Question regarding LOR's

[darkmansaad]

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Quick question to anyone who might know...im doing my first ortho elective in June and my second one from mid sept to mid Oct. The rationale behind the late one being to audition close to interview time but I fear that may be too late to secure LOR's for my ERAS. So my question is, do i push to get all my LOR's from the first rotation or do I try to pull some out of the 2nd one as well? That and how many do I need cuz I plan on having my ERAS ready to go the first day I can send apps out....
thanks for the time and any responses in advance, happy easter y'all

 

[ChiDO]

I would like to hear some opinions about this topic as well.

Another question I had, I had one 4th year student mention that he would suggest trying to schedule an elective during the interview cycle (ie. Oct/Nov) to a program you would like to go, so that if you get called for an interview, you will be fresh in their minds. Thoughts?

I feel like I'd rather get all of them done earlier May-Aug/Sept, so that I can secure LORs for ERAS and applications.

 

[Sureshot83]

just finished the ortho match.

Darkmansaad:
You can usually begin sending out ERAS on September 1st, and most people in ortho do it in the first week of September. I have no idea if it makes a difference, since no programs even begin to contact you for interviews until early/mid-November, but this is just how everyone does it.

You can send out your ERAS in fragments, so all the stuff you are responsible for (CV, essay, etc) can go out on 9/1. But a lot of times the LoRs arent in yet, so they can go any time until the program's individual deadline (varies, but usually November 1st - some are in October though). Additionally, your Medical Student Performance Evaluation a.k.a. "Dean's Letter" will be sent on November 1st. Most ortho programs don't invite for interviews until after the dean's letter get in, which is completely the opposite of nearly every other specialty, so don't freak out when your friends applying for IM already have 8 interviews and you don't have any.

If you are doing an elective that ends in mid-October, it will be tough to get a LoR out of it, unless you ask the doc for it in the middle of the rotation (before you are done).

You can send a maximum of four LoRs to any program. Most asked for three, some two, one asked for four, some said "at least three." My rule of thumb was to do exactly what they asked for, unless they said "at least x" in which case I would send all four. Also note that some places will specify that they want a non-ortho or non-surgical LoR, so if you have one of those it would be good also, just in case. You can also send different letters to different programs, if you choose.


ChiDO:
I would recommend doing the elective earlier (September or before). While it is true that if you did it ending in November you would be more fresh in their minds, in the best case this will only help you at the one program. And if you don't get an interview there, you completely wasted a month without getting anything in return. However, if you do it earlier and get a LoR, it will help you at every program you apply to. Then, if you don't get an interview at the program, it still sucks but at least you have something to show for all your efforts.

 

[darkmansaad]

just finished the ortho match.

Darkmansaad:
You can usually begin sending out ERAS on September 1st, and most people in ortho do it in the first week of September. I have no idea if it makes a difference, since no programs even begin to contact you for interviews until early/mid-November, but this is just how everyone does it.

You can send out your ERAS in fragments, so all the stuff you are responsible for (CV, essay, etc) can go out on 9/1. But a lot of times the LoRs arent in yet, so they can go any time until the program's individual deadline (varies, but usually November 1st - some are in October though). Additionally, your Medical Student Performance Evaluation a.k.a. "Dean's Letter" will be sent on November 1st. Most ortho programs don't invite for interviews until after the dean's letter get in, which is completely the opposite of nearly every other specialty, so don't freak out when your friends applying for IM already have 8 interviews and you don't have any.

If you are doing an elective that ends in mid-October, it will be tough to get a LoR out of it, unless you ask the doc for it in the middle of the rotation (before you are done).

You can send a maximum of four LoRs to any program. Most asked for three, some two, one asked for four, some said "at least three." My rule of thumb was to do exactly what they asked for, unless they said "at least x" in which case I would send all four. Also note that some places will specify that they want a non-ortho or non-surgical LoR, so if you have one of those it would be good also, just in case. You can also send different letters to different programs, if you choose.

thanks for the great response...when you say 3 letters you mean 3 from ortho or 3 total? and if you mean 3 ortho i would probably have to get all 3 from the same rotation...you think thats reasonable to aim for in a 4 week rotation?

 

[Sureshot83]

thanks for the great response...when you say 3 letters you mean 3 from ortho or 3 total? and if you mean 3 ortho i would probably have to get all 3 from the same rotation...you think thats reasonable to aim for in a 4 week rotation?

3 total. That said, I would only submit ortho letters UNLESS:

a) They specifically ask for a non-ortho/non-surgical letter (obvious)
b) You submit a letter from a research mentor (would be a good idea esp if you have it and are planning to apply to academic programs)
c) You have an amazing letter from a general surgeon, or a better than amazing letter from a doctor in other rotations (although be careful - they will probably somewhat respect a letter from internal med, give you good ribbing if it's from ob/gyn, and lose all respect for you if it's psych)
d) One or more of your ortho letters are not very good

It sounds like you'll only have one ortho rotation under your belt by the time LoRs are due. The number of LoRs you can get completely depends on how the rotation is set up. I have been on some ortho electives where you are assigned to one preceptor for 4 weeks, day in and day out. Obviously you'll get a great letter, but you'll only meet one person. I have been on another where they had you switch rotations for each of the 4 weeks. You'll get to meet a lot of attendings that way, but the flip side is that if they only work with you for a maximum of one week, they probably won't know you well enough to write a great letter. You should find out how the structure is at your program, and if possible, at least request to be on a busy service that has 3+ full time attendings.

To be honest, I would recommend you do whatever you can to try to get one more ortho rotation in either July or August. If this is impossible, try to get to know at least 2 ortho surgeons really well during your June rotation and get letters from them, and for the third one use a research/gen surg/whatever other letter.