MEDICAL SCHOOL RECOMMENDATION LETTER INSTRUCTIONS
(
STUDENTS)
Selecting your recommenders
• Standard medical school applications have three to five letters of recommendation submitted,
though AMCAS will allow you to list up to ten.
• Select three professors, or more, if requested by the school, to write a letter of recommendation
for you.
• Students usually request evaluations from two science professors and one non-science professor.
o Students are strongly encouraged to receive one recommendation from a professor in a
department outside biology, chemistry, and physics.
o Students are strongly encouraged to receive a recommendation from professors for whom
they have lab assisted, conducted research, or interacted with in a setting outside of the
laboratory or classroom.
• Students are also encouraged to receive a recommendation from an off-campus recommender if
you have formed a professional relationship with a clinician or summer research mentor. This
person should feel comfortable addressing your ability to become a successful practitioner.
Requesting letters of recommendations
• Prior to leaving campus in May, select your recommenders and confirm that they will write a
letter for you.
• You must provide AMCAS with the names and contact information for each recommender.
• Recommenders may submit their letters to AMCAS after June 1, but the letter will not be
distributed to the medical school(s) by AMCAS until you have received a secondary application.
• Etiquette when requesting a letter
o It is a privilege for students to ask their professors for letters of recommendation and
certain etiquette should be followed.
Meet with the professor in person to request a letter from them. E-mail is
unacceptable and impolite when requesting this service. You are asking someone
to take their time to comment on your ability to have a successful career in
medicine. Do not treat this request lightly.
If the professor agrees to write a letter for you, provide them as many of the
following materials electronically as possible, in a timely fashion.
• Electronic materials
o Letter submission deadline
o List of the schools and their addresses (DO programs only)
o Extracurricular Information Form
o Résumé
o Unofficial transcript (download from my.gcc.edu)
o MCAT score (total, section breakdown, and writing score)
o AMCAS letter request form (MD programs only)
o AACOMAS ID number (DO programs only)
o Grove City College medical school recommender instructions