Getting Strong Letters of Recommendation In Medical School

[@cleofaspintolimalima1627]

I am following lot int channels much channels my old friend wonderful 😀

[@ViolaMaster]

Hi, great video like always, thank you! I have a couple of questions: 1. How do you know who to talk to/work with in 3rd year when you don't know anyone/anything? Does it come off "bad"/unprofessional that you're trying to scope someone out so early on? Like in one of your videos you mentioned up front "What do I have to do to Honor this rotation?" etc. It might come off like you just want to honor/get an LOR but not really care about anything else. 2. Are you able to read your LOR that someone wrote you before submitting it? I know its supposed to be confidential but how would you know how strong it really is and that it won't actually hurt your application if they wrote a "generic" letter? Thank you!

[@AnKingMed]

Good questions: 1. I worried about that, but it never came off that way. The difference between a gunner and someone who wants to succeed is that a gunner just cares about the grade. Someone who wants to succeed truly wants to be good at every rotation and they want everyone that's with them to also succeed. Whenever I got the answer on expectations to honor that rotation, I shared it with other med students working with me 2. No you don't unfortunately except in very rare circumstances.

[@ViolaMaster]

@@AnKingMed I'm worried that no matter how I word my request or how I come off, they might see me as another student asking for something and being a gunner. Also, do you know the answer to my first question: How do you know who to talk to/work with in 3rd year when you don't know anyone/anything?

[@AnKingMed]

@@ViolaMaster I asked that question on every single rotation and honored all of them so I don't think it affected me negatively. I've had many friends have the same experience. When you don't know anyone/anything, just start asking. Ask the residents who the best person to talk with is. As the attending. Ask the clerkship director. Etc. You'll pick it up quick!

[@ViolaMaster]

@@AnKingMed Awesome thank you so much! 😊

[@spencernaka]

Could you elaborate more on "politely asking them to make it sound like you're the best ever"? I dont really know how to ask this strategically and in the right way hahah.

[@AnKingMed]

I think being open and honest is the best thing. Gauge your relationship with your mentor. Tell them how much their opinion matters to you. They know that LORs are important and they understand that they're supposed to make you look good. Just be honest and tell them that you believe their opinion carries a lot of weight and tell them that you trust them to represent your best attributes, etc.

[@notshortenough]

Is this process much different from the AMCAS/AACOMAS process? Specifically, you mention several times that you read your letters. Are they not confidential for residency apps? Ty! Edit - nvm watched until the end. Very similar process 😬

[@AnKingMed]

I never actually read my entire letters. There were multiple times during interviews where people read me party of my letters and that's how I know parts of what they say

[@julianrolhano2787]

Hi Anking, I would like to know if there is any solution for when clicking on cloze does not remove the original formatting (the colored one for example). I have a very time consuming job to color but when I click cloze I lose all formatting