Microsoft Word - Letters of Evaluation.docx

Letters of Evaluation

for

Medical Schools, Dental Schools, PA Schools, Pharmacy Schools and the many other

Health Care Professional Programs

In all aspects of your professional school application, your goal is to convince the

admissions committees that you have the intelligence, drive and stamina to succeed in

their highly competitive program. The stakes are high; of all the talented candidates in the

applicant pool, they must give YOU a seat in the class.

Yet a field as complex as medicine/dentistry, et. al requires strengths and abilities that are

not easily measured by grades and test scores. That's where third-party reference letters

come into play. A great letter supplements the data you've provided about your academic

and professional history with independent corroboration of your performance and

potential.

Yet a compelling letter also provides a separate function that many candidates fail to

consider; it provides critical information about your personality, ethics and integrity that

aren't captured anywhere elsewhere in the application. Reference letters from credible

third-party sources who can objectively evaluate your character are paramount in the

evaluation process. They often play a key role in whether you are invited for an interview

or offered a seat in the class.

Candidates don't place much emphasis on their letters of reference for two reasons:

1) they don't think they can control their contents!2) they don't know what specific steps

they should take to improve their references

From admissions committee’s experience, most candidates do not do nearly enough to

deliver top-notch recommendations in support of their application. Sadly, most letters

they see are short, vague and non-persuasive. In highly competitive situations, they do

little to convince them that the candidate is special enough to earn their support. By not

taking the initiative with their references, far too many applicants miss a golden

opportunity to sell their strengths. The professional implications can be devastating.

Obtaining great letters of reference requires advance planning and hard work, but is well

worth the investment. Savvy candidates give this step of the application process the same

level of attention as the personal statement.

!Who Should Write Your Reference Letters

Professional schools expect to see letters from the following people:

1) Your pre-medical committee or adviser

2) A science professor

3) !A supervisor from your clinical or research experience!

4) Your major professor, if you are a graduate student!

5) Your supervisor, if you are currently employed

Schools differ in the number of letters they require and accept, with most requiring at

least three and accepting no more than five. Carefully read all information the

professional schools provide on their applications. They expect you to follow the rules

exactly.

A substantive letter of reference has three important features:

a) The author knows the required intellectual ability and professional effectiveness

necessary to succeed in medical school

b) !The author knows the specific candidate well enough to evaluate his/her relevant

qualifications

c) !The writer provides not only his overall assessment of the applicant, but enough

supporting detail to support his conclusion

Avoid sending letters from teaching assistants, friends, school alumni, relatives,

clergymen or politicians, UNLESS they personally supervised your professional work

and can comment on the specific attributes being evaluated in the professional school

admissions process. You'd be surprised how many people fall into this trap, not realizing

that it actually hurts their chances. Nearly every year, I read a letter written by a Senator,

Governor or famous Hollywood star in support of a candidate they barely know. I'm not

impressed. Professional school is serious business, not a popularity contest. They are not

star-struck enough to give a seat to someone just because her aunt works for the

Governor.

Many applicants are surprised that letters from teaching assistants carry little or no

weight. The rationale is that they are simply not reputable or knowledgeable sources. We

are looking for an honest appraisal of your character from someone with extensive

experience in the field. In academia, this includes the tenured faculty.

!What The Committee Expects to See

Here's what the committee hopes to learn from your reference letters:

a) The validity of your claims of academic excellence, professional success and

impeccable personal values

b) !Your specific qualifications, including the depth of your academic and

professional experiences!

c) Your unique traits that aren't covered anywhere else in the application!

d) Whether you can accurately evaluate others and their perceptions of you!

e) Your demonstrated commitment to pursuing a medical career

Before you ask anyone to write a letter for you, look at the evaluation form the school has

asked them to complete. Note that only a few categories involve your GPA or academic

performance. In many ways, your reference writers are being asked to describe your

character, personality and temperament as valued by professional school admissions

committees. Most of these attributes have little to do with your perceived mastery of any

specific subject matter; they are intrinsic character traits that govern your behavior in all

aspects of your life. Don't dismiss them as irrelevant.

