Pre-Health Committee Letter FAQ

Q: What is an application cycle?

Application cycle refers to the summer an applicant applies to medical, dental, veterinary, or allied health professions school for the following fall semester matriculation (e.g., May 2024 is when the application cycle begins for applying to professional health school entering class August 2025).

Q: What is a Pre-Health committee letter?

A Pre-Health committee letter is a composite letter written on behalf of a medical or dental school applicant by the University’s pre-health advisory committee.
The Pre-Health committee letter serves several purposes: it introduces you to the medical or dental school admissions committees, reviews your notable strengths and accomplishments, and advocates for you in this process.
It presents an overview of the student’s academic strengths, exposures to health care and medical research environments, contributions to the campus and community, and personal attributes.
It may also address any extenuating circumstances that may have resulted in deficits in the student’s performance during a course or semester, provide perspective on challenges the student may have encountered, and explain school-specific courses and programs in which the student has participated.
It also centralizes the collection of individual letters of recommendation that will also speak to an applicant’s readiness for professional school. For Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter, we require a minimum of three individuals and no more than a maximum of five LOE/LORs to accompany and support the packet.

Q: What should I expect from the Pre-Health committee letter 1-1 interview?

Be prepared to discuss your educational and career path, and any of the information that you submitted as part of the process (e.g., resume, self-assessment, and essay question responses).
Be prepared to talk about your understanding of the AAMC 17 Premed Competencies for Entering Medical Students and how they relate to your background and growth as a pre-health student.
- More information can be found online at the AAMC website.
Please keep in mind that the interview is not an advising session. It is a professional mock interview that will influence the Pre-Health committee letter. As such, please arrive on time and dressed professionally.
The 1-1 committee letter interviews are meant to complement the review of your committee letter materials and provide an opportunity to practice answering interview questions and receive feedback.
Interviews will take place either in-person or on Zoom (applicant’s preference). Interviews will be scheduled for one hour during business hours (Monday through Friday, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.) starting mid-March to the beginning of May.

Q: How do I get an application coach?

The person who interviews you for your committee letter will transition to the role of your application coach for the duration of the application cycle.
Please note, you are still able to make individual advising appointments with any member of our Pre-Health advising team during this time.
Your designated application coach will serve as an extra resource for you (e.g., personal statement review, developing school lists, application feedback pre-submission, interview tips) and serve as a sounding board during this stressful period.
We encourage you to keep your application coach informed as you go through your application cycle.

Q: What is included in the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter packet?

A brief cover letter describing the Penn LPS Pre-Health Post-Baccalaureate Programs, Core Studies, and Specialized Studies
Your individualized composite letter written by the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee
Copies of all evaluation letters from the individuals you listed on your List of Evaluators Form (minimum of three and no more than five individual LOEs will accompany the committee letter)

Q: Do I need to separately send the individual evaluation letters that are listed on my List of Evaluators Form and stored in my Interfolio online account to the primary application service(s)?

No. All of the evaluation letters from the individuals you listed on your List of Evaluators Form (minimum of three, maximum of five LOEs) will be included in your Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter packet.

Q: How does the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee evaluate candidates?

Penn LPS Pre-Health committee makes every effort to evaluate students in a holistic way. We describe the following:
- Experiences: educational background, clinical work, research, volunteer/community service, professional and life experiences
- Attributes: demographic profile, leadership skills, and ability to work with and for people from diverse backgrounds, maturity, interpersonal and communication skills, intellectual curiosity, motivation for pursuing desired field of interest
- Metrics: grades, grade trends, consistency in academic performance

Q: Who should I ask to write an individual letter of evaluation on my behalf to support my committee letter packet?

Evaluation letters are an important part of your credentials, which medical and dental schools will review and evaluate. Think carefully about your evaluators and choose them thoughtfully.
Emphasize quality over quantity when thinking about who to ask for individual letters of evaluation. Remember the strongest letters of evaluation give insight into an applicant’s intellectual orientation, motivations, and personal qualities.
In addition to the required two Penn faculty member letters, academic letters from faculty/advisors at other institutions you attended, employer/supervisor letter, letters from individuals who know you in a volunteer, research, or healthcare setting are all acceptable letters to include in your packet.

Q: Should I include letters from family friends and relatives in my packet?

No. Professional schools expect to see letters from people who know you in an academic and/or professional setting as well as from volunteer/research/community service settings.

Q: What materials should I provide my individual letter writer with?

