Older experiences: LORs and Most Meaningful Activities

[supersaiyanvegeta]

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[LizzyM]

Of your 15 (or fewer) activities, which were the most meaningful? Check those as most meaningful and write about them. Don't think about how long ago they might have been. If an applicant's most meaningful activity in steering them toward a career in medicine was winning an Olympic medal at age 17 would you suggest they not put it on the application because it was 7 years ago?

If you are applying for DO, you need a DO letter. Otherwise, physician letters are not very useful. Letters from volunteer coordinators are even less informative. If you are a third time applicant and applying to DO schools, your research experience is not going to play a huge role in admission decisions (doesn't sound like you are shooting for admission to Stamford, Hopkins and Harvard).

If you have been employed since graduation, a letter from your employer would be good as would a letter from the instructor you have now in the extra class you are taking.

 

[Goro]

*Please do not quote*

Most meaningful is exactly that. Note that the prompt does not ask you for a most meaningful activities.

There is no time stamp for it. It could be an encounter with the patient that lasted 10 minutes.

 

[LiteralLungs]

Letters from volunteer coordinators are even less informative.

Why is this the case? What if I have been volunteering with an organization for many years, and it was one of my most meaningful activities? It significantly contributed to my personal growth and many of my essays included lessons and insights gained from this experience.

 

[LizzyM]

Why is this the case? What if I have been volunteering with an organization for many years, and it was one of my most meaningful activities? It significantly contributed to my personal growth and many of my essays included lessons and insights gained from this experience.

The typical letter from a volunteer coordinator will say that you were a volunteer since [date] or from [date] to [date] and that you served a total of [n] hours. It might have a statement about the facility or organization plucked from the annual report or mission statement. It might close with an offer to take questions and provide a phone number but usually just has a closing and signature.

Now, it could be that someoen will knock themselves out writing a wonderful letter. But 99% of the time, that is not the case. It doesn't discount the fact that it was a "most meaningful" activity for you, it just wasn't something that the typical volunteer coordinator will write about with gusto.

 

[LiteralLungs]

The typical letter from a volunteer coordinator will way that you were a volunteer since [date] or from [date] to [date] and that you served a total of [n] hours. It might have a statement about the facility or organization plucked from the annual report or mission statement. It might close with an offer to take questions and provide a phone number but usually just has a closing and signature.

Now, it could be that someoen will knock themselves out writing a wonderful letter. But 99% of the time, that is not the case. It doesn't discount the fact that it was a "most meaningful" activity for you, it just wasn't something that the typical volunteer coordinator will write about with gusto.

Ah okay. In my opinion, this doesn't seem like something that would be exclusive to volunteer coordinators. Aren't many professor letters also generic, saying something about how you were a great student, got this grade, would make a great doctor yada yada? Same goes for letters from work supervisors. Any letter could be made strong through inclusion of specific personal anecdotes. But when asked, many people will likely cut and paste the same template because, as a supervisor/professor/volunteer coordinator, they are asked to write these types of letters all of the time.

 

[LizzyM]

It is possible that a LOR from a facutly member is generic and it is not unusual to see that type of letter from professors in intro level classes in big state universities. Some will write that the person earned a grade of x, did not attend office hours and seemed very bright based on their grade in the course. But we still require letters from professors and some rise to the occasion and write about the student's contributions to class discussion, their ability to write well, their interest in the subject matter and the posing of interesting questions at office hours, the willingness to help others etc. There are those feeder schools that have faculty who know how to "package" applicants and how to continue their school's reputation as a powerhouse for pre-meds.

Employers have usually read letters of recommendation written on behalf of job seekers and they tend to know something about how such a letter should be formatted and what should be included. They are often writing for career changers and usually come across as admiring the efforts the employee has made to follow their heart in changing careers and doing the post-bac coursework and so forth while continuing to work full-time. These letters are very seldom generic, perhaps because a given employer writes very few in a decade.

I've been reading these letters for >20 years and I can tell you that volunteer coordinators take the cake when it comes to generic letters.

 

[LiteralLungs]

It is possible that a LOR from a facutly member is generic and it is not unusual to see that type of letter from professors in intro level classes in big state universities. Some will write that the person earned a grade of x, did not attend office hours and seemed very bright based on their grade in the course. But we still require letters from professors and some rise to the occasion and write about the student's contributions to class discussion, their ability to write well, their interest in the subject matter and the posing of interesting questions at office hours, the willingness to help others etc. There are those feeder schools that have faculty who know how to "package" applicants and how to continue their school's reputation as a powerhouse for pre-meds.

Employers have usually read letters of recommendation written on behalf of job seekers and they tend to know something about how such a letter should be formatted and what should be included. They are often writing for career changers and usually come across as admiring the efforts the employee has made to follow their heart in changing careers and doing the post-bac coursework and so forth while continuing to work full-time. These letters are very seldom generic, perhaps because a given employer writes very few in a decade.

I've been reading these letters for >20 years and I can tell you that volunteer coordinators take the cake when it comes to generic letters.

I want to get a letter from my employer if I end up reapplying, do you have any advice for who to ask? I realize this sounds doubtful, but I worry about the strength of a letter from a direct supervisor. Many of the supervisors are close in age to me, some are still in school, and some have only been there a few years. The supervisor jobs don't seem to be career style positions. Actually, I am trying to become a supervisor myself. Would a letter from one of the department heads carry more weight, simply due to the fact that they have likely spent their whole careers there? I feel like I am making many assumptions, but the department heads strike me as more "professional" simply because they have been there forever, run the show, and possess advanced degrees in the field. At the same time, the lower, more temporary supervisory staff would probably have a lot more interaction with me and could give more personal details in a letter.

Here is an idea, maybe I could get a supervisory letter and then have a department head co-sign it?

 

[LizzyM]

Where you work, do you have an annual performance review? Who goes over that with you? That might be the person you'd ask. You could also go with the highest ranking person who interviewed you when you were hired, provided that you have at least an hour of facetime with them per week (either one-on-one or in a group meeting). If I may ask, what industry are you in?

 

[LiteralLungs]

Where you work, do you have an annual performance review? Who goes over that with you? That might be the person you'd ask. You could also go with the highest ranking person who interviewed you when you were hired, provided that you have at least an hour of facetime with them per week (either one-on-one or in a group meeting). If I may ask, what industry are you in?

I work in healthcare. I have never met the high ranking people in my interview, and I am not sure I will see them again. I do have an annual performance review, I think my direct supervisor would go over that with me. Strangely, I have passed the time when I was told I would have this review. They never gave me one. In the interview, the high ranking person said she had heard a lot of great things about me. I often get positive feedback from my supervisors for professionalism, hard work, etc. I think I am recognized as a good employee.

 

[LizzyM]

Go with a department head. They have the degrees and years (decades?) of experience and can benchmark your performance against dozens (hundreds?) of previous employees in similar positions They may also have some experience with medical students and may be able to compare you favorably with the performance of medical students and residents they've interacted with. The sorts of things they might say about you could include your readiness to take on additional tasks, your poise under pressure and ability to think on your feet, your discretion, teamwork, leadership, your ability to learn things quickly, your willingness to accept criticism gracefully and to make changes accordingly. You might even be asked to draft the letter. Take a look (and provide those you ask to have write letters for you) at the AAMC guide for letter writers.