Do universities ever contact referees?

<p>Hello.</p>

<p>I'm a prospective graduate student in the proccess of applying to 5 universities abroad - 2 in Asia (HK and Singapore), 2 in the UK and 1 in Spain. I'm making this post because I'm a bit worried what pertains to letters of recommendation. Firstly, I come from a culture where letters of recommendation aren't really that common. And secondly, I come from a HUGE school where no one really knows each other that well. However, I have asked 2 professors to help me out. They have agreed to do so, but in all honesty, whatever they are going to write, it will be a big babble, because they don't really know me that well. My concern is what happens if any of these schools actually contact them? </p>

<p>What is your experience with universities contacting referees? It probably varies a great deal depending on country, university and faculty, but how likely is it that my referees are going to be contacted? And if they do, what do they usually ask?</p>