PHRC FAQs

How does my recommendation writer submit his/her letter?
You will enter the names and contact information of the recommendation writers in the online application.  If you indicate they will submit “online” they will receive an email notification from the application service about how to submit their letters. Submission information can also be found in the “Cover letter for Letter Writers” on the FORMS link on the left.

My professor does not want to submit his/her letter online. Is there another way to get the letter to the committee?
Recommendations should be submitted electronically through the application site in Hoya360, but will also accept letters from professors by email to prehealth@georgetown.edu.

My letter writer wants to know to whom he/she should address the letter and how the letter should be structured.  What do I tell him or her?
You may give your letter writer a copy of the “Cover Letter for Letter Writers” which has information about what best to cover in a letter for a student. He or she may also refer to the “Guidelines for Writing a Letter of Evaluation for a Medical School Applicant.”  Both of these documents can be found on the FORMS link on the left.

The PHRC application is not open yet and my recommendation writer is ready to submit his/her letter. What should he or she do?
We prefer electronic submissions through the application site in Hoya360, but we will also accept and hold letters for you and add them to your application once you have submitted it. The less preferred way to submit letters is through email to prehealth@georgetown.edu.

What if my recommendation writers can’t get a letter done for me by April 30?
Recommendation letter writers have a different deadline than you do. Letter writers have until the end of May to complete their letters.

What do I do if I want to submit another letter of reference (outside of the four required for the Pre-Health Committee review) for my application to medical/dental school?
We are happy to upload additional letters for you. Your letter writer will need to submit the letter to us via the Individual Letters Repository (in Hoya360), email or U.S. mail. Enter additional letters as “Individual Letter” on your AMCAS application. You will need to provide the letter ID information and application ID information assigned by the application service, and let us know how you would like the letter distributed if applicable. If the school does not receive letters through AMCAS or VirtualEvals you will need to provide the submission details as well. You may give your letter writer the “Cover Letter for Letter Writers” which contains submission instructions.

It’s October and I submitted my AMCAS application months ago.  I just completed a great research experience and would like to ask my mentor to write a letter for me.  Is it too late to add an additional letter to my AMCAS application?
You may submit additional letters to your application at any time, but you should be sure the schools you apply to will accept additional letters and be mindful of their deadlines.

I am reapplying to medical school this year.  Do I need to submit an application for a committee recommendation again?
No, your committee recommendation can be resubmitted if you are reapplying to medical school.  The committee will only re-review applicants who were “recommended with reservation” or “not recommended.”  If you would like your committee recommendation resubmitted please contact the Pre-Health Office by email (prehealth@georgetown.edu) – do not submit an application to the Pre-Med Committee for a recommendation.

I graduated from Georgetown a couple of years ago and was not successful in my first application to medical school.  I just completed a Master’s degree program and will be reapplying to medical school and would like to be reviewed again by the committee.  What do I need to do?
The committee is only able to provide a recommendation based on your undergraduate experience at Georgetown.  If you’ve completed a Master’s or Post-Bac program after your graduation from Georgetown you will be better served going through the recommendation process at that program as it’s your most recent and most relevant academic preparation for the application.  If assistance is not available through the program you’ve recently completed, the Pre-Health Office can assist you by uploading letters of recommendation and if necessary we can provide a letter explaining the committee’s practice for providing recommendations and some comment about your readiness for medical school from the undergraduate perspective.  You may contact the Pre-Health office directly if you need this type of letter (do not submit an application to the Pre-Health Committee for a recommendation).

One of my recommendation writers has decided he can’t write a letter for me.  How do I make a change to my list of recommenders?
Once you have submitted your application for a committee recommendation you cannot make any changes to it.  You may contact the Pre-Health office (prehealth@georgetown.edu) if you need to make a change to your recommendation writer list.

How do I find out whether my recommendation writers have submitted their letters to the committee?
You may access this information by logging in to your online application in Hoya360.

A school is asking me for a letter describing the details and resolution of an institutional action that I reported on my application. Whom do I contact for this information?
For student conduct issues, the Office of Student Conduct issues these letters – http://studentconduct.georgetown.edu/.
For academic integrity matters, please email honor@georgetown.edu.

A school is asking for a letter verifying my English credits. Whom do I contact for this information?
Verification of English credits is included in the Committee letter. If you did not complete your degree at Georgetown you will need to contact your undergraduate institution and request a letter. You can add that letter as an “Individual Letter” on your application and assign it to the schools that are requesting the information.