Thank you notes and LOI questions!

[karirunner]

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These are probably silly questions but...when you write your interviewers a thank you note is it best to do it in the form of a letter or is a tasteful thank you note acceptable? Also, what goes in a letter of intent besides "your school is my number one choice and if you let me in, I'm going there"? (Also, what does "bump" mean?) Any advice y'all could give would be great!

 

[speranza]

In the letter of intent I sent to my top choice school, I included what you said and also had two paragraphs about why I thought the school was a good fit for me, what I would contribue to the school, and an update on my activities.

 

[phenylalanine]

In the letter of intent I sent to my top choice school, I included what you said and also had two paragraphs about why I thought the school was a good fit for me, what I would contribue to the school, and an update on my activities.

do u send one in after you get waitlisted from the school you really want to attend?? or do you send one in after an interview and waiting on the school's decision?

 

[argonana]

do u send one in after you get waitlisted from the school you really want to attend?? or do you send one in after an interview and waiting on the school's decision?

I am wondering the same thing. Also, on average, are they that effective?

 

[tacrum43]

These are probably silly questions but...when you write your interviewers a thank you note is it best to do it in the form of a letter or is a tasteful thank you note acceptable? Also, what goes in a letter of intent besides "your school is my number one choice and if you let me in, I'm going there"? (Also, what does "bump" mean?) Any advice y'all could give would be great!

This has been discussed at length in some other threads, and the conclusion was that an ideal thank you note would: Be sent promptly following the interview, be personal and thoughtful, be neatly hand written in blue or black ink, and on a quality blank card or on one with your school's seal on the front.

As for the letter of intent, the basic contents are what you said, and while you might explain the specifics of why they are in fact your first choice, you should probably limit it to one page. You can always send more letters later if you have more to say. Plus, you might want to save some things to say for later (assuming you're hanging out on the waitlist).

Oh yes, and "bump" is a term used when someone wants to bring that thread back to the top of the forum to get more responses, etc.

 

[speranza]

I am wondering the same thing. Also, on average, are they that effective?

I have no idea if they're effective, but I don't see how it could hurt. I decided to send mine pre-decision because if I am on the border of either accept/waitlist or waitlist/reject, the LOI MAY push me over into the higher category. I'm sure the LOI carries more weight at some schools at others, I just hope my school is one that really considers it. 🙂

argonana, just out of curiosity, what does the quote in your sig say? my spanish isn't good enough to fully translate it...

 

[argonana]

what does the quote in your sig say? my spanish isn't good enough to fully translate it...

haha yeah, i couldn't come up with an eloquent enough translation. basically, it says, "when someone learns, she becomes more aware that she doesn't have to be like the rest of the world."