Submit application w/o LOR or wait?

[dcaicedo91]

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Hey everyone, so I have everything ready to submit my application, but don't have a LOR from a Podiatrist yet. Im going to begin shadowing a Podiatrist next week, and will get a LOR from him after a month of shadowing. Should I go ahead and submit my application with his LOR and then update it once I receive my letter, or just wait until I have the letter? I don't have the best stats. Cgpa is 3.1, and sgpa is 2.9 (upward trend) and MCAT score of 19 (4/9/6). Thanks

 

[hughesn2]

First, why are you just now shadowing a podiatrist? Have you been planning on applying to podiatry school for a just a few weeks and that is why? Just asking b/c it kind of seems like you procrastinated that.

Second, I did put my application in on the AACPM without the actual recommendations from my teachers and podiatrist, but I have already shadowed and my doctor knows to get it to me as soon as possible.
The problem with your situation is that you haven't even started shadowing a podiatrist yet and don't know if you actually want to go into this profession b/c maybe you change your mind after a couple visits (maybe, but unlikely).
Personally, I would wait a week b/c some podiatrist are gonna take up to a week or two to write your recommendation since some doctors just forget about little stuff like this.

 

[JuxGiant]

I'm in the same boat as the OP. Podiatry looks and reads like it would be an enriching and interesting profession, but I had only heard about the DPM as being a tangible degree, starting in early August. I've reached out to a person who says he has connections to shadowing opportunities, but I haven't heard back yet.

hughes' tone could have been better, but I'm sure the OP has his/her reasons for not shadowing a Pod yet. I know I have mine.

So I'd like the answer to the OP's question as well. Like a lot of people, the absence of the LoR might be the only obstacle in the application process currently - is it a good idea to go ahead and submit the application with everything but the LoR, or is it a better idea to submit everything at once, when you have it all?

 

[Snowman211]

I submitted my app last year without any LORs. I needed a science professor and pod LOR, but knew they would be in within a couple weeks(getting LORs is sometimes like pulling teeth.) I interviewed at 2 schools before they even got the letters, and by the time I had my interview a few weeks later at a third school, all of my letters were in. Not saying to follow my footsteps, but it worked out for me.