Health Professions Committee

Middlebury, along with other top undergraduate schools, provides an evaluation process conducted by a faculty committee, the Health Professions Committee, that results in a letter of endorsement in support of your applications. This campus review process begins in the fall preceding the summer in which your application is initiated.

Middlebury College students and alumni are eligible to go through the committee process if they are applying to medical school. Those who have completed post baccalaureate programs will likely want to receive endorsement from that institution as it will most accurately represent their medical school candidacy.

Applying through the Committee

Follow the Application Timeline for instructions on deadlines and the committee process.

Required Committee Interview

If you request a committee letter you will conduct virtual interviews with three committee members who will provide open and honest feedback and advice. This interview will not determine whether you will receive a committee letter, but the committee may recommend delaying your application by at least a year or two to improve your qualifications.

Candidates will be evaluated using the Health Professions Committee Interview Rubric. We’ve also found that this is a helpful tool for self evaluation.

Interviewing with Committee Members

This is a great time to practice for your professional school interviews, so consider them formal and official. Here are some resources to help you prepare:

AAMC – Preparing for Medical School Interviews

Johns Hopkins University information on the interview

Sample interview questions

Committee Review Period

Interviews take place between January 15 and March 15. After all of the committee interviews complete, the committee meets to discuss and rate the candidates.

Once the HPC has rated the candidates, candidates then begin their application process and the health professions advisors begin to write the committee letters.

A committee letter is a 2-3 page narrative evaluation of your qualifications for medical school. These letters are widely appreciated by admission committees, and in the case of most medical schools, are expected elements of applications from current students and recent graduates.

The committee letter presents a full picture of you based on your academic record; the committee member’s knowledge of you; information in your biographical report; information from the committee’s interviews with you; and individual letters of recommendation.

Health Professions Committee 2023-2024

The members of the Health Professions Committee (HPC) are appointed by the Dean of the Faculty and work closely with the staff Health Professions.

2023-2024 Health Professions Committee Members:

Mary Lothrop, Director of Health Professions Advising, co-chair

James Fitzsimmons, Professor of Anthropology, co-chair

Hannah Benz, Associate Director of Health Professions

Maggie Clinton, Associate Professor of History

Kristin Coe, Assistant Professor of Biology

Chong-suk Han, Professor of Sociology

Chris Herdman, Assistant Professor of Physics

Alex Lyford, Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Statistics

Fernando Rocha, Associate Professor of Luso-Hispanic Studies

Mark Spritzer, Professor of Biology

Gina Thomas, Assistant Professor of Psychology

Zu Wei Zhai, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience