Blog Archives

Letters of Recommendation: Applying in More than One Specialty

For pre-residency candidates who are applying in more than one specialty, I recommend being up front with your letter of recommendation writers. A few clients have asked me if they should ask recommenders to compose letters for different specialties or one letter that’s more generic. The former is your better bet. First, your letter writers will be appreciative if you are honest with them. Second, you’ll get more appropriate, and thus stronger, letters.

Applying to more than one field – especially if one of them is competitive – is not that uncommon. There’s no reason to be embarrassed.

Contact me for help with your application. ‘Tis the season.

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Tips for how to improve the content of your letters of recommendation

Getting the best letters of recommendation for medical school, residency and fellowship is dependent on

1. Asking the right people (See my previous blog entry on this topic.)
2. Making the job of letter-writing as easy as possible for your recommender.

Regarding the latter what I strongly recommend is creating a “LOR packet,” which should include the following:

1. A brief, well-written cover letter defining all of your important accomplishments
2. Your transcript/ evaluations
3. Your CV
4. Your personal statement in its final form

Also, be polite: Ensure that you don’t leave your letter-writer to find the address(es) to which your letter should be sent. As someone who was asked to write letters of recommendation, I can tell you that applicants who offered me a list of their accomplishments in a tidy, accessible package were more likely to get a comprehensive letter that was submitted promptly.

(If you are requesting a letter years before you apply then you won’t have a personal statement but can still compose the rest of the packet. If you’re requesting the letter closer to your application date, you should include a personal statement for your letter-writer to improve the letter’s content.)

I’ll write more about LORs in future entries. For one-on-one help with your application please see www.InsiderMedicalAdmissions.com .

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Selecting your letter of recommendation writers

Welcome to the blog! I’m starting with a discussion of letters of recommendation (LOR) because they’re a part of your application you should get moving on immediately if you haven’t already. (Getting started sooner rather than later on various parts of your application is advice you’ll hear from me ad nauseam.)

Choosing who writes your LOR for medical school, residency or fellowship applications is a critical decision because your letters – good or bad – will significantly impact your admissions success. Here is my suggested wish list for potential letter-writers:

1. They are senior faculty with weighty titles and are well known in their field.
2. They have spent significant time with you.
3. They are experienced letter-writers.
4. They have explicitly stated they will write you a strong LOR.

Of course all of these qualifications are not possible for all letter-writers. But the more of these you can garner the better. With regard to #1, admissions officers are human just like the rest of us: Receiving a LOR from an accomplished, known colleague will be weighed much more heavily than one from someone deemed less successful and unfamiliar. If you are better connected to someone without a title (for example, a TA for pre-meds or a resident for pre-residents and pre-fellows), consider asking a more senior person who has a weightier title if s/he would consider writing a LOR with significant input from your closer contact. That way you get the best of #1, #2 and #3.

With regard to #4, don’t be afraid to ask a potential letter-writer if s/he will write you “a very strong” LOR. It may seem awkward at the time you ask but, believe me, getting a wimpy letter will be much thornier. I’ll write more about LOR in future entries.

For one-on-one help with your application please see http://www.insidermedicaladmissions.com/ .

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About Dr. Michelle Finkel

Dr. Michelle Finkel

Dr. Finkel is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Medical School. On completing her residency at Harvard, she was asked to
stay on as faculty at Harvard Medical School and spent five years teaching at the world-renowned Massachusetts General Hospital.
She was appointed to the Assistant Residency Director position for the Harvard Affiliated
Emergency Medicine Residency where she reviewed countless applications, personal statements and resumes. Read more

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