Thank You letters

[auburnO5]

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I just interviewed with a school and the admissions director basically made it sound like we were expected to write our interviewers "thank you" notes.

I kind of see this as brown nosing but I guess I'll humor them and write some.

For those of you that have done this, do you just go out and get a little thank you card and write something short and sweet? Can it be done through an email?

 

[CarlATHF]

Most people get packs of those little cards from like Hallmark or whatever and just send them a quick note. They typically mention something specific from the interview (i.e. a discussion they had about NFL football) to jog the interviewer's memory.

I never wrote a thank you note, but that's what I've heard so far from people who did write thank you notes.

 

[Catalystik]

They aren't expected. Many feel compelled to write them anyway. If done by email, it's the perfect way to ask a followup question, if so inclined. If done by snailmail, short and sweet is the best way.

(Avoid cutsy cards; keep it business-like.)

 

[Naijaba]

I just emailed "Thank You" notes with a few highlights from each interview.

 

[MrCheetah]

They're worthless from the perspective of "aiding" your application. Don't waste your time unless you're only meaning to express your thankfulness.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

So, as an interviewer, I read the thank you letters I received and then threw them out.

Thank you letters are not a matter of necessity; they are a matter of professionalism. If you do your research on professional etiquette, any type of interview should be followed with some sort of thank you correspondence (sometimes email is appropriate, sometimes written cards are appropriate). I agree that it does nothing to help or hurt your application in most cases, but you never know.

I just completed my residency interviews, 12 programs with an average of 4-5 interviews per interview day, so that's about 50 thank you letters. I always wrote letters to interviewers unless I was asked not to. It's annoying and painful, but it speaks to your professionalism (as antiquated as that may be). I personally don't see thank you letters as a necessity, but others might (probably more important when applying to residency than when applying to medical school). Sometimes you have to decide for how long and how far you want to play the game.

Good luck

-senior medical student / admissions committee interviewer

 

[BlueElmo]

I would just email a note. No need to get fancy or anything.

 

[Morsetlis]

I print them on fancy, scented paper and hand-deliver them, with a rose, on Valentine's Day.

 

[flip26]

Some med schools specifically say not to send them. At one med school, I heard a student ask an interviewer for his card, and the interviewer said "we don't give them out here." Take a cue from the schools...

I sent one, but only to a school that went to the trouble of providing in writing the mailing address of my interviewer. I had interviews where I never was provided with the interviewer's name, etc. I decided early on in the cycle that I wasn't going to fool with it.

I thanked all of my interviewers for their time and consideration at the close of the interview. I think this is all that you need to do.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

I would say that thank you letters are more important for the residency application process than for the medical school application process. When you apply to medical school there is a good chance that you will never work with or even see your interviewer again. However, when applying to residency or for a job, your interviewers are people you may intimately work with in the near future or possibly in the distant future if you decided to revisit that specific employer. That is why thank you letters are more appropriate in that setting. I know that is quite a ways off for many of you, but keep it in mind.

-senior medical student

 

[Morsetlis]

I think the amount of thank due would be commensurate to how much of an impact the interviewer will have on your acceptance. Obviously this'd vary from school to school, and thus it's best to send a brief thank-you after every interview (unless specifically forbidden).

^ I'd agree with the above also.

 

[auburnO5]

Some med schools specifically say not to send them. At one med school, I heard a student ask an interviewer for his card, and the interviewer said "we don't give them out here." Take a cue from the schools...

I sent one, but only to a school that went to the trouble of providing in writing the mailing address of my interviewer. I had interviews where I never was provided with the interviewer's name, etc. I decided early on in the cycle that I wasn't going to fool with it.

I thanked all of my interviewers for their time and consideration at the close of the interview. I think this is all that you need to do.

I agree, but the director of admissions prefaced a few of his statements with "when you send your thank you notes." So at least for this school I wouldn't want to be one of the few that doesn't send one.

 

[organdonor]

[Insert title] [insert name]
Thank you for the interview on [Insert Date]. I especially enjoyed the discussion we had about [insert topic]. I was very impressed by [insert school] and look forward to matriculating next Fall!
Sincerely
[insert name]

There ya go. If they gave you their email, just email it. Thats what I did. If they tell you to not send a thank you, don't. If, like in your case, they make it clear they expect one, then send one.

