Reusing LOR's ??? How bad is it?

[cyclingmo]

Hey guys,

I hope i'm not bringing a topic up that has been , but i'm finding myself in a situation to reapply with not much time to ask for new LOR's. I'm planning to most of the same schools I applied to this cycle, but this time I won't be 5 months late and will get a headstart.

Since I used interfolio, I have all my LOR's ready to go, again. So just how bad is it to reuse the same LOR's? I mean it's not like my recommenders will have much else to say since last september.

Also, again, not much has changed in my own life since last september. So my PS cannot be edited much either, whats the solution for that?

Any and all help is much appreciated.

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[186321]

I have pondered this as well and I'm interested in what you guys think... (so basically I have nothing constructive)

 

[CrepesofWrath]

You guys should ask the re-applicants forum.

 

[Kaustikos]

So, what have you guys been doing since reapplication? Because I was told this coldly; if you don't have anything to add to your application/update your application, then why reapply. If you have more EC, better grades, better mcat, that's great. But I would honestly/seriously consider getting at least another letter of recommendation to add to the mix.


And, also, reusing the other letters isn't much of a bad thing, but it helps a lot if you have a new one in the mix.

 

[annndyr]

I am a reapplicant this cycle and reused the committee letter that my undergrad school wrote for my application two cycles ago. And in many cases, I applied to the same schools. I was accepted several months ago to a school that I applied to in both cycles.

The personal statement and secondary answers should definitely NOT be reused, however. Schools keep your application on file for several years and will look at both files when you reapply. Your personal statement has got to change when you reapply. I mean, there's got to be something different about your outlook/desire to reapply. You should really give this some thought.

 

[Jolie South]

you've gotten feedback from some schools about how to improve your app, right?

as long as you're doing what they suggested and there was no mention of suspect LORs in your conversations with the deans, i would say to reuse them. you could maybe add on a letter from a current volunteer supervisor or your PI.

chances are their evaluations of how you did in O chem 2 years ago aren't going to be much different if you ask them to re-write, IMO.

then again, maybe someone on an adcom could chime in here.

 

[skijumpbump]

When I reapply I am going to reuse my pre-med comitee letter from this cycle. I also plan on getting a LOR from my current boss who is a prof. at a med school where I do research. I think using the same letter is fine but deffinetly add a new one into the mix to show how you have changed. I think showing that you are a better applicant the second time around is very important, and 1 new letter can help show what is new about you this cycle.

 

[Luxian]

Hey there!
I was a reapplicant this year and am happily on my way to med school this summer.

I did what you did... applied late in the cycle, didn't get in, then found myself with little time to gather new materials before the start of the early cycle. However, I thought my LORs were not the weak part of my application, so I used the EXACT SAME LORs in my application. I redid my essays, updated my "since graduation work experience" and sent in my application in July/Aug to a wider set of schools. This year I had a much better response including from schools that didn't give me the time of day last year.

Redo your essays (so it's not just the same app), update you ECs, apply early, and you will definitely improve your chances.

 

[ellaB]

some schools say specifically how to update your letters when you reapply. i know my state school asks for 3 new ones each time, whereas others say it's okay to just send them 1 new one. you could always call/email the school and ask.

my question is, for those schools you've NEVER applied to or received a secondary from, can you use an old recc letter from the previous cycle? it seems like it should be fine right?

 

[cyclingmo]

So, what have you guys been doing since reapplication? Because I was told this coldly; if you don't have anything to add to your application/update your application, then why reapply. If you have more EC, better grades, better mcat, that's great. But I would honestly/seriously consider getting at least another letter of recommendation to add to the mix.


And, also, reusing the other letters isn't much of a bad thing, but it helps a lot if you have a new one in the mix.

Well nothing much has changed, but this time i'll apply 5 month earlier, or in other words, on time. But great point about the new LOR added to the mix.

I am a reapplicant this cycle and reused the committee letter that my undergrad school wrote for my application two cycles ago. And in many cases, I applied to the same schools. I was accepted several months ago to a school that I applied to in both cycles.

