Maybe the option to supply a single letter could be offered for those applicants who suspect that their record on paper does not reflect their abilities accurately. Of course, comparisons would not be entirely even if some applicants had letters and others did not, but if everyone listed 3 references those additional letters could be requested.
Emily Moran On Aug 31, 2017, at 7:22 AM, John Anderson <jander...@coa.edu<mailto:jander...@coa.edu>> wrote: at the same time, both as someone who writes letters and someone who has seen an applicant move from the "ah, whatever" to the "let's talk" pile based on a good letter of reference, I would encourage all of you to keep writing & keep reading. On Thu, Aug 31, 2017 at 8:55 AM, Fidele Bognounou <fidele.bognou...@gmail.com<mailto:fidele.bognou...@gmail.com>> wrote: Hi Brian, Very good point! There are even potential candidates that will not apply for a position because they don't want to keek annoying the providers of the letters. Fidele On Wed, Aug 30, 2017 at 9:27 PM, Patrick, Brian <brpat...@dwu.edu<mailto:brpat...@dwu.edu>> wrote: Dear colleagues, I have noticed over the years a significant increase in the number of position announcements that state that full applications must include three letters of reference. As someone who has been on numerous search committees, has written a fair number of letters of recommendation, and has applied for a fair number of jobs, I can honestly say that this is exceptionally inconvenient to applicants, to those writing the letters, and not necessary for an initial application. A list of at least three references should be sufficient for an initial application. Let’s be honest, in a large stack of applications, only a few tend to bubble to the top, and they extremely-rarely-to-virtually-never do so because of their recommendations. Search committees, please do NOT require three letters up front. It is largely unnecessary and extremely inconvenient (for the candidate and letter writers) to provide this information if the candidate doesn’t even make the cut for a phone interview. It’s a wasted effort for the vast majority of job applicants and for those writing those letters for the vast majority of job applicants. In short, ask for a list of references only. If letters from those references are needed from a few candidates for whatever reason, then make the request after making the initial trim of the pool to the candidate list. If you do not have a choice whether or not this is required, then it needs to be explained to the HR person or whoever makes that call that it is largely an inconvenient waste of many people’s time to provide the letters up front. It is always better to ask for a list of references. Thank you for your time and for letting me express my opinion on this topic. Too many young scientists are put in awkward positions because they have to ask for 14 letters from the same few people. Personally, I try to personalize each letter I write to the institution or type of job for which the candidate is applying. It gets very annoying to have to provide this when a colleague applies for a job that may be a stretch for them (but they should still apply!). I think they should apply, and I want them to apply—my ire lies with the committees that make that up-front request for all applicants. Thank you again for your time! Best regards, Brian ----------------------------------------------------------- L. Brian Patrick, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Biology Department of Biological Sciences Dakota Wesleyan University 1200 W. University Ave. Mitchell, SD 57301 USA Office: 605-995-2712<tel:(605)%20995-2712> -- John Anderson W.H. Drury Professor of Ecology/Natural History College of the Atlantic 105 Eden St Bar Harbor ME 04609
