Advice for Letter Writers

We recommend taking the time to decide if you are able to provide a strong and thorough letter of recommendation for your student. The admissions committee will have a great deal of information on the student already, so the letter should be your perspective on the student. Be as objective as possible, providing solid information and examples that can be used to support the admissions committee’s decision-making process. Consider the following:

• How well do you know this student?
• Has the student put forth an effort to develop a positive relationship with you?
• What unique insights and perspectives can you provide about the student? 
• Are you able to write about the student’s personal qualities, attributes, and competencies, and how they have demonstrated them during your time together? 
  • Do you have any specific examples or stories to share that provide evidence of the student’s competencies?
• Do you have the time to write an effective letter?

Remember, it is okay to say “no” and decline the student’s request if you cannot provide a quality letter of recommendation. A weak or shallow letter will likely hurt the student’s chances of admission. Have a conversation with the student if you're planning to decline the request, and consider helping them brainstorm other potential letter writers. 

The student may also benefit from meeting with a PHSRC Career Counselor if they are struggling to find people to write a letter. We can help them assess their candidacy and figure out an action plan.

Advice from the Association of American Medical Colleges

It’s a good idea to meet with the student to talk about their letter of recommendation. This is an opportunity to learn more about the student’s motivation and get a better sense of what they are looking for in a letter of recommendation. A student should also provide you with information you need to write a letter of recommendation. This might include: 

• Updated resume
• Personal statement, or other application materials
• Who the other letter writers are and what their perspectives might be 
• Information on the logistics of the letter, including due date, submission process, etc.

We encourage students to have a discussion with you about the potential content for their letter to help brainstorm ideas and align your letter with their admissions application. In general, admissions committees are interested to hear your perspective about the student and their potential for success as a future health professional. Consider including the following information, depending on your role and relationship with the student:

• References to the student’s competencies (the PHSRC utilizes the AAMC Premed Competencies when working with all pre-health students)
• If the student took a class you taught, you might speak to their academic capacity for graduate or professional school.
• If the student worked in your research lab, you might speak to their ability to think critically, solve problems, apply scientific methods, or use quantitative reasoning skills. 
• If you supervised or observed the student in a healthcare setting, you might speak to their ability to collaborate with others on a team, their demonstration of a commitment to service, their empathy or compassion, or their value of diverse experiences and perspectives. 
• If you are the student’s Academic Advisor, Career Counselor, or Pre-Health Advisor, you could share your insights into their academic journey, their motivation, and their vision for their career. You can also discuss specifics such as their communication style.
  • Was the student prompt in responding to emails? 
  • Was the student on time for meetings?
  • Did they come prepared with questions?

Introduction

Begin the letter by describing your relationship with the student, including specifics on how you know the student and for how long. Some context of your role can be helpful, but keep the reader’s focus on the applicant. 

Body Paragraphs

Articulate the competencies and personal qualities you have observed directly when describing the student. Use concrete, descriptive words that will help an admissions committee understand the qualities that you are describing. Furthermore, sharing specific examples and stories from your work with the student will provide supporting evidence. 

For example: “Samantha is a detail-oriented student. While completing her research, she conducted the most extensive literature review of all her peers, and found a wide range of excellent resources.” 

Consider any unique attributes that the student would bring to their health degree program. Write about what makes this student stand out from your perspective. Share details about obstacles or specific challenges the student overcame, and how the student changed or grew from those experiences. (Note: Have a discussion with the student and ask for permission if you are writing about any information that could be considered potentially private or sensitive.)

Explain why you think this student has the capacity to be successful in their health degree program and why you think they would be a good fit for their health career. 

Conclude the letter by offering to be contacted should the reader need more information or have any questions you can answer.

Advice from the Association of American Medical Colleges

If you have concerns about the student’s fit with the health profession, their academic capacity, or any other concern, it is acceptable to share it with the admissions committee. Keep in mind that the admissions committees' goal is to assess applicants' readiness for a rigorous health program, and capacity to be a competent health professional. 

If you do have a concern about a student who has asked you to write a letter of recommendation, provide some evidence of your concern so that the admissions committee can weigh that evidence with all the other information they have about the student. Be sure not to provide judgment about the student. Rather, provide relevant facts and information so the admissions committee can understand the source of your concern. If relevant, you can also share your perspectives about how the student is addressing or making improvements regarding any areas of concern. 

For example: John was an academically strong applicant, but he was not as mature as his letter writer thought one needed to be as a medical student. John worked in Dr. Ray’s lab, and was prone to finding shortcuts, showing up late, and leaving early. Often he had a list of excuses to support his situation.

In the case above, it is important to share your concerns, and provide your observations about your concern, including evidence to support your claims. If your concern is John’s work ethic, the committee might actually have additional information that shows John was significantly over-committed, and his real problem wasn’t a poor work ethic, but rather an inability to manage his time.

Remember, it is okay to say “no” and decline the student’s request if you cannot provide a quality letter of recommendation. A weak or shallow letter will likely hurt the student’s chances of admission. Have a conversation with the student if you're planning to decline the request, and consider helping them brainstorm other potential letter writers. 

Additional considerations for writing a strong letter of recommendation:

• Did I include specific competencies and back up my statements with examples or stories?
  • Avoid broad, generic statements without any supporting evidence.
• Did I include information that compliments the student’s admissions application?
  • Avoid duplicating information that is already present in other parts of the application (i.e. the transcript).
• Did I provide enough context so the reader understands my role and relationship to the student?
  • For example, if there is more information about the letter writer than the applicant, then there is likely too much context.
• Did I use any acronyms, cliches, or jargon?
  • Try to avoid this whenever possible to make your writing clear to readers of any professional background or discipline.
• Did I consider gender bias when writing the letter?
  • For example, two studies by Trix and Psenka (2003) and Schmader, Whitehead, and Wysocki (2007) show that letters for women have fewer strong adjectives, and might even contain information that raises doubts.
• Did I ask for the student’s permission to write about personal or sensitive information?
  • Have a discussion with the student if you are writing about any information that could be considered private.