When requesting letters, provide a recent resume, a short goal statement, as well as your most recent Penn Pre-Health Programs transcript (unofficial is fine). Keep in mind, your evaluator may also ask for additional supporting documents that will assist them in writing your letter.
If possible, you should offer to meet with the person writing the letter (in-person, phone, or virtual meeting). This is especially important when requesting a letter from someone who has not worked with you or taught you recently.
Once your letter writer has agreed to write a LOE on your behalf, please let them know that they will be able to submit their confidential letter electronically to your online Interfolio account once you enter the request.
Allow your evaluators sufficient time (at least minimum 2-4 weeks) to prepare your letters, and make sure to send a follow-up thank you card/email to each letter writer.
Please make sure to communicate to your evaluators that their LOE needs to include their signature and if possible be written on their employer’s letterhead. Unsigned LOEs will not be accepted.
You are responsible for making certain that each of your letters have been written and are on file in your online Interfolio account by deadline dates.
Your Pre-Health committee letter will be based, in good measure, on your supporting evaluations.

Q: Should I waive access to my individual evaluation letters?

While it is your legal right to retain access to these letters medical and dental schools put more weight on “waived letters.”
Non-confidential letters will be so labeled.
Please note, the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter packet is confidential and will not be available for your review.

Q: When are my individual letters of evaluation listed on my List of Evaluators Form due?

At least three LOEs (maximum of five LOEs) need to be on file in your online Interfolio account no later than May 1.
The deadline for all LOEs being used to support your packet need to be on file in your online Interfolio account no later than June 1.
Please keep in mind, if one of your evaluators is teaching during the spring semester that most likely they will submit your LOE closer to the June 1 deadline, and that is OK.

Q: When will my finalized Pre-Health committee letter packet be uploaded to the primary application services (e.g., AMCAS, AACOMAS, TMDSAS, AADSAS)?

Pre-Health committee letters cannot be drafted until a student has completed their internal interview with a member of our advising team and at least three LOEs are on file in your online Interfolio account.
The committee letter will not be finalized until all LOEs have been received.
Students finishing their remaining course unit requirements in the summer semester must have final grades posted before committee letters will be released.
We do not start the uploading process to the primary application services until the beginning of July and will continue through the middle of August. Students will be notified via email once their committee letter has been finalized and uploaded to their primary application(s).

Q: Can I contact members of the Pre-Health Programs team to see when my Pre-Health committee letter packet will be completed?

The committee letters of recommendation are prepared and finalized between the beginning of July throughout the middle of August; preparing them is a time-sensitive process for our team while keeping in mind the application timeline for medical and dental schools.
Do not contact us regarding when your letter will be available.

Q: What if I have additional letter(s) of evaluation to add to my packet AFTER my Pre-Health committee letter has been completed?

Once your Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter has been completed and uploaded, we will not write a new one for the same application cycle.
The additional individual LOE(s) will NOT be part of the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter packet.
Any additional individual letter(s) will be considered “supplemental” letters of recommendation and you can add them directly to your primary application(s) as an “Individual Letter of Recommendation/Evaluation.”
We recommend you have your additional letter writer upload their LOE on your behalf directly to your primary application for review (e.g., AMCAS, AACOMAS, TMDSAS, AADSAS).
Please check with a Pre-Health advisor on the best method to store your additional LOE(s).

Q: Who should I list as the primary author for the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter in AMCAS, AACOMAS, TMDSAS, and/or AADSAS?

Here is the contact information to enter in the Letters of Evaluation/Supporting Materials section of the primary application service(s) for students receiving the Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter:
- Primary author: Jacqueline McLaughlin, MS, RD, LDN, Director of Pre-Health Programs
  School: University of Pennsylvania, College of Liberal and Professional Studies
  Address: 3440 Market Street, Suite 100, Philadelphia, PA 19104
  Phone/Email: (215) 573-4631 and jmclaugh@sas.upenn.edu
- Letter Type: Committee letter
- Due Date: August 31

Q: What if I do not qualify for a Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter and I still want to apply to medical or dental school?

If your overall GPA is below a 3.00, you should discuss your options with a Pre-Health advisor before you begin the application process to medical or dental school.
Students who do not meet eligibility requirements for a Penn LPS Pre-Health committee letter are advised to be in contact with the Pre-Health staff of their undergraduate institutions for assistance.
Alternatively, you may choose to submit individual letters of evaluation from people who know you in an academic and professional setting to support your professional school application. We recommend that you check the admission requirements of the programs you plan on applying to for review of their LOE requirements.