*~*~*~*Official Letters of Recommendation Questions Thread 2017-2018*~*~*~*

[gonnif]

No one? Should we just explain that the company moved its office to a different city?

just plain paper is fine or letterhead of current company.

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[stilllovegreys]

just plain paper is fine or letterhead of current company.

Thanks.

 

[gonnif]

No one? Should we just explain that the company moved its office to a different city?

The former boss will simply explain in the letter. Letter head wont be an issue,

 

[gonnif]

Note/Tip to All

1) Dont assign a letter in AMCAS to a school until the letter actually has been loaded into AMCAS. If a requested letter writer does not submit a letter but your prior has been submitted to a school where this letter has been assigned, it can leave your application in a "hold" "incomplete" or other status waiting for a letter that isnt coming. "Unassigning" a letter is not a strait forward process

2) AMCAS Letter Service is fully separate from any AMCAS Primary application process. Letters can be added at anytime and have no impact on AMCAS verification or transmission. Letters added after submission, letters will be transmitted in one business day to the schools

 

[scienceswimmer]

I have a question about my letters, my pre-med advisor told me this information but I want some more advice.

For our school, Psychology and Neuroscience are included in one department, and my advisor said that my neuroanatomy professor's letter could count as a 'hard science', with the other one being my PI who advised my honor's thesis in neuroscience. My non-science would be from a cognitive psychology class.

I feel like having three letters all involved in psychology could be harmful. Should I look for a different hard science letters instead and include my PI as an additional letter?

Thanks!

 

[gonnif]

I have a question about my letters, my pre-med advisor told me this information but I want some more advice.

For our school, Psychology and Neuroscience are included in one department, and my advisor said that my neuroanatomy professor's letter could count as a 'hard science', with the other one being my PI who advised my honor's thesis in neuroscience. My non-science would be from a cognitive psychology class.

I feel like having three letters all involved in psychology could be harmful. Should I look for a different hard science letters instead and include my PI as an additional letter?

Thanks!

the letters are okay and I doubt you will have any "technical" issues as for what yhey count as. While having some variety of letters maybe helpful, it is the quality of the letters that mattet. that being said one additional science letter from another department woukd be a reasonable action to take

 

[scienceswimmer]

the letters are okay and I doubt you will have any "technical" issues as for what yhey count as. While having some variety of letters maybe helpful, it is the quality of the letters that mattet. that being said one additional science letter from another department woukd be a reasonable action to take

Thank you, that was very helpful! I may get another science one as well, I just think it wouldn't be as strong as these three.

 

[Hopeful2021]

A couple of questions:

1) New York Medical College says on their website that, "The third required letter of evaluation must be from a non-science course". I recently took English and got to know my TA really well. I never really interacted with the prof so I know the TA will be better able to provide me with a letter. However, she is a masters student and I was wondering if a letter from her will satisfy this requirement.

2) I am planning to use Interfolio. I know when you request your referees to send the letter, you don't need to provide them with AMCAS ID and Letter ID because I can do that later on Interfolio. However, some schools want that the AMCAS ID be included in the letter. I am also applying to DO schools. Does this mean I have to ask my referees to create two versions of the letter with AMCAS ID on one and AACOMAS ID on another?

Thank you in advance.

 

[gonnif]

A couple of questions:

A couple of answers

1) New York Medical College says on their website that, "The third required letter of evaluation must be from a non-science course". I recently took English and got to know my TA really well. I never really interacted with the prof so I know the TA will be better able to provide me with a letter. However, she is a masters student and I was wondering if a letter from her will satisfy this requirement.

If the requirement says from an instructor for a course, then this is fine. The TA had either a faculty for the course, a faculty as an advisor, or the dept chair, who can and should counter sign the letter

2) I am planning to use Interfolio. I know when you request your referees to send the letter, you don't need to provide them with AMCAS ID and Letter ID because I can do that later on Interfolio. However, some schools want that the AMCAS ID be included in the letter. I am also applying to DO schools. Does this mean I have to ask my referees to create two versions of the letter with AMCAS ID on one and AACOMAS ID on another?

