one LOR from a psych enough?

[peppy]

I am hoping to apply to psych this year. I have obtained a solid recommendation from one psychiatrist, but I am worried I won't be able to get another letter from the other psych rotation I had (I didn't get to spend much time with any particular attending doc). I am also having a pretty tough time lining up another psych rotation at this point. Do you think that only having one letter from a psychiatrist will be a problem for my application even if I can get sound recommendations from docs in other relevant specialties?

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[2tall]

got a friend who had no psych lors though she was still deciding between psych n med
she interviewed widely and well

don't think it matters

 

[peppy]

Thanks for the input. That makes me feel more at ease. I had gotten the impression that it was expected to have 2 LORs from psych. Anyone know if there are any programs that do specify a requirement like that?

 

[atsai3]

Thanks for the input. That makes me feel more at ease. I had gotten the impression that it was expected to have 2 LORs from psych. Anyone know if there are any programs that do specify a requirement like that?

There are some programs that require two psychiatry letters. At the time I applied, UCSF required 2 letters from psych and 2 non-psych letters.

The other programs (at the time) had varying requirements. For example, Longwood required 1 psych + 1 medicine + 1 your choice. Cambridge required 4 letters of your choice. Stanford required 4 letters, and they were to be of your choice but there was something at the end where they said "but letters from psych, med or surg are especially valued" or something like that.

Best way to figure out the current LOR requirements is to call up the program and ask the program administrator directly.

-AT.

 

[futuredo32]

I am also having a pretty tough time lining up another psych rotation at this point.

You're not the only one having a difficult time arranging psych electives. I've emailed almost every hospital in the area and haven't found one.

 

[marie337]

On a side note...how many LORs are we expected to have? I currently have two, one psych and one IM. I hope to have another one next week, but I've been waiting since February so I don't know if I'll get it or not. The two that I have I'm very happy with, but if I decide to go the family med route I'm not sure I could use the psych LOR (it's heavily psych weighted).

 

[futuredo32]

On a side note...how many LORs are we expected to have? I currently have two, one psych and one IM. I hope to have another one next week, but I've been waiting since February so I don't know if I'll get it or not. The two that I have I'm very happy with, but if I decide to go the family med route I'm not sure I could use the psych LOR (it's heavily psych weighted).

I think that in the DO world, 3 letters are required. I've read on other threads here that some programs require 4.

 

[hippiedoc13]

You really need at least 3 letters. I don't know of any program that doesn't require at least 3. As others on here have mentioned, some require 4. But bottom line...if you only have 2 LORs at this point, you definitely need to get a 3rd.

BTW, it's possible to use a letter from a psych attending to apply to family med. You may be able to ask your letter-writer to "tweak" the letter just a bit to support a FM app, especially if you feel it will be a strong letter and want to be able to use it.

 

[atsai3]

You really need at least 3 letters. I don't know of any program that doesn't require at least 3.

Most programs require >2, but there are programs that only require 2. When I applied, Harbor-UCLA only required 2 LOR's. Maybe things have changed since then.

-AT.

 

[marie337]

BTW, it's possible to use a letter from a psych attending to apply to family med. You may be able to ask your letter-writer to "tweak" the letter just a bit to support a FM app, especially if you feel it will be a strong letter and want to be able to use it.

Yeah...but she wrote it under the impression that I would be applying for psych. At the time I was very certain . So, the letter is written for a psychiatry admissions committee! It's a great letter though, I can't complain. I have one more letter coming, but this particular attending has significant ADHD. I knew when I asked him for a letter that it would take a lot of reminder emails/calls to actually get the letter written. Maybe I can scrounge one more up during my family rotation at the end of August. I really hate all of these hoops!