The personal statement and secondary answers should definitely NOT be reused, however. Schools keep your application on file for several years and will look at both files when you reapply. Your personal statement has got to change when you reapply. I mean, there's got to be something different about your outlook/desire to reapply. You should really give this some thought.

Yeah, I was going to change it a bit and add my recent experiences and learnings, but that still wouldn't change it dramatically. I mean I still want to be a doctor for the same reasons that I had last year.

you've gotten feedback from some schools about how to improve your app, right?

as long as you're doing what they suggested and there was no mention of suspect LORs in your conversations with the deans, i would say to reuse them. you could maybe add on a letter from a current volunteer supervisor or your PI.

chances are their evaluations of how you did in O chem 2 years ago aren't going to be much different if you ask them to re-write, IMO.

then again, maybe someone on an adcom could chime in here.

Yeah, I was told that my weakest section was my LOR's, but I can't afford to change all my LOR's, and I think I know which one hurt me. I have already secured a replacement for that one, but what about the rest. I only knew so many professors.

 

[186321]

So, what have you guys been doing since reapplication? Because I was told this coldly; if you don't have anything to add to your application/update your application, then why reapply. If you have more EC, better grades, better mcat, that's great. But I would honestly/seriously consider getting at least another letter of recommendation to add to the mix.


And, also, reusing the other letters isn't much of a bad thing, but it helps a lot if you have a new one in the mix.

I actually know a guy who went to Europe for a year and did nothing during his year off.. quite literally. He even got a lot of crap from his family about being lazy and not being proactive about his career. He reapplied and got 4 more interviews than before and 3 more acceptances (0 before). However, I realize this guy is probably 1 in a million.

 

[cyclingmo]

Hey there!
I was a reapplicant this year and am happily on my way to med school this summer.

I did what you did... applied late in the cycle, didn't get in, then found myself with little time to gather new materials before the start of the early cycle. However, I thought my LORs were not the weak part of my application, so I used the EXACT SAME LORs in my application. I redid my essays, updated my "since graduation work experience" and sent in my application in July/Aug to a wider set of schools. This year I had a much better response including from schools that didn't give me the time of day last year.

Redo your essays (so it's not just the same app), update you ECs, apply early, and you will definitely improve your chances.

Wow, it's great to hear somebody elses success story whose in a similar situation. Yeah, I'm definitely going to redo my essays, add what i've learned since, and take it from there.

some schools say specifically how to update your letters when you reapply. i know my state school asks for 3 new ones each time, whereas others say it's okay to just send them 1 new one. you could always call/email the school and ask.

my question is, for those schools you've NEVER applied to or received a secondary from, can you use an old recc letter from the previous cycle? it seems like it should be fine right?

Good point, I guess i'll call them and ask if their adcom's have a certain preference.
I'm assuming if you've never applied to a school then for them it's still a new letter, even though it might be dated a while back.

 

[Jolie South]

Yeah, I was going to change it a bit and add my recent experiences and learnings, but that still wouldn't change it dramatically. I mean I still want to be a doctor for the same reasons that I had last year.

The reasons might be the same, but you could still write it differently and add anything new.

Yeah, I was told that my weakest section was my LOR's, but I can't afford to change all my LOR's, and I think I know which one hurt me. I have already secured a replacement for that one, but what about the rest. I only knew so many professors.

well, then you should look into replacing LORs as much as possible. I guess if you've replaced the worst one that will probably help. Maybe if you could add an LOR from someone that knows you really well personally, as I said above, that could mitigate the lukewarm generic LORs.

 

[cyclingmo]

The reasons might be the same, but you could still write it differently and add anything new.

True, except I suck as writing. Ugh!

well, then you should look into replacing LORs as much as possible. I guess if you've replaced the worst one that will probably help. Maybe if you could add an LOR from someone that knows you really well personally, as I said above, that could mitigate the lukewarm generic LORs.

Yeah, what makes it difficult are the restrictions they pose: One Science faculty, one non-science faculty, and one from a current supervisor. I mean if they really want people that know me well, they should give me some more room to work in. I don't know, I guess i'm just moping.