Do these schools want your AMCAS (applicant) ID or thee AMCAS Letter ID in the letter?

When you transfer the letters from Interfolio to AMCAS and/or when you assign the letters in AMCAS to the schools, an AMCAS Letter ID will be generated and will be associated with your AMCAS (applicant) ID. I really dont think this will be an issue. I would just get the letters without the AMCAS ID in interfolio which will make life easier for your letter writers

Thank you in advance.

You're welcome in advance

 

[Skarl]

I work in a lab with an accomplished and very busy PI. I only see him once a week at lab meetings, and even then our interaction is minimal. In the lab, I mostly work with a graduate student mentor who gives me scientific literature to read, has me run experiments, and discuss results with him. When asking for a LOR from this position, should I ask my mentor or the PI who probably only knows me by face? Is it okay to have my mentor write the letter and the PI sign it (if they are comfortable doing so)? The PI also teaches an upper division class for my major, but I'm not sure I'll still be in this lab by then.

 

[gonnif]

I work in a lab with an accomplished and very busy PI. I only see him once a week at lab meetings, and even then our interaction is minimal. In the lab, I mostly work with a graduate student mentor who gives me scientific literature to read, has me run experiments, and discuss results with him. When asking for a LOR from this position, should I ask my mentor or the PI who probably only knows me by face? Is it okay to have my mentor write the letter and the PI sign it (if they are comfortable doing so)? The PI also teaches an upper division class for my major, but I'm not sure I'll still be in this lab by then.

The grad student should write it and it should then be countersigned by the PI

 

[tbonez71]

Hello, I wanted to see how prepared I am in this section of my application. This is the part of my application I am most concerned about, being a non-traditional applicant.

First for context, my current letters are:
1 good letter from science prof
1 excellent letter from non-science prof
1 good letter from faculty PI (science, published here)
1 excellent letter from PhD doing clinical research
1 excellent letter from optometrist (full-time here for 1+ yr, included clinical trials/independent research)

Obviously a letter from an optometrist isn't ideal, yet we had a great relationship and they wrote about my good interactions with patients, foreign language/cultural understanding (lots of non-English speaking patients), and ability to do independent research (poster at conference, working on manuscript).

I wanted to ask...
1. Is it ok to keep the optometrist letter? It provides a perspective the other letters cannot.

2. I worked at a biotech startup for a short time (<1yr) doing odd jobs, and some minimal bench work (left partially due to this). I had a good relationship with the founders and asked them to write me a letter. However, they wrote back recently saying "I can attest to your basic character and work ethic, but since we didn't really do a lot of deep science I can't really address that". This kind of surprised me since they seemed happy to help me when I first asked over a month ago.
My concern is some schools want me to include 1 letter from each research activity I have done. Is it worth getting a "character reference" about how well I did menial tasks (and some experiments) to meet this requirement? Would this be looked poorly upon by those schools anyway, so don't bother?

3. Are these letters sufficient?

 

[gonnif]

Hello, I wanted to see how prepared I am in this section of my application. This is the part of my application I am most concerned about, being a non-traditional applicant.

First for context, my current letters are:
1 good letter from science prof
1 excellent letter from non-science prof
1 good letter from faculty PI (science, published here)
1 excellent letter from PhD doing clinical research
1 excellent letter from optometrist (full-time here for 1+ yr, included clinical trials/independent research)

Obviously a letter from an optometrist isn't ideal, yet we had a great relationship and they wrote about my good interactions with patients, foreign language/cultural understanding (lots of non-English speaking patients), and ability to do independent research (poster at conference, working on manuscript).

