Can You Recommend Me

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Can You Recommend Me?

Requesting and Writing ³Reference´ Letters

Chelsea Buffington ± Career ServicesDave Johnson ± Graduate Office

October 13, 2006



A Word on Representing Yourself

³Be Shameless!´ The Corollary for

recommendation letters:

Be Premeditated!



Reference Letters vs. Letters of Recommendation

Graduate schools and employersask for ³references.´

You don¶t want a reference.

You want a recommendation.



Someone in a position of authority willwrite your recommendation letter.

Does this mean that youare powerless to

influence the outcome?

No!



The ³waiver´

x

x



I am unwilling to describe in detail my assessment of the applicant's qualifications for graduate study,since the applicant elected to not waive their right of access to this letter.

In summary:"«Admit to my graduate program« ? NO

"«Employ the applicant«? NO

If you don¶t waive «



³for your eyes only´ letters

direct (email or telephone)

communications

If you don¶t waive «

How might damaging information becommunicated to the school/jobopportunity?



You have control over the processleading up to the writing of your letter.

The ³three step´ process:

Develop relationships withrecommenders as early as possible.

Assure that you get a

recommendation.

³Stack´ the Deck.



I. Develop relationships with recommenders asearly as possible

Be a member of your academiccommunity.

Seek out opportunities to

collaborate on research projects.

Work in a research lab or group.



II. Assure that you get a recommendation

Ask for a recommendation ± not a

reference letter.

You have permission to ask if therecommender will recommend you.

If they say no, say, ³thank youanyway´ and find someone who canprovide you with a recommendation.



III. ³Stack´ the Deck

Provide the recommender with a copy of:

the position announcement(s)

your application letter(s)/statement(s)of interest

your vita



III. ³Stack´ the Deck

Provide the recommender with a copy of:

your transcript

your strategy for obtaining thisposition, if not included in the

materials above

due date and address

*



Writing A Recommendation

Where do you begin?



Interviewing the

Applicant

Review the applicant¶s materials.

Talk with the applicant about theposition and their goals.

Consider whether you can trulyrecommend the applicant for theposition. Say ³no´ if you cannot.



LegalIssues

Students have the right to see theletter unless they have waived that

right.

Specific topics are prohibited.

Employer Immunity



WhatShould be

Included?

The relationship between theapplicant and recommender

Specific examples

The applicant¶s professional promise



Writing to the Position Graduate school vs. employment

Each type of graduate school is lookingfor answers to specific questions fromspecific types of people

Employers look for the letter to addressthe specific position



Following Up

Applicants should make sure to followup on whether the letter has beensent and has arrived.

A ³thank you´ note should be sent toeach recommender.

Let the recommender know theresult.



TrickySituations

What are the strategies for placingone of your PhD students in an

academic position?



TrickySituations

What should an applicant do if theyare asked to write a letter about

themselves, which the ³recommender´ will then sign?



TrickySituations

If an applicant wants to reconsidertheir choice for a recommender,

should they do so?



TrickySituations

What should a recommender do if they have changed their mind about

writing a letter?

*



Sample Letters



Sample Letter #1 ± the opening

I am pleased to write on behalf of (the student) whohas applied to your graduate program in

(department). For four weeks during the summer of (date), I was one of four faculty and the student wasone of twelve undergraduate students who, together,conducted field studies in the location. For (thestudent), this was followed by a year long researchproject on the (topics) that occur in the study area.(The student¶s) research culminated in a senior thesisand a poster presentation.



Sample Letter #1 ± the wind up

I served as an off-campus advisor for (the student¶s)project during this time. The « project that (thestudent) and I participated in was sponsored by the(prestigious consortium). The Consortium is a group of twelve small « departments at predominatelyundergraduate, liberal arts institutions from around thecountry «, working together to provide collaborativeundergraduate research opportunities. (The)Consortium research projects draw students and

faculty from all member institutions, which is how I came to work with (the student). It was a pleasure towork with (the student) in the field. (The student) wasenthusiastic, cooperative, easy going, responsible, andhard working.



