HEALTH PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE

 

To all students who are planning on applying to Medical, Dental, Optometry, or Podiatry Schools.

 

If you are planning on going through the committee letter process at BYU-Idaho, now is the time to get organized.

The Health Professions Committee at BYU-Idaho is comprised of professors, professionals from the community, and Kent L Barrus who serves as the committee chair. The purpose of the committee is to evaluate each Health Professions student and compose a letter of evaluation that is sent to each school to which the student applies. Many schools prefer a committee letter rather then individual letters of evaluation.  You will, however, still need to obtain individual letters of evaluation from professors, employers, etc. as these are used in your overall evaluation and are an integral part of the committee process.

A 3.0 science GPA is required to go through the Health Professions Committee. The decision to go through the committee is not a mandatory one, but you are strongly encouraged to do so because many schools require a letter from the Health Professions Committee at your undergraduate institution. You would only want to apply outside the committee if the committee told you that they could not write a supportive letter of evaluation on your behalf.

 

FAQ about the committe process

 

ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGE OF USING THE COMMITTEE

There are both advantages and disadvantages to using the committee:

Advantages:

1.       Interview experience.

2.       AMCAS/AADSAS preparation.

3.       Feedback on your application.

4.       The reputation of a committee letter.

Disadvantage:

1.       Time consuming process.

2.       If you are not a strong applicant, the letter will reflect it.

These are also advantages and disadvantages to NOT using the committee:

Advantages:

1.       Individual letters may be more favorable.

2.       Less time commitment.

Disadvantages:

1.       Schools may disregard non-committee recommendations because they lack credibility.

  

THE COMMITTEE PROCESS

The committee letter process requires some time and effort, but in the long run it will be a significant asset. During January and February of the year previous to your anticipated entrance into professional school, you should do the following things:

(1)     Notify the Health Professions Advising Center of you intent to use the committee process.  This is critical to make sure you can be accommodated.  Notify Kent Barrus via e-mail at barrusk@byui.edu.
 

(2)     Come into the Health Professions Advising Center (Benson 209) to have the process explained to you and to obtain the necessary forms you will need to complete the process.
 

(3)     Sign the Declaration of Confidentiality form available in the Health Professions Advising Center.
 

(4)     Obtain individual letters of recommendation from professors and others.  Cover letters are available at the Health Professions Advising Center that must be included with the writer's letters. You should collect six for medical school applicants and three for dental, optometry, and podiatry school applicants.  These letters should be sent to Kent Barrus at the Health Professions Advising Office.

a.       If you need help on who should write your letters, please visit the Health Professions Advising Center.
 

(5)     Fill out a Personal Data Sheet (PDS) or AMCAS / AADSAS application. On the PDS you provide important information concerning your grades, MCAT scores, BYU-Idaho course work, medical experience, extracurricular activities, honors and awards, research, etc. There is also a page for personal comments. You may get a copy of the Personal Data Sheet in the Health Professions Advising Center or you can download the Personal Data Sheet online.
Health Professions PDS.doc
 

(6)     Submit one copy of your current transcript to the Health Professions Advising Center. Transcripts are available from the registrar's office in the Kimball Building or online.
 

(7)     Schedule two interviews with members of the committee.  The interviews will take place the last half of March and the first half of April.  You will be notified via e-mail when sign-ups for the interviews are available.

IMPORTANT: All of the items listed above are placed in your file and your file must be completed before you can schedule a Health Professions committee interview.

 

COMMITTEE INTERVIEWS

After your Health Professions file is complete, you may schedule interviews with two members of the Health Professions Committee. These interviews take place in March and April of the year before you enter professional school. Two interviews are required. A third interview may be necessary if the two interviewers do not agree on their evaluation. It is important that you present yourself well in these interviews. What the interviewers perceive will be included in the committee letter. Sometime during that summer, your Health Professions committee letter will be composed. It is your responsibility to inform the Health Professions Advising Center when you want this letter sent. The professional schools to which you apply will advise you when they want this Health Professions committee letter of evaluation to be sent.

 

CONFIDENTIALITY ISSUES

According to the Buckley Act of 1974, all information in your file may be open to you. However, if a professional school knows that you had access to your file, they will generally see your recommendation as being less objective and honest, and your application will not be as credible as a closed file. For this reason, we encourage you to keep a closed file. This can be done by signing a form in the Health Professions Advising Center thus waiving your right to see your file. The Health Professions Committee and professional schools prefer closed files; however, the choice is yours.

 

IF YOU CHOOSE NOT TO USE THE COMMITTEE

If you do not use the committee, the Health Professions Advising Center is still available to assist you. If you choose to have your letters of evaluation sent to our office, we will send copies of these letters to professional schools upon your request.

If you choose to use our credentials service, we will maintain your file for five years from the time you register with our office after which time it will be destroyed. We will maintain your file longer with a written request.