I wanted to ask...

go ahead ask

1. Is it ok to keep the optometrist letter? It provides a perspective the other letters cannot.

It sounds like the optometrist was both an employment supervisor and research mentor. Additionally, you had a long tern professional relationship that is academic and research in nature. All these counts make this an excellent letter to get

2. I worked at a biotech startup for a short time (<1yr) doing odd jobs, and some minimal bench work (left partially due to this). I had a good relationship with the founders and asked them to write me a letter. However, they wrote back recently saying "I can attest to your basic character and work ethic, but since we didn't really do a lot of deep science I can't really address that". This kind of surprised me since they seemed happy to help me when I first asked over a month ago.
My concern is some schools want me to include 1 letter from each research activity I have done. Is it worth getting a "character reference" about how well I did menial tasks (and some experiments) to meet this requirement? Would this be looked poorly upon by those schools anyway, so don't bother?

Dont bother. If the question comes up at an interview, which is doubtful, just be ready to explain why you dint have one and why you stayed only a year. Better pay and opportunity is always a good answer

3. Are these letters sufficient?

Yeah, your fine

 

[tbonez71]

go ahead ask

Lmao! I appreciate the permission, despite my having wrote a novel anyway Sage advice as ever!

 

[zasxd]

Do letters need to be dated?

 

[gonnif]

Do letters need to be dated?

yes

 

[gonnif]

Lmao! I appreciate the permission, despite my having wrote a novel anyway Sage advice as ever!

Student: Can I ask a question?
Advisor: That's a question already

 

[Jenny426]

Hi! So far I have two science letters, one non-science, a letter from my PI and one from a service program director. The only issue is that my non science professor is not answering her emails (she admitted she doesn't check them). She has already said yes to writing the letter, but what is the latest she could possibly send the letter in? I have been trying to get in touch with her for over three weeks so I am just preparing for the worst case scenario. Would July 1st be too late for someone to submit their LOR? Thank you!

 

[gonnif]

Hi! So far I have two science letters, one non-science, a letter from my PI and one from a service program director. The only issue is that my non science professor is not answering her emails (she admitted she doesn't check them). She has already said yes to writing the letter, but what is the latest she could possibly send the letter in? I have been trying to get in touch with her for over three weeks so I am just preparing for the worst case scenario. Would July 1st be too late for someone to submit their LOR? Thank you!

1) LORs are typically the last thing to be reviewed and should be considered part of the secondary application process; they are not part of the AMCAS Primary Application and do not affect its verification or transmission.
2) AMCAS Letter Service will transmit letters in one business day and can be submitted anytime during cycle.
3) Letters arriving my Labor Day would still be considered early. Letters by the end of September would be on time.
4) A large fraction of committee letters do not arrive until after the start of the Fall term when faculty and staff are back from Summer break.
5) I advise students not to assign letters to schools until the letter has been uploaded to AMCAS

 

[Go4Doc]

Hi! So I have 6 letter at the moment:
1.) Research PI at undergrad institution, did my senior thesis with him, likely excellent letter
2.) Physiology Professor - was student, TA for her, and later she was the primary reader for my thesis, likely excellent letter
3.) Ecology Professor - was student and spent lots of time working with him on a class project, he was my summa cum laude thesis reader, likely excellent letter
4.) History of Biology Prof - nonscience letter, was only a student of his but it was seminar-style class and he knew me well. Enthusiastically agreed to write letter.
5.) EMS Director - knew me as a student and volunteer EMT, happy to write me a letter
6.) PI at Mayo - worked with her during a summer research fellowship at Mayo. Likely excellent letter

My question is: I recently resigned my research job at Stanford to move home and focus solely on med school apps. I had very little FaceTime with my PI there as she was always busy. Despite working there for almost a year I don't think she got the chance to know me well and I don't think she could write a letter that would add anything significant above and beyond the 6 excellent letters I have already. Is it okay that I'm not planning on asking for one? I feel like the others I have are strong enough for pretty much anywhere.

