Need a recc letter and professor keeps forgetting, what do i do?????

[KismetGirl]

Ok, this isn't work related, but school related...but hey, close enough.

 

I do work, per say, but am in the process of applying to medical school this year. As you may or may not know reccomendation letters are absolutely essential to the process and application. I have severeal letters already, but there is one letter from a chemstriy professor that is absolutely essential. There is no other professor I can ask at this point for several reasons I don't need to get into.

 

My problem is that I asked this guy to write me a letter in DECEMBER, and he said he would gladly do it. I gave him all the info he needed, the pre stamped encvelopes, a four page history of my interests, what I did in his class, and even included specific examples of things i did in his lab that he had complemented me on as I knew he might not remember specifics after a couple of years.

 

It is not MARCH, and he is the ONLY person out out three other professors, two managers, a phsycian and a volunteer director that have written me letter to have not written his yet. I don't know what to do. I already reminded him in person once about a month ago, gently providing him with new self stamped envelopes as if I thought he might have "misplaced" the other ones, as well as a copy of the personal history i gave him prior. I asked him if he had enough time to write the letter. I specifically stated it had to be given by mid-march. Again, he said he did not forget and he would write the letter for me. It's March 21st and the letter still has not been received by the proper places it is supposed to go.

 

I don't know what to do anymore. I have enough stress with this application process and I need this letter from him, but Im not sure how else to remind him....again. He has no office hours, he does not respond to emails, he has no phone number to be reached at. He only teaches in the evening so the only way to catch him is to wait in the lecture hall right before his class begins and to talk to him, but ive done this twice already.

 

I dont want to seem pushy and thereby get him annoyed so that he writes an impersonal or bad letter, but how else can I approrach the man?

 

As I said, phone and email are not options, he does not check or answer either of those. My only option is to go find him before class starts in the evening, but Im not sure how to approach him again.

 

Any suggetions????

[quankanne]

see if you can round up someone else – maybe the college dean or one of the school's VPs or muckety-mucks – to do it for you. Obviously the man knows this is important to you, but just doesn't get it.

 

which really sucks, because he's now put you in a bad spot.

[green_tea]

I didnt have to get rec letters when I graduated so not sure of the actual process, but are there any teaching assistants or tutors associated with the course that he teaches? Would a letter from one of them be sufficient?

 

Or possibly can you ask any of his colleagues in the offices around him what the deal is with him? They might know him a bit better.

 

As a last resort, could you type the letter up yourself, and just ask him to read it over and sign it before his evening class?? Explaining that you need it that day so that it gets to the medical school in time.

 

Good luck, it sounds like such a frustrating situation!!

[whichwayisup]

This is your future, your life, so just go talk to him before or after class. Tell him, Sorry to bother you again, but I really NEED that letter of recommendation by tomorrow. I know you're busy and all, but it's important that I send this stuff off as soon as possible.

 

If he puts you off, then you're going to have to ask someone else.

[2sure]

Writing letters of rec are something all professors are asked to do very very frequently. They know how important they are , and as such are a responsibility not to be taken lightly.

 

Do you know any other students whom this particular prof. has written a letter for?? If he is simply being lax, I would continue to hound him about it.

 

However - if he has written a letter of rec for others...at some point you may have to acknowledge that for one reason or another he has chosen to not write one for you.

[KismetGirl]

thanks guys....

 

 

no, im not sure if he's written a letter for anyone else, but when I asked him to write me one, it was two years since I'd taken his class and he had a big smile on his face and remembered exactly who I was and commented about how he wasn't surprised I'd decided to apply and he made some comment about the great grades I got. He seemed like he would be really accommodating. However, I seem to get the gist from the office staff in the chemistry department that he is sort of "flaky" when it comes to doing regular things like keeping office hours or checking his mail. He gives an email address to his classes each semester, but then readily admits "but I never really check it". Argh! He's an adjunct faculty, which means he is a phD prof just like the rest, but he isn't full time, he isn't on campus all day, he only comes to teach his chemistry courses in the evening and that's it.

 

When I had come to him in Feb. to "remind" him in case he had "lost" the envelopes I gave him before, I specifically asked if he had enough time by mid=march when they were due, easily giving him the chance to tell me "sorry, you know what, I really just decided I can't or don't have the time to do it, it would be better if you found someone else", but he didnt tell me that, he smiled and nodded and said "dont worry i still have the envelopes you gave me i didnt lose them". WTF then??

 

Surely he must know how important this is, right? It boggles my mind how unprofessional he is being. My professors from my undergrad institution, who are 1200 miles away from me, and who I have not seen in six years, remembered who i was AND had all letters written and mailed within ten days of asking them.

 

I've only had three professors at this school since i was just doing a post-bacc there, one of whom won't remember me because he didn't have me in his lab. The other one I got a B- in his class which is low for me with respect to other grades so it was preferential to get from this guy in whose class I got an A-.

 

I guess I have no choice but to go to his class at night...AGAIN....and profusely apologize for "bothering" him again, but remind him that my application is being submitted soon and the letter needed to be received this month and see what he says. It's just such an uncomfortable situation to have to keep reminding someone like this.

 

It really is just infuriating that someone with any brains would understand how important this is and just put it off for so long, especially when i've given him ample reminder AND given him room to bow out of writing it for me ages ago if he had for whatever reason changed his mind. For chrissake, it's a one page letter, how long can it possibly take out of his schedule??? I wrote a 25 page paper on stem cell transplantation in diabetes type 1 patients the other day in under 36 hours, and he can't write an effing one page letter that I've practically written for him already???????

 

Ugh. Thanks for the responses, I needed to vent and get some calm perspective on how to approach him, because with all the other stress in my life, I feel like choking the man.

[Timmers]

I like the "Type up a letter and have him sign it" idea. It's a bit presumptuous but then he's really mucked up your application process. Or you could just hound him some more, say it's really important and if you don't have it by (date), then you're screwed.

[KismetGirl]

I like the "Type up a letter and have him sign it" idea. It's a bit presumptuous but then he's really mucked up your application process. Or you could just hound him some more, say it's really important and if you don't have it by (date), then you're screwed.

 

Yeah, I tried the whole "if you prefer I can type up a 'sample' letter for you to use as you wish", since technicaly I am supposed to be waiving my rights to see the letters and stuff, but I think the man is just being an insufferable , completely unprofessional azz. I have to go try to catch him before his lecture tomorrow night and "remind" him agaain, but this time I may have to throw in some desperation. I mean, for chrissake, he's had over three months! My application needs to be together by the end of May, but I need all my letters at least a month before that.

 

I already told him I needed it by mid=march, but perhaps I wasn't expressive enough of the urgency in the matter. I mean, I thought a man with a PhD is intelligent enough to realize medical school application recc letter= important letter you cannot be late on, but I guess even having a doctorate doesn't make people responsible :-(

[KismetGirl]

I noticed that you're the Other Woman. You sleep with a married man to get his attention, maybe you should also consider doing the samething with your professor to get him to write you the letter. Ha ha..Just kidding.

 

Just remind him one more time, if he doesn't do it, ask someone else. Someone who put off writing a letter won't have much great things to say about you anyway.

 

Yeah....I actually didn't sleep with the married guy for two years and still had his attention, but I get the joke.

 

He has plenty of nice things to say about me, I think he is just being completely irresponsible. It's very difficult to ask someone new at this point, because then it looks bad for ME when they ask me "oh, when is the letter due" and Im like "uh....well it was due like a month ago, so um, get on it now please". Im going to go talk to him again tomorrow. Hopefully the man can finally sense my urgency, because this is ridiculous.