{"id":19066,"date":"2019-09-12T10:24:36","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T15:24:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/blog\/prep\/?p=19066"},"modified":"2020-09-11T20:40:40","modified_gmt":"2020-09-11T20:40:40","slug":"8-tips-for-great-residency-letters-of-recommendation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/usmle\/8-tips-for-great-residency-letters-of-recommendation\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Tips for Residency Letters of Recommendation"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Are letters of recommendation important? Absolutely. Most admissions officers won\u2019t even review an\u00a0ERAS\u00ae application\u00a0until they have two letters of recommendation uploaded, no matter how outstanding all of the other elements may be.<br \/>\nHere are some tips on getting the best kind of letter of recommendation in time:<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\n<div  class='avia-icon-list-container   avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_sidebar  avia-builder-el-first '><ul class='avia-icon-list avia-icon-list-left av-iconlist-big avia_animate_when_almost_visible avia-iconlist-animate'>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >1. Know what a good letter of recommendation includes<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>A quality letter of recommendation incorporates how well the writer knows the medical student, what specialty the candidate is applying to, the qualities of that person that make them an exceptional choice for the specialty in the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/pages\/road-to-residency?utm_source=residencysecrets&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_term=img&amp;utm_content=organic-post&amp;utm_campaign=med-road-to-residency-calendar\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Match SM<\/a>, the activities the candidate has engaged in (research\/community service) that make the student well-rounded, and the kinds of feelings the student evoked in the letter writer. For example: \u201cOn a personal note, it was wonderful to work with him because of his great sense of humor and positive approach to everything!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >2. Find awesome attendings at your clinical experiences<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>The key is to start forming relationships early, so asking for a letter of recommendation will seem natural and sincere. First, arrange a mid-clerkship meeting with the attending you\u2019d like to get to know. This attending can give feedback on how you\u2019re doing in that rotation. Come equipped with an H&amp;P you\u2019ve done, or be prepared to talk intelligently about the patient who made the biggest impression on you.<br \/>\nNext, give that attending some\u00a0personal information about you\u2014how you came to the decision of being a doctor and what your hopes are for the future. Then, incorporate their feedback into your work, and let the attending know that you\u2019ve done so. At the end of the rotation, ask that attending if she\u2019d be willing to write a strong letter of recommendation for you. Don\u2019t be shy! Teachers love helping students who have worked hard.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >3. Always waive the right to view your letters<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>Do you have the right to read your letter of recommendation? Yes. Should you waive that right? Yes\u2014in all instances! Admissions officers view it as a red flag when they see that a candidate for residency has not waived his or her right to read the letter. It may cause them to wonder what the applicant may have omitted from the letter.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >4. Choose your letter writer based on specialty<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>This may seem obvious, but a letter from a specialist\u00a0in the area you\u2019d like to Match\u00a0is going to carry a lot more weight than someone in a different specialty. Make sure you do your due diligence and seek out an experience within your chosen field. A letter of recommendation from a program director or vice chair of education is a testament to the candidate\u2019s characteristics and strengths. A letter from an ambulatory clinician educator and clerkship directors who has worked closely with the candidate carries as much weight.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >5. Don\u2019t ask your friends or family for letters<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>Do not ask friends to write a letter of recommendation attesting to your character, unless that person knows you professionally or knows someone with admissions authority at a program you\u2019re interested in. If you do have a friend who knows a decision-maker, I recommend that person sends a letter or e-mail outside of ERAS.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >6. Give your letter writers plenty of notice<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>When it\u2019s time to ask for your letter of recommendation, it\u2019s probably best to\u00a0ask for the letter in mid-July or so<i>.\u00a0<\/i>Be sure to have your CV and personal statement in reasonable shape by that time. \u00a0Stay in touch to make sure your letters are in by the time the ERAS mailbox opens for the programs.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >7. Don\u2019t forget to follow up with a thank you note<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>After you match, send a note of gratitude letting your letter writers know where you ended up matching. It\u2019s a nice touch, and you never know if you\u2019ll cross paths again. It makes for a memorable professional relationship.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<li><div  class='iconlist_icon  avia-font-entypo-fontello'><span class='iconlist-char ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue816' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><\/div><article class=\"article-icon-entry \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='iconlist_content_wrap'><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h4 class='av_iconlist_title iconlist_title   '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >8. Make sure your letter writer knows you well<\/h4><\/header><div class='iconlist_content  '  itemprop=\"text\"  ><p>Though you may not get a chance to review your letters, having a good relationship with the writer helps you avoid receiving a lackluster and unusually short letter of recommendation like \u201cHe was nice and always was punctual.\u201d This kind of letter indicates that the letter writer didn\u2019t get to know the candidate very well. Remember the letters of recommendation are a critical aspect of your application. You want to prepare early and attend to them with care.<br \/>\nIn other words, you don\u2019t want to start your application for residency wondering who your letter of recommendation writers will be. Start your clinical rotations or\u00a0clinical experiences\u00a0knowing that one of your objectives is to identify and impress a clinician-educator enough to be able to write an outstanding letter for you.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><footer class=\"entry-footer\"><\/footer><\/article><div class='iconlist-timeline'><\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><br \/>\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are letters of recommendation important? Absolutely. Most admissions officers won\u2019t even review an\u00a0ERAS\u00ae application\u00a0until they have two letters of recommendation uploaded, no matter how outstanding all of the other elements may be. Here are some tips on getting the best kind of letter of recommendation in time: &nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28534,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[145],"tags":[157],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19066"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19066"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34220,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19066\/revisions\/34220"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}