 

[gonnif]

How much do you think one stellar (and I mean stellar) and one good MD LOR can help a low sGPA (barely meeting 10th percentile) and a high MCAT applicant(above the schools median)? I know it can't hurt, I just wanted to know how much it could help. Both letters are from docs I've worked with side by side for nearly 2 years

This is medical school admissions where many applicants get stellar letters so it will help but it will not make up for a major academic deficiency. Without knowing your grade trends and other specifics, I cant talk to what your chances maybe. I would post in WAMC

 

[gonnif]

Hi! So I have 6 letter at the moment:
1.) Research PI at undergrad institution, did my senior thesis with him, likely excellent letter
2.) Physiology Professor - was student, TA for her, and later she was the primary reader for my thesis, likely excellent letter
3.) Ecology Professor - was student and spent lots of time working with him on a class project, he was my summa cum laude thesis reader, likely excellent letter
4.) History of Biology Prof - nonscience letter, was only a student of his but it was seminar-style class and he knew me well. Enthusiastically agreed to write letter.
5.) EMS Director - knew me as a student and volunteer EMT, happy to write me a letter
6.) PI at Mayo - worked with her during a summer research fellowship at Mayo. Likely excellent letter

My question is: I recently resigned my research job at Stanford to move home and focus solely on med school apps. I had very little FaceTime with my PI there as she was always busy. Despite working there for almost a year I don't think she got the chance to know me well and I don't think she could write a letter that would add anything significant above and beyond the 6 excellent letters I have already. Is it okay that I'm not planning on asking for one? I feel like the others I have are strong enough for pretty much anywhere.

Except at the few schools that require/recommend letters from all PIs, it wont be an issue. What I would suggest is getting a letter from whomever was your immediate supervisor or similar , whether grad student or postdoc, have them get a cosign from PI, and add it to AMCAS. You can then assign it to schools if needed

 

[Catahecassa]

@gonnif Assuming I submit my primary on June 1st, is there any benefit to having LoR writers submit letters on June 1st vs June 15th? I have two former profs who volunteered to write LoRs today, and I'm trying to give them ample time to write a good letter without postponing my complete date. Do you think it is still reasonable to ask for them to submit the letters by June 1? If not, will waiting until June 15 have much of an impact on my complete date at schools?

 

[gonnif]

@gonnif Assuming I submit my primary on June 1st, is there any benefit to having LoR writers submit letters on June 1st vs June 15th? I have two former profs who volunteered to write LoRs today, and I'm trying to give them ample time to write a good letter without postponing my complete date. Do you think it is still reasonable to ask for them to submit the letters by June 1? If not, will waiting until June 15 have much of an impact on my complete date at schools?

1) AMCAS letters service is separate from AMCAS primary application
2) AMCAS does no verification of letters. they simply foward letters to schools
3) you do not need letters to submit your primary application
4) neither letters or applications will be transmitted prior to June 30
5) letters are really part of the secondary application. It is unlikely that letters will used or read Adcoms prior to August 1st at the earliest. Letters in by Sept 1st would still be early

give your letter writer until June 30 at the earliest

 

[QowsEatDumlogic]

I currently have 3 decent letters ready (I expect they're decent, at least. 2 science profs and 1 clinical volunteer coordinator.) with my committee letter. I recently started full-time work as a scribe. Should I make an effort to try to get a physician LOR soon or is it getting a bit too late to wait for just one letter? She likes me so far but she won't have known me long. My committee prefers we have an MD letter but I don't think it should matter much either way. The extra letter would not help me meet any additional school requirements or anything. I don't think I'd be able to ask until mid-June or so- too late?