Sample Letter #1 ± still winding

Picture the setting - twelve 20-year olds, strangers toeach other, come together from different parts of thecountry with different socio-economic backgroundsand work together for long, hot days in physicallydemanding terrain, living in cramped, less than idealquarters. (As an example, (the student) -who comesfrom « cattle ranching country -lived and worked

with a strict vegetarian from urban Baltimore). Itcould have been bad! But it wasn't. The studentsbonded quickly and worked and lived togetherhappily.



S

ample Letter #1 ± the pitchThis is the strongest demonstration I can offer of thequality of (the student¶s) (and (the) cohort's)character. I would not hesitate to work with the(student) again and recommend (the student) to youon this basis without reservation. As a student-scientist, (the student) was also an asset. (Thestudent) mastered the (large scale information anddetails), and the complex issues the project meant toaddress readily. (The student) was able to put

together a plan of work for (the student¶s) individualproject, and quickly became self-directed during thefield portion of the project. During the academic year,(the student) learned new analytical techniques « andaccumulated a large body of new and important data.



S

ample Letter #1 ± the closingIf (the student) showed any shortcoming during thisproject, I would say that an unnecessary lack of self-confidence led (the student) to be very conservative

in (the) interpretations of the data (the student)produced. I feel certain, however, that these were"beginners butterflies". I have no doubt that with oneresearch project under (the student¶s) belt (thestudent) will succeed in a masters level graduateprogram. I encourage you to take this fine youngscientist on.



S

ample Letter #2 ± the opening

This is a letter in support of (student's) application tothe New Mexico Tech graduate program. I have

known student since (date). As the primaryundergraduate advisor for the department ..., I signed off on course plans and provided generalguidance to our majors and minors. (The student)was also a student in one of my courses last year.

Finally, I was (the student's) senior thesis advisor

and employer during his final academic year.



S

ample Letter #2 ± the problem

(The student) is a very smart student. (The student)has outstanding personal and verbal skills, and (thestudent) has taken a difficult course load. But (thestudent) is also one of the most frustrating students I have worked with since arriving at (university) in(date). In conversation, in class and in the lab, it isapparent that (the student) is extremely bright and

capable, but (the student) seems to have difficultyfocusing and remaining motivated.



S

ample Letter #2 ± analysis

I think that part of the problem is that, because thestudent is so smart and verbally astute, it issometimes difficult to tell when (the student)genuinely understands something. As a result, andbecause (the student) is independently minded, (thestudent) ends up having to sort things out on (thestudent¶s) own and does not always get thesupervision (the student) desires or requires. Forexample, (the student) grasped many of the difficult

concepts in subject immediately, but (the student¶s)record on the assignments was spotty, with amixture of outstanding and mediocre work.



Sample Letter #2 ± assignment of

responsibility

Similarly, (the student¶s) senior thesis work showedconsiderable spark and intellectual engagement at

the start, and (the student) put in a lot of lab time,but the effort fizzled in the end when it became clearthat the some of the early measurements wereflawed. I take some blame for these difficulties, sinceI assumed early on that (the student) could workwith minimal supervision, but the ultimate

responsibility to seek assistance and remain engagedmust rest with (the student).



S

ample Letter #2 - context

I explained to (the student) when (the student)asked for this letter that it would be candid regarding

his course and research performance, and (thestudent) accepted this without hesitation. (Thestudent) has indicated that (the student's) preparedto apply himself/herself in graduate school, and (thestudent) seems to understand that (the student)needs to demonstrate commitment and a greater

level of consistency in order to succeed in a researchcareer.



Sample Letter #2 ± the closing

With the right project and patient guidance, I believe that(the student) could be a very good to outstanding

graduate student. I wish that I could make a more positiverecommendation, as it seems that (the student) is genuinein his/her desire to excel, and I hope that (the student)can find a program and supervisor that provide thenecessary motivation and supervision. Please don'thesitate to contact me with questions about thisrecommendation.

Documents

Can You Recommend Me