Pre-medicine program

Letters of Evaluation (LOE)

Summary of collection and distribution procedures

The sequence of the application process is:

complete your AMCAS application on-line and submit it
AMCAS verifies information and forwards applications on to schools that you chose,
the medical schools complete initial screen [usually minimum GPA and MCAT scores]
request for "secondaries" - letters of evaluation, and additional information [answers to specific questions, a second personal statement, etc.]
interview
final decisions made

"Good" letters of evaluation.

Letters are another way for medical schools to get to know you better and as such, letters are an extremely important aspect of the application file. Getting good letters requires planning and an understanding of what the medical schools are looking for in an applicant. Medical schools will request from 2-5 letters; typically 2 letters from faculty [one science and one non-science or two science depending on the school]; a supervisor or employer, and perhaps even a peer.

Unfortunately, too many students wait until the end of their junior year to think about letters and never demonstrate their strengths to the people writing their letters. Often by the time a student asks for a letter it's a year or two after the class and it's too late to get a really good letter. Students should determine the individuals they want to write letters BEFORE they have completed that faculty member's class.

Consider for a minute a typical evaluation form. The writer is asked to comment on the following characteristics of the applicant:

motivation for medicine
maturity
emotional stability
interpersonal skills
empathy
judgment
character
resourcefulness
communication skills
perseverance
self-confidence

Now think about a current teacher and how you have demonstrated these traits. What would this current teacher be able to say about you? Faculty can only write about what they have observed and if you've sat quietly, never actively participating in class, there won't be much for them to say. A good letter takes more than regular attendance and good grades. In fact the medical schools would prefer that faculty focus on these traits rather than restating information about grades which will be obvious from the transcript.

The reality is that these characteristics are difficult to demonstrate in the classroom, especially if you are introverted. You will have to make an effort in classroom, in the lab, and outside of class for the faculty member to really know you and your abilities. Consider obtaining a workstudy position in the department of your major or doing research with a faculty member; this will give you more opportunities to demonstrate your strengths and for faculty to get to know you, your motivation, and observe your skills. Talk to a pre-med advisor for suggestions on how to maximize your opportunities to demonstrate your true abilities.

The process of obtaining letters - the letter collection service.

The CSB/SJU preprofessional health program runs an online LOE collection and distribution service. To make use of this service follow the steps outlined below:

Set up an online LOE file.
You will be prompted to enter a USERID (network username) and a PASSWORD (network password). Once you set this up you can access your online LOE file to edit your personal information, select evaluators, and manage letter collection and distribution.
Meet with a pre-med advisor to discuss the LOE collection and distribution service. Prior to this meeting you should file an online LOE file.
- Each medical school will determine what combination of letters should be submitted.
- To be safe, we recommend that you choose two science faculty and at least one non-science faculty member. Ideally you should collect letters from two science and two non-science faculty.
Ask selected individuals if they are willing and able to write you a positive letter. We recommend that you begin this step in the spring of your junior year [before everyone leaves for summer].
After you have spoken with your evaluators, use the LOE file to send each evaluator an Official Evaluation Request.
Each evaluator will then receive an e-mail notifying them that they should complete the online CSB/SJU pre-medicine program evaluation form and attach a LOE.
By using the online LOE file you will be able to monitor when your evaluators submit their LOEs, when your file is complete (when all your evaluators have completed and submitted their letters to our online collection service) and ready for distribution.
When you receive the request for letters from a medical school, use the LOE file to set up an online LOE Distribution Request indicating -- note that all your filed letters will be uploaded to medical schools.
You will be notified by e-mail when your letter file is uploaded to medical schools using the VirtualEvals site.