 

[gonnif]

I currently have 3 decent letters ready (I expect they're decent, at least. 2 science profs and 1 clinical volunteer coordinator.) with my committee letter. I recently started full-time work as a scribe. Should I make an effort to try to get a physician LOR soon or is it getting a bit too late to wait for just one letter? She likes me so far but she won't have known me long. My committee prefers we have an MD letter but I don't think it should matter much either way. The extra letter would not help me meet any additional school requirements or anything. I don't think I'd be able to ask until mid-June or so- too late?

it doesnt sound like it will add anything as you havent worked there long enough

 

[Catahecassa]

.

 

[Firehosewarrior]

Kind of a strange situation, but I have a letter writer who has been unable to upload their letter through the interfolio submission link (error came up whenever he tried), so they emailed it to me and asked me to submit it. I sent them a second letter request and they were still unable to submit it. I tested it using my own email, and I had no issues uploading the same letter to interfolio. Will it make a difference if I send the letter request to my own email and submit it myself to interfolio?

 

[mdboy15]

I need some help. I've tried with Interfolio, but I am still very confused. If I am using Interfolio, do I still need to generate an AMCAS request form for my letter writers, along with my Interfolio request email? Or is the Interfolio request sufficient for my letter writers, and they (Interfolio) connect it with my AMCAS application? I'd rather get this all figured out, prior to toying with it and sending various "my bad" emails to my letter writers. Thanks in advance.

 

[gonnif]

I need some help. I've tried with Interfolio, but I am still very confused. If I am using Interfolio, do I still need to generate an AMCAS request form for my letter writers, along with my Interfolio request email? Or is the Interfolio request sufficient for my letter writers, and they (Interfolio) connect it with my AMCAS application? I'd rather get this all figured out, prior to toying with it and sending various "my bad" emails to my letter writers. Thanks in advance.

Yes. see page 61 Under Interfolio
https://aamc-orange.global.ssl.fast...2018_amcas_instruction_manual-web.pdf#page=61

 

[gonnif]

Kind of a strange situation, but I have a letter writer who has been unable to upload their letter through the interfolio submission link (error came up whenever he tried), so they emailed it to me and asked me to submit it. I sent them a second letter request and they were still unable to submit it. I tested it using my own email, and I had no issues uploading the same letter to interfolio. Will it make a difference if I send the letter request to my own email and submit it myself to interfolio?

yes, your application may be investigated. Go over and help the professor or have him/her mail it in that thing call an envelope and stamp

 

[gonnif]

@gonnif--sorry, another quick question. My school used to have a pre-health committee that sent composite letters, but that committee recently disbanded. Will medical schools know that my undergraduate institution no longer has a committee? Just making sure they know I'm not opting out of the composite letter...

No they may not but you can explain on Secondary or by separate email update.

 

[SpoiledMilk]

I have had the privilege to see a draft of a letter from a DO. This letter was sent to a DO school I applied to.

The question I have is whether it can also be used as an extra letter to MD schools I applied to through AMCAS? Caveat: The letter does mention something about my philosophy on osteopathic medicine, etc., naturally nothing about allopathic medicine.

 

[gonnif]

I have had the privilege to see a draft of a letter from a DO. This letter was sent to a DO school I applied to.

The question I have is whether it can also be used as an extra letter to MD schools I applied to through AMCAS? Caveat: The letter does mention something about my philosophy on osteopathic medicine, etc., naturally nothing about allopathic medicine.

yes, practicing physicians, whether MD or DO, are fine for MD application. However, most shadowing physician letters do not add much, if anything, to MD applications

 

[SpoiledMilk]

yes, practicing physicians, whether MD or DO, are fine for MD application. However, most shadowing physician letters do not add much, if anything, to MD applications

Thank you!!

