Should I do this?

[CoolCucumber]

I'm applying for several medical schools and master's programs. I asked one of my professors to write me a recommendation letter. He is one of the few professors that just loves me...although he is seriously nuts, as most brilliant genius PhD's are somewhat eccentric. He is also an alcoholic.

He said he would write me a letter and asked me to send him my updated resume. Then he turned around a couple days later and said (this guy is really lazy...or just really busy with research) that he didn't want to write the letter for me anymore because he was busy (err...lazy)...

...BUT wanted me to write a great letter about myself and send it to him and he would sign the bottom, make a bunch of copies, and send it out to the schools I was applying to! Interesting guy.

I'm sure many of you would jump at the chance for a professor to offer you something like that...but do you guys think this is unethical for me to do?

He is such a rambling drunk he'll likely lose the letter if I send him one.

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[NapeSpikes]

This is pretty common. It'd only be unethical if you forged his sig.

 

[anon-y-mouse]

This is extremely common. Just write it and he'll sign.

 

[drmota]

one of my writers had me do this. and according to that letter i'm pretty brilliant.
-mota

 

[TypeA]

My husband's boss does the same to him...and he is a MINISTER. I think it's probably ok. Originally, I thought it was a little off, but upon further review...if someone is willing to sign their name to something like that then they are in essence claiming those words as their own...

 

[shortyganoush]

What drove me crazy was the PI I work for would always ask me to write my own letters for scholarship/grant applications. So I just assumed he would do the same for med school. I spent two days writing the perfect letter to compliment myself and yet not repeat my amcas. I then had as many people read over it as i had for amcas. Then when I asked him for a letter of rec (with my letter in hand) he said sure and proceeded to write overly flowery crap (which he later let me read).

 

[UNC-or-BUST]

What drove me crazy was the PI I work for would always ask me to write my own letters for scholarship/grant applications. So I just assumed he would do the same for med school. I spent two days writing the perfect letter to compliment myself and yet not repeat my amcas. I then had as many people read over it as i had for amcas. Then when I asked him for a letter of rec (with my letter in hand) he said sure and proceeded to write overly flowery crap (which he later let me read).

Well, LORs can't mean much b/c they are always good.... in fact my boss actually put $100 bills in my LORs b/c only reads LORs sent to him to make sure the applicant is not crazy, or atleast not crazier that himself. (the event, and or events deplicted in this statement are false, they have no basis in the real world and would likely result in no acceptance or even interveiw, unless done to a school like U Iowa or Vanderbiltwhich are essentially nursing school or maybe even really poor PA schools, plz do not us this advice ever or even read this b.c it will likely make you dumber, even though dumber is no proper english you get the point, blah blah blah blah blah, Vote for Anyone else but Hiliary in 2008 or even 2012, lesbians have no place in the White House, except for the presidents office during late afternoons when the rest of the staff at home and his wife is knitting or cooking or whatever females do when they are not raising/watching the kids)

 

[MollyMalone]

Well, LORs can't mean much b/c they are always good.... in fact my boss actually put $100 bills in my LORs b/c only reads LORs sent to him to make sure the applicant is not crazy, or atleast not crazier that himself. (the event, and or events deplicted in this statement are false, they have no basis in the real world and would likely result in no acceptance or even interveiw, unless done to a school like U Iowa or Vanderbiltwhich are essentially nursing school or maybe even really poor PA schools, plz do not us this advice ever or even read this b.c it will likely make you dumber, even though dumber is no proper english you get the point, blah blah blah blah blah, Vote for Anyone else but Hiliary in 2008 or even 2012, lesbians have no place in the White House, except for the presidents office during late afternoons when the rest of the staff at home and his wife is knitting or cooking or whatever females do when they are not raising/watching the kids)

The really frightening thing is that I'm not sure this even cracks the top 100 weirdest posts on SDN.

