Re-applying LOR concerns...

[sshashid87]

So, last year my letters went to a committee at my school, and they were very strong (I waived rights, but profs let me see them, and I wrote 1 of them). I used the committee, which wrote a letter, but they took a very long time and my letters weren't uploaded until late in the year.

As I didn't know I was going to have to re-apply, the deadline to get a committee letter for this year passed (they moved it up from last year's deadline). I can get the individual letters from my professors, etc, but not the committee letter.

My question is essentially how bad is this situation? There aren't any glaring deficiencies in my application, but I was complete very late (Jan) due to the lateness of the LOR. So, I'm planning on turning in my application (MD/DO) within the next couple of weeks, and my letters can be in Interfolio by the end of the month, I'm sure, but I'm worried about having to address this in my secondaries. I know some schools ask why I didn't use a committee, and considering I used one last year, I don't know what to say. I could say that I wanted to ensure an early application, but at the same time don't want to "shift" blame to my school's committee.

Sorry for rambling, I'm tired, but I wanted to get this cleared up as soon as possible, thanks!

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[rbnsafsadgf]

So, last year my letters went to a committee at my school, and they were very strong (I waived rights, but profs let me see them, and I wrote 1 of them). I used the committee, which wrote a letter, but they took a very long time and my letters weren't uploaded until late in the year.

As I didn't know I was going to have to re-apply, the deadline to get a committee letter for this year passed (they moved it up from last year's deadline). I can get the individual letters from my professors, etc, but not the committee letter.

My question is essentially how bad is this situation? There aren't any glaring deficiencies in my application, but I was complete very late (Jan) due to the lateness of the LOR. So, I'm planning on turning in my application (MD/DO) within the next couple of weeks, and my letters can be in Interfolio by the end of the month, I'm sure, but I'm worried about having to address this in my secondaries. I know some schools ask why I didn't use a committee, and considering I used one last year, I don't know what to say. I could say that I wanted to ensure an early application, but at the same time don't want to "shift" blame to my school's committee.

Sorry for rambling, I'm tired, but I wanted to get this cleared up as soon as possible, thanks!

I dunno "how bad" this is, but it doesn't matter because you aren't able to get the committee letter per your post. You have the individual letters, and you have a somewhat legitimate reason for not having the committee letter. Just be honest. Did you miss the deadline in part because you aren't enrolled at that college anymore?

I think most schools won't even notice.

 

[sshashid87]

Yeah, I graduated last year and have been doing research/volunteering + taking a break (main reason for taking a year off, i was burned out)...

I'm going to be in the graduate school this coming year, but I wouldn't be able to get any of those letters til December anyway, so I'm pretty much stuck in this situation...

Thanks for the advice, I'm just trying to find a way to word it so that the med schools don't think I was slacking off or anything, I was hoping for an acceptance, but admittedly didn't have a solid backup plan for reapplying...