Is it too early to shadow and too early for any LOR?

[BoredPrescriptionPills]

This is my first post here on SDN but I have looked and search on here for similar questions as mine. I got some answers from them but I have multiple questions geared towards my own situation. I'm a year one pre-med and was wondering if it's too early for me to shadow? If I happened to shadow now and ask for a letter of recommendation at the end of it would that be too soon? I'm planning on shadowing at least one or two doctors if possible for a few weeks; months if allowed this year is why I ask. I still have a while before I start applying to med schools so would having an old letter be pointless? How do you save your letters of recommendations and when is the best time to start asking for them? Would trying to shadow a physician multiple times through the years help build a better relationship with them; therefore giving me a more recent LOR in a few years verses this year? Thanks in advance for any advice given to me I just have a lot of questions when it comes to this topic.

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[OrdinaryDO]

There is no such thing as starting too early. Build your relationships and your letters will usually be a lot better and more personalized, which is good. I would start right away if you have the time.

 

[BoredPrescriptionPills]

There is no such thing as starting too early. Build your relationships and your letters will usually be a lot better and more personalized, which is good. I would start right away if you have the time.

I know I just posted this not even a week ago but I went with your advice right away. I contacted a physician's practice yet somehow ended up on the line with their boss and the physician instantly. A minute later I was told to write up my own schedule and they can't wait to meet me. I'm pretty glad I was worried I would have been rejected 20 times before I got a yes from anyone.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

I know I just posted this not even a week ago but I went with your advice right away. I contacted a physician's practice yet somehow ended up on the line with their boss and the physician instantly. A minute later I was told to write up my own schedule and they can't wait to meet me. I'm pretty glad I was worried I would have been rejected 20 times before I got a yes from anyone.

AWESOME!! I can't even begin to tell you how fortunate I was to have such great physician mentors. In my own experience, the physicians were eager to show me something and then follow up by asking me questions and teaching me how they reason their was through things or how they go about diagnosing certain things. You will love it, just be respectful and don't allow them to think you are just there for a letter, lol.

 

[DrMikeP]

This is my first post here on SDN but I have looked and search on here for similar questions as mine. I got some answers from them but I have multiple questions geared towards my own situation. I'm a year one pre-med and was wondering if it's too early for me to shadow? If I happened to shadow now and ask for a letter of recommendation at the end of it would that be too soon? I'm planning on shadowing at least one or two doctors if possible for a few weeks; months if allowed this year is why I ask. I still have a while before I start applying to med schools so would having an old letter be pointless? How do you save your letters of recommendations and when is the best time to start asking for them? Would trying to shadow a physician multiple times through the years help build a better relationship with them; therefore giving me a more recent LOR in a few years verses this year? Thanks in advance for any advice given to me I just have a lot of questions when it comes to this topic.

Agree with other poster... It's not too early and might even help you decide if medicine is right for you.

You probably would want to maintain contact and get a LOR closer to application time, so it appears fresh. I've maintained contact with a number of pre-meds who shadowed years earlier and happily wrote a letter when they were ready. It gave me the ability to say I've known them personally for 3+ years, which to me is better than I just met them a month ago.

 

[BoredPrescriptionPills]

Agree with other poster... It's not too early and might even help you decide if medicine is right for you.

You probably would want to maintain contact and get a LOR closer to application time, so it appears fresh. I've maintained contact with a number of pre-meds who shadowed years earlier and happily wrote a letter when they were ready. It gave me the ability to say I've known them personally for 3+ years, which to me is better than I just met them a month ago.

Hopefully he'll say something around the lines of that as well. I get to shadow him twice a week for a month so I think I'll have time to build up somewhat of a relationship that will make him say yes to keeping in contact than if I had shadowed him for just a day. Thanks you both for helping me clear up some of my thoughts.