 

[CoolCucumber]

Well, LORs can't mean much b/c they are always good.... in fact my boss actually put $100 bills in my LORs b/c only reads LORs sent to him to make sure the applicant is not crazy, or atleast not crazier that himself. (the event, and or events deplicted in this statement are false, they have no basis in the real world and would likely result in no acceptance or even interveiw, unless done to a school like U Iowa or Vanderbiltwhich are essentially nursing school or maybe even really poor PA schools, plz do not us this advice ever or even read this b.c it will likely make you dumber, even though dumber is no proper english you get the point, blah blah blah blah blah, Vote for Anyone else but Hiliary in 2008 or even 2012, lesbians have no place in the White House, except for the presidents office during late afternoons when the rest of the staff at home and his wife is knitting or cooking or whatever females do when they are not raising/watching the kids)

WTF?!??!

 

[CoolCucumber]

Ok I'll do it... watch him probably lose my letter in a bar someplace

 

[CoolCucumber]

So what should I put in the letter? Miss Cucumber is brilliant, honest, sincere, generous, compassionate, reliable, sincere, wonderful, kind, caring, intelligent, personable...and did I mention seriously hot Just kidding.

 

[MrDreamWeaver]

Well, LORs can't mean much b/c they are always good.... in fact my boss actually put $100 bills in my LORs b/c only reads LORs sent to him to make sure the applicant is not crazy, or atleast not crazier that himself. (the event, and or events deplicted in this statement are false, they have no basis in the real world and would likely result in no acceptance or even interveiw, unless done to a school like U Iowa or Vanderbiltwhich are essentially nursing school or maybe even really poor PA schools, plz do not us this advice ever or even read this b.c it will likely make you dumber, even though dumber is no proper english you get the point, blah blah blah blah blah, Vote for Anyone else but Hiliary in 2008 or even 2012, lesbians have no place in the White House, except for the presidents office during late afternoons when the rest of the staff at home and his wife is knitting or cooking or whatever females do when they are not raising/watching the kids)

I couldn't have said it better myself.

 

[dr.z]

This is pretty common. It'd only be unethical if you forged his sig.

One of my reference asked me to write a draft for him. He modified what I wrote and sent it.

 

[DrKitty]

While the situation OP is in occurs frequently, it surely does not make it easy for the applicant. Writing good LORs is HARD, especially to deans and adcoms who read millions of them. I was in the same situation (lazy professor who first said he'll write it and eventually asked me to write it and he'll sign) and I
decided my application will be stellar without it. I surely did not want to sound as a "student" in my LOR, and did not have enough time to work on it so that it would resemble something that a faculty would have written.

That being said, most LORs sound "positive" - they focus on positive aspects of an applicant, occasinally there may be some criticism. However, writing styles and expressions vary, and faculty and deans have their way of reading between the lines, as claimed by my coworker who interviewed people for residency positions. I do not regret not writing my own LOR.

 

[gujuDoc]

This is extremely common. Just write it and he'll sign.

I agree with the above post. I know a professor or two who have done the same thing at our university as well. It is also done in jobs sometimes. My old research boss from the college of medicine was doing this for herself when she was trying to apply for other jobs.

 

[gujuDoc]

So what should I put in the letter? Miss Cucumber is brilliant, honest, sincere, generous, compassionate, reliable, sincere, wonderful, kind, caring, intelligent, personable...and did I mention seriously hot Just kidding.

Send me your email address, and I'll give you a copy of the letter I once wrote for a friend. It will give you an idea of how to write your own letter.

 

[oxeye]

Send me your email address, and I'll give you a copy of the letter I once wrote for a friend. It will give you an idea of how to write your own letter.

Hey gujuDoc - could you send this to me too? One prof. I asked for a recommendation asked me write a draft for her and I'm not quite sure how to go about it.

I'd really appreciate it. I was just coming here to ask about this issue. ;-)

 

[gujuDoc]

Hey gujuDoc - could you send this to me too? One prof. I asked for a recommendation asked me write a draft for her and I'm not quite sure how to go about it.

I'd really appreciate it. I was just coming here to ask about this issue. ;-)

Sure send me a pm with your contact info.