S is a senior chem engineering major doing very well (3.6 GPA). Asked him who he’s listed for references on his resume. He replied that when the dept. held a workshop on resume writing, nothing was said about listing references.
Is this a new thing? I haven’t had to update my resume in 30 years (been extremely lucky), but this sounds odd. At the very least, should he indicate that references are available upon request, and have about 3 people lined up when prospective employers inquire?
No, you don’t put them on the resume, nor do you put that they are available on request (this is implied). Many will never even check them because their value is questionable and those who do, generally do so after deciding which candidates they liked and thought interviewed well.
Thanks for the super-quick reply!
As someone who is less than 30 years old, I have never done this or been told to do this. Seems like things have changed?
When I was hiring engineers I ALWAYS checked (i.e. called) the references. You always got good reviews but there are varying shades of good. But ask the “right” questions and you’ll get somewhat of an indication (never foolproof) of the reference’s view of the applicant. However, I would not list them on the resume. The employment application will ask for the references if they want to see them.
Employers have to be very careful these days about giving out frankly poor recommendations. Declining speaks volumes and, as @HPuck35, alluded to, “Johnny was pretty punctual” is pretty different than “We offered Johnny a huge raise and hated to see him go…”
Declining to serve as a reference could also be a matter of abiding by HR policy. People do that sometimes.
True, but usually people will lead with that when it’s the case so as not to give the impression that declining is equivalent to a poor review. References certainly aren’t as clear cut as they were 20 or 30 years ago.
Don’t put it on the resume, especially don’t put reference info on-line or into some large resume database. While you may be fine giving out personal info, I do not want my name and contact info floating around the internet. Also no address or personal info … just name and cell phone.
Depending on the specific job, I pick from a list of people who I think will provide me a good reference if called. There are people who decline, either because of HR, or because of conflicts of interest on a specific job, or whatever (they are not sure they can say something nice, or think you should find someone who knows more about your late nights in the lab than your preference on latte vs. cappuccino)…
If you get to the point where you are putting in an application, which seems to be something related to being asked in for an interview, you need to have 3 references ready with job titles or relationship, current phone numbers or contact info. I keep a list on google docs personally.
So - OP - you and your son are both right.
So this information needs to be gathered, I would also make sure all references are ready, willing and available to be called (and yes, it is likely there will never be a call). A Starbucks gift card and a thank you note might be a good reward when you get a job. A good reference may last a long time.
For a new grad, I would think the list is mostly personal … but if he has some real professional references, that may help.
I think if you have a reference that you are using as a network tool to get into a specific employer, you might have to go beyond just a passive listing … maybe cover letter … maybe ask your ref to actually network you to right people
My professor, Dr Hunter, suggested that you may have an opening at your company. I have been working with Dr Hunter for 2 years as a research assistant and am very interested in your work in caterpillar breeding.
OP - yes, you can also make constructive comments on resume, even things like grammar, readability, kerning,
I also think many jobs require some tweaking of a good starting resume to highlight how your experience relates to the job in question. Those years as a barista could be one line … or say for a sales position … a paragraph.