 

[yogitee]

what do you suggest for a non-trad student who doesnt have the required professor LORs? i graduated 3 years ago and at the time, did not know if i would apply to med school. I have one science prof LOR but its from 2014- is that too old? and its not necessarily geared towards med school

 

[gonnif]

what do you suggest for a non-trad student who doesnt have the required professor LORs? i graduated 3 years ago and at the time, did not know if i would apply to med school. I have one science prof LOR but its from 2014- is that too old? and its not necessarily geared towards med school

1) You can email professor from 2014 to update later
2) you can email some professors from your UG days and see if they will write one
3) most school have relaxed the formal 2 science/1 non science, though that is still the "traditional" expectation
4) a large fraction of schools give nontrads options for letters from other sources. Go to the schools' website and read up
5) It is quality of the letter that matters most. It is unlikely that a school will reject an applicant solely due to not fulfilling a technical requirement for LOR
6) A few schools, such as CWRU and some of the Florida schools, do have very specific requirements that may not be as lax as I suggest.
7) By and large, if you have the 1 letter from 2014, a current letter from employment, a letter from current school or research you will be fine
8) lastly, write your campus and see if they will still do a committee letter. Some do so for alumni

 

[atrofine]

Hi! I'm two years out from undergrad, and I didn't make a decision until recently in my gap years that I really wanted to apply to med school. That being said, I didn't make any close relationships with any professors and I highly doubt they would be able to write me a strong letter at this point. I'm doing a bunch of clinical research now at a university-affiliated hospital...would my PI suffice as a science letter? I also scribe at another university-affiliated hospital, would that attending's letter count towards a science letter as well?

 

[ExcitatorySynapse]

lol i foolishly started a stand alone thread before i saw this one. my question:
I was just wondering if I could take a LoR from my research PI who I took a research for credit course with and use that as the equivalent of a typical science lecture course? I haven't heard back from my other recommenders yet despite emailing them a few times, and the one science prof who I scrambled to get a letter from I wasn't outstanding in the class. (A-)

'Course' LoRs I have: Calc IV professor (A), Humanities Professor (great relationship, A), Bio course prof (mediocre relationship, A-), requested/should hopefully get from Orgo Prof (A- but good with TA). I theoretically could ask my psychology prof (A) but that class was really easy and I didn't talk too much with the professor.

Since I'm applying MD/PhD, I also have 3 research LoRs: one from a PI who runs a big stroke clinic/lab, one from a BME lab I worked in (also took 2 points worth of research, A grade), and then the current lab (3.5 credits, A grade) I want to get a LoR from.

What do you think I should do? i have been told i need at least 2 science. thanks!!

 

[atrofine]

I am applying to both MD and DO programs this cycle. Should I still have my DO mentors/letter writers submit for my AMCAS application? Or does that "look bad" to MD AdComs that I am considering DO programs as well?

 

[gonnif]

Hi! I'm two years out from undergrad, and I didn't make a decision until recently in my gap years that I really wanted to apply to med school. That being said, I didn't make any close relationships with any professors and I highly doubt they would be able to write me a strong letter at this point. I'm doing a bunch of clinical research now at a university-affiliated hospital...would my PI suffice as a science letter? I also scribe at another university-affiliated hospital, would that attending's letter count towards a science letter as well?

You need to check the specific requirements for each school but unless the PI is faculty at a school where you were a student, it is unlikely to be considered a science letter. the letter from an attending you scribe for will most certainly not

 

[gonnif]

lol i foolishly started a stand alone thread before i saw this one. my question:
I was just wondering if I could take a LoR from my research PI who I took a research for credit course with and use that as the equivalent of a typical science lecture course? I haven't heard back from my other recommenders yet despite emailing them a few times, and the one science prof who I scrambled to get a letter from I wasn't outstanding in the class. (A-)

'Course' LoRs I have: Calc IV professor (A), Humanities Professor (great relationship, A), Bio course prof (mediocre relationship, A-), requested/should hopefully get from Orgo Prof (A- but good with TA). I theoretically could ask my psychology prof (A) but that class was really easy and I didn't talk too much with the professor.

Since I'm applying MD/PhD, I also have 3 research LoRs: one from a PI who runs a big stroke clinic/lab, one from a BME lab I worked in (also took 2 points worth of research, A grade), and then the current lab (3.5 credits, A grade) I want to get a LoR from.

