~Premedical Committee, LORs for the Non-traditionals~

[AdroitDarkHorse]

Hey guys. I was wondering what you guys think of choosing to send your LORs as individual letters rather than a "composite" committee letter?

Bear in mind that I am a non-traditional. Are we allowed to see and read these letters from the professors who wrote them for us? Do we send them, or do the professors send them? Do we make copies of them and then send the copies and originals to the schools we choose?

Thanks.

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[Captain Fantastic]

Your school surely has a letter service: The professor sends the letter to the service. You tell the service to send the letters to such-and-so school. The school receives the letters. You never see the letters. There is usually a fee. At my school it's something like $25.

My school uses Virtual Evals. Interfolio is good, too. Anyway, if you don't want to use your school's service (or if they don't have one), you can use that one. It works the same way.

I'm on the fence about getting a committee letter, as well.

 

[musashi]

Just to chime in. I too am hesitant in using a committee letter. I think I will instead use 2-3 letters from shadowing relationships and try and cultivate 2-3 from academia while working on pre-reqs. I feel that committee letters while beneficial to some, are not the best measure for the "older non-trad" student. Just my .02 although I have been known to be wrong now and again.

 

[pingouin]

My post-bacc school does not have a committee, and the "pre-med advisor" (someone who drew the short straw, apparently, given his motivation to actually do the advising) informed me a year ago that "You're on your own" to ask individual professors for letters. Therefore, I have found 2 post-bacc professors who are writing letters (bio, physics), and have someone lined up from each of my 3 jobs who have agreed to write one as well (2 MDs with whom I work closely, and my supervisor at the third). Being 11 years out of undergrad, I'm hesitant to go back and ask any of my major profs for a letter, but I would in a pinch if I had to (small program, so a few remember me).

My school also does not have a letter service, so I'm using Interfolio, which is working well so far (1 letter in already).

to everyone.

 

[Trismegistus4]

If you have access to a committee, why would you send individual letters? Schools explicitly state that they prefer the committee letter. Many schools' secondaries make you write a paragraph about why you're sending individual letters rather than a committee letter if you chose to do so.

My post-bacc advising office sends the individual letters along with the committee letter, so schools can read them if they want to. Do some committees send only the committee letter? I can see why that would be a problem.

 

[Jonesie]

Hey guys. I was wondering what you guys think of choosing to send your LORs as individual letters rather than a "composite" committee letter?

Bear in mind that I am a non-traditional. Are we allowed to see and read these letters from the professors who wrote them for us? Do we send them, or do the professors send them? Do we make copies of them and then send the copies and originals to the schools we choose?

Thanks.

Unless you have a very good reason, if your school has a committee, then you should use it. Almost every secondary application asks some variant of the following question:
"If your school has a pre-health committee, and you did not receive a letter of recommendation from that committee, please explain why."

Besides, even if you get the individual letters yourself, you're unlikely to see them ahead of time. Most schools prefer that students waive the right to view the letters; it provides for a more impartial recommendation process. Your best bet is to go through the committee and only ask for recommendations from people who will write positive letters.

 

[Benna]

Can you do both? I mean, I'm more than willing to use a committee letter, but can I also ask individual professors?

 

[spicedmanna]

Hey guys. I was wondering what you guys think of choosing to send your LORs as individual letters rather than a "composite" committee letter?

Bear in mind that I am a non-traditional. Are we allowed to see and read these letters from the professors who wrote them for us? Do we send them, or do the professors send them? Do we make copies of them and then send the copies and originals to the schools we choose?

Thanks.

If you able to obtain a committee letter/packet, you should do so, per most of the secondary applications for allopathic schools. They mostly cite that if you are unable to obtain one, you are able to send individual letters, provided that you give a suitable written explanation. Check with the school in which you intend to apply for individual policy.

It is customary to waive your right to access the letters of recommendation, on the standardized letter of recommendation form obtained from your letter collection agency, premedical committee, and/or medical school secondary application packet. If you don't have a committee that collects your letters, I recommend using a service such as Interfolio, or VirtualEvals, so you don't have to request multiple letters from your sources (saves you and them a load of trouble).

 

[spicedmanna]

Can you do both? I mean, I'm more than willing to use a committee letter, but can I also ask individual professors?

Check with your premedical committee and with the schools in which you intend to apply; policies may vary, and some medical schools might require you to send additional letters. At my school, a committee letter is actually a packet that contains individual letters from professors, in addition to a committee evaluation.

 

[OncoCaP]

I strongly recommend that you use the committee and only the committee unless you need an unusual "extra" reference (from a DO, for example, if an osteopathic school suggests that -- in which case you would send that one reference separately). In addition to perhaps improving your chances in the first place (references controlled through a reputable source), there are many practical / logistical reasons for this (do you really want your references writing multiple letters for your multiple applications??). While this may be inconvenient or you may find it uncomfortable, my take is that it significantly increases your chances (could mean a couple of extra acceptances). In fact, I would take extra classes at a top school for extra courses just to have access to a committee and get their recommendation. High ranking of the school that is forwarding your recommendations adds value IMHO.

My $0.02.

 

[Jonesie]

Can you do both? I mean, I'm more than willing to use a committee letter, but can I also ask individual professors?

Check with your school. At mine, I was asked to contact the individual letter-writers and have them send recommendations directly to committee. The committee then writes a "composite letter" that includes quotes from the LORs and describes how the committee views me and my application. They also include each individual LOR in the packet.

Again, check with your school, because different committees do things differently.