I put in hobbies and extracurriculars on my CV to give to my recommenders. I think more information is always better. At least one of my writers mentioned my non-academic interests.

Thanks for the response, I think that I will be adding those hobby details in. It shouldn't hurt, and might be picked up as a quirk by my recommenders.

 

[Like]

All my letters are from professors. Haven't gotten one from my PI yet.
He's not responding to my texts or emails as of now... he said he would write me a good letter 🙁 wtfudge

 

[medception]

Edit.

 

[Barcu]

Usually you do need to have all the letters in to be complete. However, if you have everything else in and submitted (primary, secondary, MCAT), you shouldn't be too delayed with a committee letter not being sent out until July or early August.

 

[rain4venus]

2 questions:

1. How do you know if your school does a committee letter? Do all universities with a med school offer committee letters? I tried searching on the school's site but couldn't come up with an answer. What letters can a committee letter take the place of? When is a good time to ask the committee for a letter?

2. Should you ask for letter writers to write your LOR right after you have a class with them or wait til you're applying? In particular, if you're taking a couple gap years, should you have them write your letter before you graduate? I figure you can at least figure out who will write your letters informally ahead of time, but should you actually get them to write it then, or wait until you apply? If a teacher says they'll just wait til you apply, should you push them to write it sooner (like when they're still more familiar with you)? What if you're moving to a new state?

OK so technically that was a lot more than 2 questions...

 

[Cells4life]

hi everybody just a few question:

1) for my initial LOR request, I indicated that I will be applying to both osteopathic and allopathic medical schools..do you all think I should make sure with my letter writers before they officially submit the letter that they used to general term physician?

2) in my initial request, i did not know the letters have to be on an official letterhead, do i assume the writer like my professors, doctor, PI know that or should I remind them before they officially submit it? And exactly how does AMCAS determine it id official, like do they just look at it and the reject the ones that are not "official"?

thanks!

 

[Cells4life]

Hi everybody,

I am using the same LOR for applying to both osteopathic and allopathic schools, besides the letter writer specifically mentioning DO or MD in the letter ( I mean I mentioned in the request that I am applying to both types of schools), are there other red flags I should look out for?

 

[Xelb]

Does a non-science letter of recommendation *have* to be from a current/former professor who taught a course outside of anything considered to be BCPM?

If not, can these letters come from people like martial arts instructors, pastors, academic advisors, etc.?

 

[Cells4life]

So I am stuck in a rut, I am not a 100 percent sure I will apply this cycle, but aiming to do. However, I have secured all my LORS and am in the process of doing so. In case, I do end up applying in the next cycle, when do my LORs expire or become too old ( I graduated in 2011). I am worried maybe my LORS will not want to update for what if the professor is not there. Thank you!

 

[sector9]

So I am stuck in a rut, I am not a 100 percent sure I will apply this cycle, but aiming to do. However, I have secured all my LORS and am in the process of doing so. In case, I do end up applying in the next cycle, when do my LORs expire or become too old ( I graduated in 2011). I am worried maybe my LORS will not want to update for what if the professor is not there. Thank you!

Merging

 

[sector9]

Does a non-science letter of recommendation *have* to be from a current/former professor who taught a course outside of anything considered to be BCPM?

If not, can these letters come from people like martial arts instructors, pastors, academic advisors, etc.?

Merging

Yes, most schools are looking for a LOR from a professor outside of the BCPM subjects when they say non-science LOR

 

[sector9]

Hi everybody,

I am using the same LOR for applying to both osteopathic and allopathic schools, besides the letter writer specifically mentioning DO or MD in the letter ( I mean I mentioned in the request that I am applying to both types of schools), are there other red flags I should look out for?

Merging

 

[sector9]

So my undergraduate university allows alumni to interview with the pre-health committee only in July - and it takes them roughly 2-4 weeks to write - which would mean late-July/early-August.

My question is - do medical schools only consider your application to be complete after they have received all letters of recommendation, including the committee letter? I know you don't need your letters in order to be AMCAS verified, but how does this work?

Usually you do need to have all the letters in to be complete. However, if you have everything else in and submitted (primary, secondary, MCAT), you shouldn't be too delayed with a committee letter not being sent out until July or early August.

Merging

 

[sector9]

I've been out of school for a year now and all my recommendation letters are dated from my junior year in college. Right now I'm doing research at a university hospital and became pretty close with the research manager. Should I ask her for a letter, as well as my PI?
She told me she'd write me one if I wanted and knows everything that I did for my PI. Hmm..she also writes all the letters for the post-bac students who intern there. 😎

bump

A letter from your PI carries far more weight than and is preferable to a letter from your RM. Is your PI unavailable to update the date? Mine printed out and signed a new one with an updated date when I reapplied...

All my letters are from professors. Haven't gotten one from my PI yet.
He's not responding to my texts or emails as of now... he said he would write me a good letter 🙁 wtfudge

Merging

 

[MDPhDGuy]

From what I've gathered it can take up to a week to transfer letters from Interfolio to AMCAS. If I haven't received any letters yet, and plan to receive them very close to when I need to turn in secondaries, would it be better to have my writers submit directly to AMCAS via the online submission process? It seems like I'll save 3-7 days that way. Or am I missing something?

 

[GopherMD]

From what I've gathered it can take up to a week to transfer letters from Interfolio to AMCAS. If I haven't received any letters yet, and plan to receive them very close to when I need to turn in secondaries, would it be better to have my writers submit directly to AMCAS via the online submission process? It seems like I'll save 3-7 days that way. Or am I missing something?

Are you applying DO? If not, just have the letter writers submit directly to AMCAS. It will save you time and money.

