Can anyone weigh in on LOR issue?

WayOutWestMom
Wed, 10 Dec 2025 00:44:25 +0000

Agree with everyone above. In med school speak “highly encouraged /recommended” = required.

A science letter is necessary because the adcomms are looking for a direct comparison of the student’s strengths/weaknesses in the biological and chemical sciences with the other strong students in the class(es) and in the classes that the professor has taught in the past.

AAMC has a list of some of the topics a recommender is expected to touch on when writing a letter of evaluation for med school.

aamc.org

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NOTE: the for med school admission, letter writers are providing a letter of evaluation, not a letter of recommendation. They are different entities and encompass different format and content.

Professors who are not familiar with the expected letter format and content often write weak letters which will not help a student during the admission review process.

FWIW, Ochem profs write med school letters All. The. Time. and are quite familiar with what’s expected.