APPLYING TO GRADUATE SCHOOLS OF THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS THIS YEAR? TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR RECOMMENDATION LETTERS.
Updated: 1 May 2008
In brief: You should read the advice below and download the letter of recommendation form. Overall, the process works like this. First, identify a professor who knows you well. Second, ask him or her for a letter of recommendation. If the professor agrees to write you a letter, give him or her the letter of recommendation form that you downloaded at this page. Do this well in advance of any deadlines you have.
Do you want to apply to dentistry, medicine, optometry, podiatry, or veterinary medicine? Do you want to begin your professional education in the fall of 2009?
If so, there are going to be many tasks on your plate this year. Some of them will be new and unfamiliar. You need to start preparing for the DAT, GRE, MCAT or OAT. You need to start thinking of which schools you want to apply to. You might have already started writing a personal statement, or filling out the autobiographical packet.
All of these things are important, but one responsibility that we did not yet mention should hold a position of paramount importance on your applicant's to-do-list: getting letters of recommendation.
Letters of recommendation are extremely important. Admissions committees often look to what your professors have written about you when they try to "look beyond the transcript" and get a better sense of what kind of student you are, what interests you, and what those grades really mean.
If you want to stay on top of your letters of recommendation, you need to focus on three issues:
Let's take a look at each of these crucial areas, one by one:
1. deadlines and timing- Interviews for Committee letters run from February 28 through November 3, 2008 (Many students try to have their interview within a few weeks of when they intend to take their admissions test)
- Before you can schedule an interview for your Committee Letter, you need to have at least three letters of recommendation on file with us.(along with other things--check the autobiographical packet instructions)
- Remember that if you are applying to more than one dental, veterinary, or medical school, you will probably be dealing with more than one deadline, and you want to meet all your deadlines! So, for example Columbia's medical school has one AMCAS submission deadline (and then a secondary submission deadline), and Stony Brook's medical school has a different AMCAS submission deadline (and secondary application deadline).
What about timing?
Think of timing in these terms: If you want to be interviewed some time this spring, you know that you need at least three letters of recommendation on file at the prehealth office before you can set up your interview. That means you should start asking for letters of recommendation now so that you have three letters on file in the very near future. Can letters beyond the minimum three come in after you have your interview? Yes, absolutely. The final day to get letters of recommendation in for both the spring and fall is actually after the end of interviews.
If you intend to go for a fall interview, you have more time to get letters of recommendation, but you still want to make sure that you have your minimum of three letters of recommendation on file soon enough so that you have no problems setting up an interview appointment.
2. From whom should you request letters?There is no one, sure-fire recipe for what makes a good selection of recommendation letters. However, you should absolutely, positively make a point of getting some good letters of recommendation from professors. After a solid transcript and good test scores, letters from professors can often be the "bedrock" on which a competitive application is built. You should definitely try to get letters from professors in the following areas:
- a professor in your major department
- a professor for your large prehealth lecture courses (preferably two)
- a professor from an upper level science, math, or major course
- a professor who has supervised research that you worked on (Keep in mind that if you are interested in an MD/PhD program, you should get two or more research letters.)
- a professor who taught you a humanities or literature course
- a professor from a course that you just plain enjoyed and did well in
Do you have to get letters from professors in all of these categories? No! Might you? Yes. The Faculty Committee has set a minimum of three letters of recommendation. There is no maximum. The bottom line is this: if you believe that you can get a good letter of recommendation, ask for it.
Should I get letters of recommendation from teaching assistants? Yes, if you believe that the TA knows you well and you can get a quality letter from him or her.
If I transferred into Stony Brook from another school, should I get letters from my first school? Yes, you should if you can.
What about doctors, dentists, optometrists, veterinarians and other health care professionals--should I get letters from them? Yes, if you believe that they will be good letters. Keep in mind, though, that these letters are not a substitute for feedback from professors who have taught you in college! If you are interested in going into veterinary medicine, you need to get letters from all the animal-related venues where you have worked or volunteered (veterinary clinics, animal shelters, wildlife rehabilitation, etc.).
3. What makes a quality letter?If your writer has a quality sense of who you are, the chances are extremely good that this will result in a quality letter.
You need to visit your professors during office hours! The more and the better you study for your courses, the more you will have to discuss and question when you visit. Yes, lecture courses can be large. Don't worry about the population of your class, though. When it comes to letters of recommendation you need to focus on yourself, your goals, and getting to know the individuals who teach you.
Think of it this way: if you want to enter the health professions, you must be attracted to friendly, intelligent interaction with people in a professional environment. The time to start interacting is now.
When you do ask someone for a letter of recommendation, it is also a good idea to have a page or two of information about yourself written out for the person to peruse. Make sure your recommendation writer knows what your career goal is. Don't tell them you want to be an optometrist if you are seriously considering dentistry!
For more information, you should read the autobiographical packet instructions, our other advising piece on letters of recommendation, and information about preparing to apply to schools of the health professions.