 

[JasonE]

i was told by one of my interviewers at a school to write them thank you notes because whether or not you did was part of their interview report. so you never know!

 

[flip26]

I agree, but the director of admissions prefaced a few of his statements with "when you send your thank you notes." So at least for this school I wouldn't want to be one of the few that doesn't send one.

As I said, take your cue from the school...

 

[naijaboi]

I did not send any letters, and so far I have gotten into all the schools I interviewed at. I do not know how much difference it makes. But my friends who did sent personalized emails. Also, when writing one, write just a thank you note and not a letter of intent.

 

[Morsetlis]

You should do research on this topic.

 

[ilovepizza]

if you write a thank you letter then you automatically get an acceptance

 

[phospho]

They're worthless from the perspective of "aiding" your application. Don't waste your time unless you're only meaning to express your thankfulness.

👍

Personally, I didn't send any. It wasn't like AMCAS (or their application) were free. They were doing their job, and I was doing my job. If it was a real world job interview where I was taking someone's time for them to interview me (and I wasn't paying them a fee for my job application!), then I would probably do the thank you note then.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

👍

Personally, I didn't send any. It wasn't like AMCAS (or their application) were free. They were doing their job, and I was doing my job. If it was a real world job interview where I was taking someone's time for them to interview me (and I wasn't paying them a fee for my job application!), then I would probably do the thank you note then.

Sorry, to OP for hijacking the thread:

As I posted earlier, you'll have to be careful during residency interviews. You'll be paying for ERAS, but the programs don't get any of that money, so it will be like a real job interview that you have to travel to. Also, since the selection pool is a little smaller, there are many programs out there that keep track of whether or not you send a thank you letter. Keep this in mind during you residency pursuits.

-senior medical student

 

[phospho]

Sorry, to OP for hijacking the thread:

As I posted earlier, you'll have to be careful during residency interviews. You'll be paying for ERAS, but the programs don't get any of that money, so it will be like a real job interview that you have to travel to. Also, since the selection pool is a little smaller, there are many programs out there that keep track of whether or not you send a thank you letter. Keep this in mind during you residency pursuits.

-senior medical student

With med school interviews, the letters had absolutely nothing to do with whether you got in or not. I do appreciate the heads up though. I've actually heard that from a few other medical students too. Will definitely keep that in mind in 3 years.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

Most admissions committee members are volunteers from the faculty. Sure they are paid to teach, research, see patients -- but the adcom is often a non-compensated activity for them. Sorting through thousands of applications and hundreds of interviews is a huge time commitment. Thanking them for their time to talk to you is polite and professional.

You are being interviewed for a spot in this profession. You are being judged by those who will be working with you in the future. Admissions is subjective -- otherwise we'd just rank you by GPA and MCAT score and it would be over in a matter of days instead of months. Maybe that thank you won't push your candidacy over the top, but I promise it reflects positively.

I'll let you guess how many candidates for dean where I'm at sent thank you letters. (Here's a hint: the answer is either all of them or none of them). If really you want to go places in your career, learn the game of professional etiquette. The ones who figure it out early are the ones that climb the ladder the fastest. Trust me -- it starts now.

 

[phospho]

Most admissions committee members are volunteers from the faculty. Sure they are paid to teach, research, see patients -- but the adcom is often a non-compensated activity for them. Sorting through thousands of applications and hundreds of interviews is a huge time commitment. Thanking them for their time to talk to you is polite and professional.

You are being interviewed for a spot in this profession. You are being judged by those who will be working with you in the future. Admissions is subjective -- otherwise we'd just rank you by GPA and MCAT score and it would be over in a matter of days instead of months. Maybe that thank you won't push your candidacy over the top, but I promise it reflects positively.

I'll let you guess how many candidates for dean where I'm at sent thank you letters. (Here's a hint: the answer is either all of them or none of them). If really you want to go places in your career, learn the game of professional etiquette. The ones who figure it out early are the ones that climb the ladder the fastest. Trust me -- it starts now.

seriously, no one sent a thank you a letter for a DEAN position? that's pretty nuts... i guess i was just bitter after seeing the price tag for AMCAS and their application fees...