Many applicants believe that as long as they have good grades, they'll get a great

recommendation. This simply isn't the case. You'd be stunned to realize the number of

professors who tell admission committee’s the horror stories about 4.0 candidates who

lie, cheat and steal. They hear about applicants selling drugs on campus and hiring ringers

to take their exams. Some achieved their sterling academic record at the expense of

everything else in their life. A good example are students who never come to class, only

take the required exams, do not participate in class, do not ask questions and perceive that

the information being addressed in class is just some hoop to jump through. Professors

also talk with one another about certain students who seem to have the same behavior

patterns and thus can lead to less than steller letters of evaluation.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that your professors only see your grades. They've

been in this business a long time and have seen thousands of students come and go. They

know the fine characters from the bad apples and they don't hesitate to tell the

professional schools who is who. Pick your references carefully and be sure that they are

willing to confirm that you are a person of integrity.

How to Ask for a Reference Letter

a) Timing. Arrange for your reference letters no later than September in your senior year

of college (for those who have already graduated, at least a few months before you

submit your application). Ideally, ask in the middle, rather than the end, of a semester. At

semester's end, most of your professors will be deluged with requests for letters and yours

will simply be another in the pack. Increase your odds for a more thorough, personalized

reference by requesting it before the big rush.

b) Approach. Never simply call or send a form to your writers: always arrange for a

personal meeting, if possible, or make a phone call to discuss your request (if the writer is

not geographically close). Explain your interest in medicine, dentistry, etc, your desire to

attend one of those schools and your need for a comprehensive letter of reference.

Discuss any issues or concerns the person has about your candidacy.

Verify orally that he/she is willing to write a "strong letter of support," and not just an

average or lukewarm one. If you sense any hesitation, graciously withdraw the request.

You are better off asking someone else who can recommend you without reservation. If

the person agrees to write a letter, give him the following pieces of information:

i) A cover letter with the names, addresses and deadlines for all letters you need

!ii) A summary of your professional experience and how you are a good match for

medical school

!iii) A current copy of your resume!

iv) Your personal statement

!v) Details of the stories or anecdotes you'd like the writer to mention!

vi) Pre-addressed, stamped envelopes for all letters

c) Copy of the letter. Without exception, you should waive the right to see all references

letters that are written about you. Admissions committees place little stock in letters that

the applicant insists on seeing, as we know that the author is less forthcoming than if the

reference was confidential.

d) Format. Letters from your premedical advisor (Chief Health Professions Advisor)

should generally be professionally typed and printed on the school's letterhead. Other

letters you request may not automatically come in this form. If at all possible, ask your

writers to send the letters typed on professional letterhead with a laser-jet or inkjet

printer.

e) Follow-up. Two weeks after a writer agrees to send the reference letter, verify that it

reached its destination. If it hasn't, ask him to send a second copy. Send a thank-you note

to each person who wrote a letter on your behalf.

f) Writing Your Own. Increasingly (over the past several years), professional schools

hear stories of candidates whose harried bosses were overwhelmed by the request to write

a letter of recommendation. The applicants were instead instructed to write the letter

themselves and simply submit it to the "author" for a signature. Most applicants consider

this a dream come true. After all, what could be better than a chance to "toot your own

horn" under the guise of being your own boss or major professor?

Sadly, most candidates haven't a clue what an excellent reference letter looks like. To

assume the perspective and tone of someone in your recommender's position requires

experience and perspicacity. Most letters written by the actual candidates are

embarrassingly easy to spot: they are timid, stilted and one-dimensional. They include far

too many details that a real reference letter wouldn't mention and they frequently are

identical in tone to the candidate's own writing. Professional schools nearly automatically

discount candidates who do this and make a mental note of the individual who

supposedly wrote the reference. In a few cases, professional schools contacted them and

they confirmed their suspicions.

Professional schools strongly discourage you from trying this approach. Remember, the

admissions committee has viewed thousands of letters and has an excellent feel for

authenticity. Professional schools want ethical candidates who offer a balanced, honest

appraisal of their credentials. Rather than writing the letter yourself, ask someone else

who will take the time to write a reference that genuinely reflects your suitability for the

program.