Recommendation letter writers

[medjustice]

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I have a couple of questions regarding recommendation letter writers:
1) Do you think these would be suitable :

• My undergrad PI- worked in her lab for 2 years, will definitely be a strong letter since we have a very good relationship
• A PI/Doctor that I shadowed and did research in his lab one summer- It was a 10 week pre-MSTP program and he has written letters for me before. He is also the only doctor I shadowed and I plan to apply to the MSTP program at the university he works at.
• A Sociology professor- I took two classes with him and performed well in both. I think he could write about my critical thinking skills in non-science matters. I think it would be a strong letter because he actually suggested I do a sociology PhD before he learned I was a primarily science person.
• The chaplain at my undergrad- I worked with her to plan programs, she has seen me in many leadership positions, and she could probably speak to my interpersonal character.
• My current PI- I started working in this lab in August 2017, so by the time he writes the letter, he will have known me for ~9 months. Also, I will be applying to the Md/PhD program at the University I currently work at and he has connections to the MSTP director here.

2) What should I present to my recommendation letter writers to help them write? I'm thinking resume/CV, unofficial transcript, perhaps a short letter about my motivation to do MD/PhD? What else?

 

[sammyers_sm]

What you have sounds great! You may also want to include some who can speak to your academic abilities, i.e. upper level sciences Professor/instructor in the same PhD field you want to pursue. Some programs may require letters from specific people (both from the MD and MD/PhD side). I would suggest checking the websites of a few programs you're interested to cover all your bases.

 

[medjustice]

Thanks for the reply! I should mention that my undergrad PI was also my chemistry professor. But I could also ask for a recommendation from my upper level biochem professors if that would help?

 

[HamiltonPineapples]

You should definitely have/absolutely need letters from your PIs. I'm not sure if they require all your PIs, but the more you can show off your research the better so you should have all of them.

As for the rest, some schools have very specific requirements. I would recommend looking up all the schools you plan on applying to and finding their LoR requirements. You may need more from science professors. I like asking (and I did) a non-science prof as well, since I feel it shows a more balanced person.

When giving them info I would typically give them my resume/CV, transcript, and a list of other things I have been active in that they may not have known about and will add to the letter. PIs should probably write about your ability as a researcher and ability to communicate/explain/understand findings, etc.

Personally, I had my PI, 2 science/engineering Professors, and a Spanish professor I had for 2 semesters. You can also indicate which letters go to which schools, so if you get more LoRs than you need then you can pick and choose based on the schools requirements (Although it'd probably be rude to ask for a LoR you don't plan on using at all).