letter of recommendation

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Mikhail

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Hi there,

I have a problem with a letter of recommendation from premed. committee. I have to take 8 classes in my college in order to get it. I've read on medical school websites that you need either a letter from such committee or from 2 professors. What should I do? Is it better for me to take 8 classes (6 of them are advanced classes such as microbiology, biochemistry, genetics, etc.) or just take the rest of prerequisites (most of them I have from Russia) and get them from 2 professors?
Could anybody advise me on this issue, please?
Thanks in advance.

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A letter of rec from a pre-professional committee is a nice thing to have. A committee letter shows that you have been vouched for by the individual letter writers as well as the committee itself -- which is a bonus if you're applying to med schools that know the undergraduate school that is writing the letter. That said, I wouldn't take unnecessary classes just to get one. Try talking to the pre-professional committee to see if they can waive the requirement for you or if there's anything else they could recommend -- it's worth a shot.

Good luck!
 
I agree with the previous poster. I committee letter would be a nice thing to have, but I don't think it's worth taking extra classes for it... If your individual letters are good, they should stand by themselves.

If you're asked why you don't have a committee letter (in case they're worried that it's cause the committee wouldn't vouch for you), just explain your situation.
 
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There needs to be a scientific study on whether committee letter makes a difference vs doing it on your own. It's just I want to know the full story.:mad: Not that I don't believe what is being posted here.

When is the best time to ask for a recommendation? When you are about to apply or when you are done with the course? If it's a 2 semester sequence course should it be at the end of the first semester or 2nd semester?
 
Originally posted by blankguy
There needs to be a scientific study on whether committee letter makes a difference vs doing it on your own. It's just I want to know the full story.:mad: Not that I don't believe what is being posted here.

When is the best time to ask for a recommendation? When you are about to apply or when you are done with the course? If it's a 2 semester sequence course should it be at the end of the first semester or 2nd semester?

Good questions... I just don't know the answers... I think it depends on the profs. and your school. At U of Mich, it's better to do it right after the course or within a few months after finishing the course so that the professor can at least remember who you are.

That's my .02
 
Good questions... I just don't know the answers... I think it depends on the profs. and your school. At U of Mich, it's better to do it right after the course or within a few months after finishing the course so that the professor can at least remember who you are.

I believe that it's better to ask a letter after the final exam grade is posted. In this case, a professor knows what you are capable of and how you have done in his/her class. If you come back later, he might forget you and just write a standard letter that you would have got if he did not know you so well
 
Mikhail,

Considering this is post-bacc, I'm assuming your issue is taking enough classes as a post-bacc to gain access to a committee letter.

As a post-bacc, one tends to have a greater story to tell. A committee letter can significantly help in telling that story. I seriously thought about doing Harvard's post-bacc program because of the caliber and the existence of a committee letter. After talking with Dr. Fixsen (program director and summer bio professor), he said to take the classes where you will be most happy. I ended up taking his summer bio class. Your story can be told in other areas, aka Personal Statement.

Northwestern, where I went for undergrad and 3 out of 4 post-bacc pre-med classes, has a recommendation file service. I feel the most important thing is to find professors and physicians who know you well. I believe if you work really hard with a professor and he knows you well, yet you received a B+ in the class. He or she is still a great one to ask. The work ethic and personal qualities will be written in the letter. As a post-bacc, your science professors will know recently. Finding a non-science professor could prove difficult if you graduated a long-time ago or never really had a strong relationship with one. Fortunately, I had 5 classes and wrote a honors thesis with the same professor. Lastly, a good compilation of recs will have a medical doctor recommendation(either clinical or research).

Undergrads are faced with a different challenge because most of their science classes are taken 2, maybe 3, years before beginning the application process. Maintaining relationships with a stop-in visit once in a while can help foster a better letter. Also, asking T.A.s to write some words to the professor can help. A lot of times they know you better than the professor.

Additionally, as a post-bac, the science classes tend to have 60 students instead of 300, allowing for a student to better know the professor. I would believe a professor who's forgotten all about you after a few months probably wouldn't have been a good one to ask in the first place.

Lastly, remember recommendations are important but not the end of the world. The goal is to get strong ones. But strong recommendations aren't going to overcome a 3.0 and a 26. Talk to older students and what they've heard about different professors. Remember, medical schools receive recs from the same professor for a number of applicants. You want yours to stand out from mutual letter applicants.
 
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