What do you think I should do? i have been told i need at least 2 science. thanks!!

You need to check the specific requirements at each program you apply and MD/PhD may have different requirements. A PI you took research credits may trchnically fulfill science but an adcom may be more receptive and expecting a professor's letter from a more traditional classroom

 

[ExcitatorySynapse]

You need to check the specific requirements at each program you apply and MD/PhD may have different requirements. A PI you took research credits may trchnically fulfill science but an adcom may be more receptive and expecting a professor's letter from a more traditional classroom

Thanks for the input! On MSAR some schools really limit letter number (1-3) or ask for a committee letter and otherwise additional letters. Not a lot of detail on what sort of letter, per se. I guess I can look on their sites for more info?

 

[gonnif]

Thanks for the input! On MSAR some schools really limit letter number (1-3) or ask for a committee letter and otherwise additional letters. Not a lot of detail on what sort of letter, per se. I guess I can look on their sites for more info?

I meant the sites. I would have assumed that premeds would have been combing the med school websites in details for many months

 

[ExcitatorySynapse]

I meant the sites. I would have assumed that premeds would have been combing the med school websites in details for many months

I feel like there's been a cloud of inertia around me! Sorry for the foolish question. One other thing - does Calc/Math ever count towards science letter, or must it be strictly BCM. Thank you so much for your advice!

 

[gonnif]

I feel like there's been a cloud of inertia around me! Sorry for the foolish question. One other thing - does Calc/Math ever count towards science letter, or must it be strictly BCM. Thank you so much for your advice!

1) the AMCAS classification of BCPM isnt science nor is it the guideline for the schools to use.
2) Requirements are specific to each school
3) While many schools have broader allowances for letters, the 2 science/1 non-science is the rule of thumb and the traditional expectation of adcoms
4) Math may be acceptable at some schools as science or non science
5) some schools, such as CRUW and some of the Florida schools have very detailed and strict specifications
6) Generally, the LOR is the least strict piece of the application process at most schools
7) the quality of the letter is what matters most

 

[Orthopedics101]

Hello @gonnif. Initially I thought my research supervisor and the head PI for the lab I am working in for my gap year were going to each write me a letter of recommendation; however, the head PI decided he wanted to just cosign the letter that my research supervisor was writing (which I guess makes sense since I barely interact with him). My question is, in this case, would a cosigned longer letter be less impactful than two shorter individual letters?

 

[SpoiledMilk]

yes, practicing physicians, whether MD or DO, are fine for MD application. However, most shadowing physician letters do not add much, if anything, to MD applications

A couple of MD schools I applied to require additional LORs for nontraditional applicants on top of the committee letter and package (includes copies of all LORs received). The additional LORs must be from a graduate professor if one attended a graduate program. It has been over a decade since my graduate days, so I doubt any of my professors remember me.

Can I substitute the DO letter for the graduate letter?

 

[gonnif]

A couple of MD schools I applied to require additional LORs for nontraditional applicants on top of the committee letter and package (includes copies of all LORs received). The additional LORs must be from a graduate professor if one attended a graduate program. It has been over a decade since my graduate days, so I doubt any of my professors remember me.

Can I substitute the DO letter for the graduate letter?

Could you PM the programs to me as that isnt usually how it works for nontrads

 

[gonnif]

Hello @gonnif. Initially I thought my research supervisor and the head PI for the lab I am working in for my gap year were going to each write me a letter of recommendation; however, the head PI decided he wanted to just cosign the letter that my research supervisor was writing (which I guess makes sense since I barely interact with him). My question is, in this case, would a cosigned longer letter be less impactful than two shorter individual letters?

OK class, which would an adcom prefer:
Two short, incomplete letters each covering the same lab and background making an adcom reread similar material
OR
One complete letter that fully covers the student's lab experience signed by both the PI and Supervisor