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what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:15 pm
by babiea4
Helloooo,

My employer told me that I should tell her what to write for my recommendation letter. What should I ask her to include?

Thank you!

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:23 pm
by St.Remy
babiea4 wrote:Helloooo,

My employer told me that I should tell her what to write for my recommendation letter. What should I ask her to include?

Thank you!
You should be sure to tell her not to start the LOR with "Hellooooo"

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2010 11:08 pm
by babiea4
Duly noted! But on a more serious note, any advice?

Thanks!

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2010 11:35 pm
by bartleby
work ethic and how you stack up favorably compared to other employees...native intelligence...and that you are very social and a social adhesive in the work environment. not sure if that even makes sense but those are the things on my employer LOR. usually, they'll BS quite a bit for you if you were actually a good employee.

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 12:58 am
by im_blue
hard working
works well with others
maturity
organization skills
critical thinking
oral and written communication skills

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 1:07 am
by PDaddy
You want the employer to address many of the same points an academic letter writer would address, but with the twist of being abserved in a work envirnonment.

Have them cite work ethic (f you balanced school and work, for example, a strong attendance record, strong sales record and awards - if applicable - would do it), creativity, team play, verbal skills, writing skills (if applicable), critical thinking abilities as demonstrated in problem-solving situations or at meetings, compassion for others, etc. Have the employer cite specific examples and make comparisons to other employees by rank (ex: "Of the 50 sales people I supervised in my region, so and so was my #1 associate").

Written properly, an employment LOR can be more illuminating than an academic letter, and, at some schools (read: Northwestern), may be given more weight.

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 1:46 am
by Shooter
PDaddy hit the nail on the head exactly. Do what he said.

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 8:26 am
by Fred_McGriff
That you were always on time, you never left your costumes out on the stage, you really knew how to get the tips rolling in, and you always treated the customers in the VIP lounge like real VIPs (wink).

Re: what should a employer say in a positive reference letter?

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 10:43 am
by babiea4
Shooter wrote:PDaddy hit the nail on the head exactly. Do what he said.
Thank you everyone for all the great tips!!