 

[tingch]

I know that a composite letter is related to my LORs. But what is the committee letter? Which one do most med schools question if I don't have? Is it the committee letter? If so, can I just do without the committee letter? The reason is that the adviser doesn't know me at all and I'm not sure I want a letter where I don't feel confident that it has much substance about who I am. Also, would it wise if I just ask my professors (2 sciences, 2 non-sciences) and the doctor I'm shadowing for LORs and send them in individually and do without the composite letter? Can I ask the pre-med committee for a composite letter and no committee letter?

I know it's a lot of questions but any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[MDPhDGuy]

No, only MD

 

[TheShaker]

Why not have them submit to both? It's good to have a copy on Interfolio and I think it's worth the couple days lag. If you have to reapply it can save you a couple of awkward conversations and possibly the effort of trying to find a new letter if someone becomes unreachable.

As a potential reapplicant, I'm glad that I stored my letters on Interfolio.

 

[red doctober]

Why not have them submit to both? It's good to have a copy on Interfolio and I think it's worth the couple days lag. If you have to reapply it can save you a couple of awkward conversations and possibly the effort of trying to find a new letter if someone becomes unreachable.

As a potential reapplicant, I'm glad that I stored my letters on Interfolio.

It's not going to kill your app to have old letters, but it would be better to have your letter writers resubmit their letters with a more recent date if it's easy for them to do.

 

[dsoz]

Letter writers CAN send out two letters. One to AMCAS and one to Interfolio. Interfolio is nice because they keep letters for five years. If you end up needing them next year, they are easily obtainable.

I like the idea of interfolio, I just don't like the idea that interfolio charges a $5 fee to send an email. That is on top of the "account fee" that you pay for every year.

dsoz

 

[MDPhDGuy]

Does anyone know about the differences in lag time that I mentioned? Is it instant upload with AMCAS but 3-7 day transfer with Interfolio?

 

[Xelb]

Merging

Yes, most schools are looking for a LOR from a professor outside of the BCPM subjects when they say non-science LOR

Can an academic advisor count as someone who's capable of writing a non-science LOR as well?

 

[WorldWiz]

I'm considering creating an Interfolio account solely for the LoR from the doctor I shadowed, mainly because since I'm applying to both MD and DO, I have no other convenient option for the latter. But thinking about it now, since my university already has VirtualEvals, I wouldn't really mind doing all the photocopying and mailing for the doctor if Interfolio isn't worth it in this case. So my question is, would the LoR be looked at as more trustworthy/reliable if it went to the med schools through Interfolio, or is snail mail equally fine if the letter has his signature? Thanks.

 

[rmsdudqkr]

yes

 

[thefluffypanda]

Hey guys, my college has a pre-professional committee but I was wondering if anyone knows which med schools absolutely require a committee letter? Thanks!

 

[sworzeh]

I haven't heard of any schools that require it, but it is strongly encouraged and may look suspicious if you circumvent the committee.

Why do you not want a committee letter anyways?

 

[NCKSD]

I would check the individual schools you're applying to. However, I think most schools will be wondering why you didn't get a committee letter when your school offers them.

^sworzeh beat me to it

 

[UrbanRiver]

Trust me, interfolio. Just do it.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using SDN Mobile

 

[BuddyTheElf]

You have to check each school you plan to apply to. Plain & simple. Some require them, some do not.

 

[Mark Greene]

For MOST schools, if your undergrad has a pre-med committee, you need that letter. It looks bad if you dont have it.

There are exceptions where you dont need a committee letter. Obviously if your undergrad school doesnt have a committee, you dont need one. Or, if youre a non-trad whe has been out of under grad for a while, say 4+ years, you probably wont need one either and can go all personal. If you dont get a pre med committee letter, you should writre a separate letter explainging exactly why you didnt get one and mail it to the schools you apply to.

 

[Barcu]

More and more schools want to see a committee letter. So, if you don't get one, you may have to explain why.

Will it hurt you? It's hard to answer. If you have a compelling reason (like you graduated a few years before), probably not. If you don't feel like it or would rather not, I'm guessing it may end up hurting you.

My advice: if you have a committee letter at your school, just get it.

 

[kami333]

Does anyone know about the differences in lag time that I mentioned? Is it instant upload with AMCAS but 3-7 day transfer with Interfolio?

Pretty sure my transfer from Interfolio->AMCAS only took a day, this was in late Aug.

 

[anguisette]

Pretty sure my transfer from Interfolio->AMCAS only took a day, this was in late Aug.

I did mine earlier in late June, but it also took me just one day for the transfer. I think they state "up to two weeks" as their official policy, but I'm not sure how often it actually takes the full length of time.

 

[Arbor Vitae]

For MOST schools, if your undergrad has a pre-med committee, you need that letter. It looks bad if you dont have it.

People it DOES NOT LOOK BAD. There are many legit reasons why committee letters are not in your best interest.

1. They don't send them out until August

2. Some charge you, they might not tell you up front either, like my school

3. They are based off of mock interview evals, which are a few minutes talking with somebody who doesn't know you.


I applied with no committee letter and nobody asked me a single question. I prefer to be able to have my letters go out June 1. I prefer not to pay somebody who doesn't know me to write a letter. I prefer my letters to be from people I actually worked with and know me personally.

BOOM, there are all your reasons for not going through committee. Now just get your own letters and if they ask you why tell them these reasons. Most likely they won't even question you if you just send in letters.


Look at it this way, the pre med committee advisors depend on these committees for their job and income. Of course they make you and your undergrad think it's is completely necessary to use them. It's all a scam people.