Too many letters of recommendation?

[Eric Winterton]

So, I'm a bit later with my application than most of you it seems, but I'm looking at the different schools requirements and finding that they're all different for what letters they want and from whom. I already have 5 and maybe will need a sixth just to meet the minimum requirements for the different schools (OHSU wants 3 from science, other schools want a nonscience or character and of course a dentist). Whats up with all the letters? doesn't 6 LOR seem like a lot? I dont know how a school that only requires like 2 or 3 letters would look at 6 coming in from the same student, not to mention that its a pain in my a$$ to get it all together. Anyone have similar experiences?

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[aurora507]

I think most schools prefer around 4 or 5, but I had 6 and I doubt they'll care, as long as all of your LORs are strong, and not fluff like "I taught him for __ and he got an A. He'll do well in dental school."

 

[SugarNaCl]

Eric,
I had 6 letters of recommendation from professors I worked under in grad school (2), my 3 current supervisors up the ranks at the research hospital I am at (3), and (1) from the dentist I shadowed for 6 months. I asked a couple of schools about it directly and they said that 6 is definitely an acceptable, appropriate amount of letters to have...and they do count a lot in the final process... Just so you know.

 

[fancymylotus]

I had 8,four were non-school people,one was a committee letter,the rest were professors.

 

[reapply2007]

Arizona only considers two LORs and may glance at the rest. You get to choose which two.